Vision
There is little doubt that technology has impacted almost every aspect of our lives. From how we communicate with others, how we live, how we work, and even how our students are educated. According to the Department of Education, 5.3 million students took at least one online course in the fall of 2013 (US DOE, 2016). Technology has made our access to education more accessible, more personalized, and it is even making it more meaningful to our students. In years past our students learning has just been confined to our four classroom walls, but now with the integration of technology our walls have come down and the whole world is invited in. Integrating technology into our classrooms provides opportunities for differentiation, real-world application, communication, encouraging our students to take ownership of their learning while increasing their higher order thinking skills.
Technology can have such a positive impact on all of our students. We are able to offer special technologies to accommodate our students with special needs, create assessments, offer remediation, and differentiated activities for our students. Integrating technology into our classrooms does not just happen by providing our students with computers or the latest software. It also cannot be an occasional occurrence for our students, but it must happen daily. Integrating technology does not replace our teachers, but technology should be seen as a resource to support and enhance what is taking place in our classrooms. To effectively integrate technology into our classrooms we must begin with our teachers and change the way that we view technology in our classrooms. Integrating technology into our classrooms must include knowledge and preparation that is supported through professional development. Providing our teachers with adequate time and differentiated professional learning gives them a chance to discover and implement these technologies into their classrooms. As McCrae states, “without adequate support and motivation educators will retreat to their old ways of teaching”(2012).
Successful technology integration is achieved when these tools are readily accessible while supporting our inquiry based curriculum and helping our students effectively reach their goals (Edutopia, 2007). The use of technology in our classrooms will also shift the dynamics from a teacher led classroom to become more of a student led classroom, helping our students take ownership of their learning. There are so many different ways to integrate technology into our classrooms. We can encourage project-based activities, incorporate game based learning and web based projects, have students create videos and slideshows while collaborating with their peers. Regardless of which tool is chosen integrating technology into our classrooms can extend our students learning and engagement for all of our students.
References
McCrea, B. (2012, March 14). How To Bring Teachers Up to Speed with Technology. The Journal: Transforming Education Through Technology. Retrieved from https://thejournal.com/articles/2012/03/14/getting-teachers-up-to-speed-with-technology.aspx?=THE21.
What Is Successful Technology Integration? (2007, November 5). Retrieved from http://www.edutopia.org/technology-integration-guide-description
U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics. (2016). Digest of Education Statistics, 2014 (NCES 2016-006), Table 311.15.
Technology can have such a positive impact on all of our students. We are able to offer special technologies to accommodate our students with special needs, create assessments, offer remediation, and differentiated activities for our students. Integrating technology into our classrooms does not just happen by providing our students with computers or the latest software. It also cannot be an occasional occurrence for our students, but it must happen daily. Integrating technology does not replace our teachers, but technology should be seen as a resource to support and enhance what is taking place in our classrooms. To effectively integrate technology into our classrooms we must begin with our teachers and change the way that we view technology in our classrooms. Integrating technology into our classrooms must include knowledge and preparation that is supported through professional development. Providing our teachers with adequate time and differentiated professional learning gives them a chance to discover and implement these technologies into their classrooms. As McCrae states, “without adequate support and motivation educators will retreat to their old ways of teaching”(2012).
Successful technology integration is achieved when these tools are readily accessible while supporting our inquiry based curriculum and helping our students effectively reach their goals (Edutopia, 2007). The use of technology in our classrooms will also shift the dynamics from a teacher led classroom to become more of a student led classroom, helping our students take ownership of their learning. There are so many different ways to integrate technology into our classrooms. We can encourage project-based activities, incorporate game based learning and web based projects, have students create videos and slideshows while collaborating with their peers. Regardless of which tool is chosen integrating technology into our classrooms can extend our students learning and engagement for all of our students.
References
McCrea, B. (2012, March 14). How To Bring Teachers Up to Speed with Technology. The Journal: Transforming Education Through Technology. Retrieved from https://thejournal.com/articles/2012/03/14/getting-teachers-up-to-speed-with-technology.aspx?=THE21.
What Is Successful Technology Integration? (2007, November 5). Retrieved from http://www.edutopia.org/technology-integration-guide-description
U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics. (2016). Digest of Education Statistics, 2014 (NCES 2016-006), Table 311.15.