What is Happening Right Now?
More and more everyday I am hearing about new ways teacher's are creatively incorporating technology into their lesson plans and in their curriculum. There is a sudden realization of the importance of using technology to support a child's learning and help in engaging them to a topic or learning, in general.
Here is a short example of a teacher that is currently using technology in her classroom and effectively teaching her materials:
In this particular video presentation, you see that a younger teacher is using technology daily in her classroom because she see's how much her students enjoy working with computers, and much more. This was just one example of technology use in schools, but there are a myriad of other options and ways of integrating technology into teaching.
According to the article called, "Technology in the Classroom: Practice and Promise in the 21st Century", it lists a statistic that in 2007 almost 30% of U.S. households own a P.C., and more than 60% of U.S. students use computers in schools.
One specific example of how teachers are trying to integrate technology into the classroom is an article written from a Smartboard news website. The article was titled, "It Makes Teachers Touchy." In this article it talks about a group of teachers in Ohio trying desperately to raise money to buy an interactive whiteboard for $3000 for their classrooms. They realize how many other places are incorporating this newer technology into teaching and they see the benefits that students are receiving, as well as a growth in the student's desire to learn. A quote from one of the three teachers working hard to fund raise was, "We're a desperate breed, aren't we?" They were determined to get this smart white board because they see it as an opportunity to get a dying and bored generation of learners who are constantly online, to gain interest in education.
It is said that in the U.K. 70% of both primary and secondary classrooms have interactive whiteboards compared to the U.S. with only 16% . These teachers have found more advantages than just getting students engaged, but the attendance is improving rapidly and so is the class participation. With these boards being accessible and an easily transitioned in, device. Students aren't as bored and trying as hard anymore, because now they are enjoying themselves in some way.
I loved seeing this example because I personally think that the interactive whiteboards, or Smartboards are an incredible tool to use in a classroom if the teacher is well educated on how it works. It allows the students to experience education through technology and touch the screen, get out of their seats and learn through hands-on activities. The Smartboard is also more exciting to learn from and offers several ways of teaching, such as creating a game, presentation or even something as simple as attendance where the kids gets to click on their name to prove they were there. It is the small interactions that really count.
Another form of technology that is used today in the classroom, that I find as an extremely affective tool is video use. Videos are representations of real life situations or things you see everyday. By incorporating videos into the classroom, kids have such a variety of options. For example, they could make a video and be the primary actors of a project based learning group, or they could simply watch a video the teacher presents for them in class. Videos open the class up for more creativity and options because there are so many educational videos to watch that relate well to lessons in class. I think that by using videos as a learning tool, it is something that is different than most classrooms, and at least in my experience, is a great way for kids to enjoy themselves, feel engaged and almost feel anxious to learn something new about what technology has to offer.
One last technology that I see used currently in classrooms, are blogs. I mostly know this from research I found while working on an assignment for our class. I discovered that teacher's blogs are all over the web. Blogs are a great resource and offer so many ways to communicate and have fun with! They are easy, accessible and reliable. They help students feel connected with the teacher and it would be a quick way for a student to ask a question, make a comment, etc. Also, for parents' sake, blogs could be viewed by the kid's Mom and Dad, so they can check on updates in the class and activities that their kids and the entire class are learning.
These THREE technologies are highly affective in the classroom and I believe should be incorporated and used in some way or another in every classroom as a communication, engagement, and motivation tool.
Read on....
