For my third article, I chose to read Turning the Page by Tim Walker. You can access it via this link: http://www.nea.org/home/35939.htm. I selected this article for a few reasons. I feel very passionately that technology coordinators should be technology advocates in their school systems. They need to stay on the cutting edge of technology as well as encourage teachers, administrators, and those in higher positions to embrace all that technology has to offer our students. Another reason I chose this article is because my cousin, Tara Seale, is highlighted in it. I can’t speak highly enough about what she does in her school district. She is definitely an innovative teacher and is so lucky that she lives in a school district that supports her adventures.
The author highlights some neat ways Tara incorporates technology in her English class. Some ideas that were mentioned in the article are: having students post in character from a Shakespeare novel to a ning, using flip video cameras to act out scenes from a novel, and discussing books on a blog with students in other state. I still think that the majority of teachers are not embracing modern technology as a resource that they can use in their classrooms. This article gives ideas that can be shared with other teachers so that they will hopefully be inspired.
The author also spends some time pointing out the varying opinions about technology. There are still quite a few educators and parents who do not believe that digital learning has value. I think that in order to help with this technology reform in the school systems, technology coordinators are going to have to be vocal. They will have to remain educated, passionate, and informed. They will often have to convince teachers, administrators, and most importantly decision-makers that implementing technology in the classrooms is not only valuable--it's a necessity. Ultimately, the technology coordinators still have to keep the students in mind. I hope that more technology leaders will fight for their school systems to embrace 21st century learning.
Reference:
Walker, T. (2009). Turning the page. NEA Today, October 2009. Retrieved from: http://www.nea.org/home/35939.htm.
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I really enjoyed reading this article. It is pretty cool that you personally know that teacher. I felt like her ideas to embrace technology in her instruction were both beneficial to the students and sparked an interest they might not have had otherwise.The article states that "digital media has limitless possibilities for collaboration, sharing, and communication that can captivate students." I feel this quote is a great summary of the article. Teachers need to collaborate with the technology specialist in order to provide technologically rich experiences that provide a higher level of thinking for the students.
ReplyDeleteThe argument that teachers have a lack of funds, time, and comfort is stated over and over again. That seems to be the number one complaint about using technology. In order to overcome these obstacles, the technology specialist needs to be knowledgeable and provide the teachers and students with resources that are available within the school system, as well as training on how to use it. The article states that some school are just adapting way too slowly for the digital change and I agree! Education needs to step it up, or we are doing a "disservice" to our students.
I agree with you that technology coordinators should be the technology advocates in their school systems. This article provides many great ideas on how they can do that.
ReplyDeleteI think in order for tech coordinators to be the advocates each school system needs it is important for them to understand and be excited about the different types of technology available to teachers. It is really important that teachers have someone to expose them to the great things that are available to them. Teachers will never be excited or comfortable about integrating technology if they don't know what they can do with it.