Let's Teach So Students Learn

With all the focus on assessing our students, the main purpose of teaching seems to have taken a back seat to the test. Gathering knowledge and learning how to think isn't emphasized like it should be. Teachers are being persuaded (or maybe pressured is a better term) to teach to the test these days. And while technology is being used (our district has an online assessment system) it's not being used for growth and development. Rather, it's a data collection tool. And data doesn't get students excited. So what can we do to counteract the side effects of too much testing? That isn't an easy answer, but I have a feeling technology will have something to do with it. Using technology in the classroom makes the students engaged and involved in their learning. Digital devices in the students' hands become an unlimited means of learning. Using sites such as Edmodo and apps like NearPod get kids to participate and enjoy their school day. I'd love to see the joy of learning I witnessed in the early morning scientists' meeting continue throughout the day in every classroom, everywhere. Oh, and data will be collected so everyone will be happy and get what they need!

2020 Vision

I’ve never thought of myself as a particularly visionary person. If I were, I’d have invented Silly Bands or those those ice cubes tubes that can fit into a water bottle. I’m usually the person that looks at what other people have envisioned and thought to myself, “Why didn’t I think of that?” In terms of educational technology though, I may have a little bit of an edge. While I’m no digital native (my first computer experience was a high school BASIC class,) I have always been open to learning and using the new tools that come along. So what do I believe the future will hold for technology in 2020? My answer may surprise you, as it did me.

In just under ten years, we will be entering the year 2020. It sounds like a revolutionary year. It reminds me of when we we talked about the year 1984. Many people thought we’d be in flying cars or at least ones that used something other than fossil fuels. But 1984 came and went and not much changed. Will that happen again? Will 2020 look pretty much like 2011? My less-than-stellar visionary skills say that while the world will change, it won’t be cataclysmic. A decade isn’t a long time in terms of mankind. Some decades produce more change than others. Take the last ten years. That seemed dramatic. We went from a world using computers in business and maybe a bit of word processing and emailing, to a world almost completely plugged into technology. Computers then were large desktops but are now teeny little devices that fit in our pockets. Often there’s a lull after a period of enormous change. It’s almost as the world takes a deep breath and sits back to absorb it all. That’s how I see the next ten years. Our world has morphed from a stand-alone society into a globally connected one. While we will continue to move in that direction, it won’t be a big shift from where we are now. We need to digest all that has been produced in the first 10 years of the new century.

So then, how will this digestion of information affect education and vice versa? The pessimist in me wants to say it won’t much at all. The educational system seems to move at a snail’s pace. It’s a paradoxical situation. On one hand it stresses that all students should become 21st century learners, yet it keeps much of what they need to learn those skills out of their hands. Most of the technology they bring to school or use at home, is not allowed within the school walls. Students are using a plethora of technology outside of school, but enter the building and find it isn’t available during most of their school day. While the pundits and experts talk about how technology is transforming schools, the majority of schools in the United States are woefully lacking in the tools these students need and desire. Unfortunately, I don’t see this changing much in the coming decade. With the resistance to use collaborative tools (out of safety/security concerns) and the increasing pressure to boost standardized test scores, it seems that the technological changes the world has experienced will continue to stop at the school door.

That is not to say technology will not be a part of a student’s day. As the data-driven movement in education continues down its ill-fated path, technology will be an integral part of how students are tested and assessed. The bubbles they once filled in, will become clicks on a computer screen. The test scores that took months for districts to receive, will be sent immediately upon test completion. It won’t be collaborative, and students will gain little from its use. Its this misguided view of how to use technology that I see occurring in the coming years. Good educators and forward-thinking administrators will continue to implement web 2.0 tools in their schools and classrooms. But it won’t be until the pendulum swings back toward center, policies change, and testing returns to its proper state, that real progress will begin. Unfortunately, I believe this process will take a bit longer than ten years to be realized.

As I see myself as a creative and innovative teacher, I will choose to forge my own path in the field of educational technology. Through using my own personal learning network of like-minded educators, I will continue to search out the new advances in technology and implement them where I see fit. As much as my district allows me to, I will use interactive websites and collaborative apps to give my students the skills they need now and for their futures. To ignore these important methods is a great mistake. It’s quite obvious that students will need to know how to work collaboratively in a global marketplace. They will need to learn the proper behaviors when communicating online. While they will still need to know the basic skills that have been taught during the past century, new skills will also be required in this new one. I am dedicating myself to helping them.

To do so, a teacher in 2020 should be open to the new technology that will be continually introduced. Educators will have to take on the responsibility of much of their own learning. A school district’s focus may not be on these new skills, and will be mainly on how to use technology to meets assessment goals. Money for professional development may be used for training teachers to be good test proctors. Considering this, teachers will have to make a concerted effort to expand their knowledge of the Read/Write web on their own time and with their own dimes. The good news is that there exists an ever-expanding network of places to do this. While it will take time, it won’t cost much, if anything at all. Using sites such as Twitter and Facebook, teachers from around the globe can connect and learn together. Blogs and wikis will become the new type of in-service seminar...anytime, anywhere. No need to show up at 8:45 for registration and refreshments. Get online anytime and learn from others doing the same. They can Skype if they want the face-to-face real time feel. But ultimately all they need to learn will be accessible if they search it out. Teachers in 2020 will need to become self-motivated learners like never before.

By 2020, the world will have changed and technology use will have increased. The educational system will most likely continue its journey towards accountability and “reform” that may lead us off the path towards real achievement. Yet individual teachers will seek each other out in the virtual and real world to pursue the lofty goals of educating their students to become successful and productive citizens in a virtually connected world.

For inspiration, please view the video below and join me on my journey.

Pay Attention

Web Based Apps

Backpackit.com seems like a web application that would work nicely for a student who is without an iPhone or other Smartphone calendar/list app. I like the concept of organizing your info on the web. Other web apps such as this would be Google calendar or Zoho. I could imagine a student who needs to prioritize and document his schedule as someone who would benefit from this type of app. Google also has an option to create iGoogle pages to do the same. Having it on the web makes sense since it’s accessible through any computer. These tools will most likely make offline organizers like Daytimers obsolete.

The Paperless Trail

• How would a paperless class change your role as a teacher?

I’ve actually begun to shift over to a paperless workshop in my inservice sessions and I love it. My role hasn’t changed as much as has the way I go about preparing for the workshop. In the past I would create handouts in Word, print them, make copies, put the copies in folders and pass out the folders as the teachers arrived. But with a paperless workshop I create all my “handouts” in Google Docs, then either share them directly with the attendees or attach a link to my website for them to access the information. My prep work is different and I am saving a lot of trees!

• How would paperless classes change learning?

I’ve noticed that some teachers aren’t comfortable with learning onscreen and will print out the information once they’ve accessed it online. I always find that amusing because usually after the workshop, they can’t remember where they put the papers and email me for help!

• How would you measure learning in a paperless class?

Not having a piece of paper doesn’t mean work isn’t handed in. It’s just done virtually. So for the blog posts that I’ve begun with the fifth graders, I will access and read their comments (much like this class) and give them feedback. It just streamlines the process.

• Would a paperless space make it easier or harder to build a learning network? Why?

Paperless spaces would make it much easier to build a learning network. With an online meeting place, students, teachers, parents, and experts would all be able to interact and communicate with one another. Rather than write a letter or make a phone call, the pace of interactions would be quickened and the ability to collaborate would be made that much easier.

The Big Shift #1

• How has this shift affected your teaching practice so far?

Over the past decade as a computer teacher, I’ve been able to create my own curriculum using the Internet as the primary source for my lessons. What I’ve seen changing recently is where I go to find the information. Initially I would visit many sites that were only “read” pages. I would read or maybe download a lesson, but I had no input to the content. Now I mainly visit sites that are interactive and updated frequently.

• How do you expect it might affect you in the future?

There’s no doubt that the Read/Write web will change what I teach the students in my class. I’ve already noticed that I’ve started to dabble in a very simple blog with the fifth graders and they loved it. I would imagine that I’ll start incorporating wikis and podcasts in the lessons.

• Have your views changed since you started this course?

Since the beginning of this course, I think my attitude regarding using blogs and wikis, etc. has changed. Although I’ve always been a fan of them, this class has made me realize that they are a necessity that should be taught to all students. Realizing that these students will need to know these tools to work successfully in the 21st century was an eye-opener for me.

• How can you use technology to facilitate this shift in your own classroom?

I believe that I have an opportunity to not only facilitate this shift in my own classroom, but through my position as a staff development trainer, I can potentially help my district teachers to begin to change their teaching tools from papers to podcasts! At the beginning of every year we have to create workshops for teachers to choose for their professional development hours. My wheels are already spinning in my head on what types of offerings can be created using all the elements I’ve learned through this class.

Connectivism Comment

Group D’s wikipage on Connectivism succinctly describes the essense of the theory. I like how they noted that the internalized type of learning model no longer works in today’s world because there is too much content and it is always changing. That’s precisely why using the Internet can be so frustrating! I also liked how they pointed out that it is more a learning strategy. And I especially liked that they used the same video of the “Networked Student” as my group did!

Link to Group D’s blog: http://summer11-bce-01.wikispaces.com/Group+D+6-A-1

A Bunch of Skype

So I'm sure that I'm in the minority, but I really don't find much of a need for Skype in my professional life. While I can see it is a great tool for staying in touch with Grandmas across the world, I don't feel a need to use it to interact with other educators. To me, it just seems like using a phone, with the exception of being able to see the person. And I am not a phone person. I feel tied down when I'm talking on the phone and prefer to be able to multi-task which is difficult if you are sitting at your computer. I prefer an asynchronous type of format such as email or texting. I am not able to use Skype with my students since it is blocked (surprise!) But if they did unblock it, I can see how Skyping with another class in another country could be a great way for them to expand their horizons. That would be pretty cool.