Technology for Teachers

Cross Posted at www.LeaderTalk.org

I’ve been running an idea around in my head over that past couple of weeks and I’m sure it’ll continue to make more sense in my own mind but here goes.  I’d like to take my time today to talk about the expectations we hold for ourselves and our staff members.  My post title alludes to technical expectations for non-technical staff, but this can also include holding highly technical expectations when it does not suit the purpose.

First off I’d like to start by pointing you to the "Essential Conditions" that the International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) lists throughout their site for implementing technology standards.  You’ll see support and skilled personnel listed throughout.  Skilled in the use of technology specifically stated as being "appropriate for their job responsibilities".

I think somewhere along the way some of us with a passion for technology in education have lost site of this simple fact, in order to maximize the time we have we need to use the most efficient and productive methods to accomplish the task at hand.

I see it in the region I work and live in right now.  In our zeal to get students and teachers podcasting and creating webpages we’ve completely missed the boat.  If a secretary, teacher, or principal needs/want to put information online why do we continue to entertain the notion that they need to be trained on how to create and maintain their own website or that we need to hold an in-service on how to use GarageBand, FrontPage, Dreamweaver, etc.?  In all too many instances our higher than need be expectations stop those with the first hand knowledge and information from sharing it with the school community.

If we truly want to make the most of the time we have and maximize the productivity of our staff we need to look at each person individually.  We need to evaluate each person’s individual skill level, their individual purpose, and identify a tool that more specifically targets their needs, abilities, and tasks.

As techie as I come, for the most part if I’m podcasting I’d rather put my work out on a site like GabCast where I’m, for lack of a better explanation, leaving a voice mail and letting the site create the podcast and corresponding MP3 files.  The same holds true with websites, I’m to the point where FrontPage/DreamWeaver/Nvu/etc. are all four letter words to me.  If you’re wondering I use Joomla as a web-based CMS.  Long gone are the days of having to drive into the district just to update the website.

From an administrative standpoint my purpose is to share news, announcements, successes, etc. with my school community.  My purpose is not to learn how to create radio worthy podcasts or Fortune 500 level websites.

The next time you hold a training for your staff members, regardless of the topic.  Please step back and reflect on your audience.  Is this approach the most effective way to maximize their time and abilities to the fullest potential or is this a methodology in which we are familiar and comfortable with.  It’s the same thing we ask and hold up as exemplary teaching, individualized expectations that reflect a knowledge of what the individual needs to move forward in their own growth continuum.

Thank you again for your time.

Sincerely,

Sean Martinson

I Twit.

I didn’t use the best phone but here’s a podcast example…. dial a 1800 number, follow the prompts, leave a message, and here you go:

Gabcast! Educational Podcasts #3 – Technical Expectations for Non-Technical Staff

This is the audio podcast version of a posting I wrote for www.LeaderTalk.org

or download the MP3 here…

Did you know that one of the best ways to motivate your staff/colleagues to integrate technology is to meet them at their individual level?  Find their passion, what can technology do for them that gets them excited so that they in turn explore new concepts and ideas that can be used to improve student learning.

Here’s an example for looking into streaming media by first exploring content that interests, I’m certain, all of you. 

If you haven’t seen this video yet it’s well worth your time (whether you work in education or not).  The video is of slam poet Taylor Mali speaking about "what teachers make".  It’s a little over three minutes long.  There is some crude language so please take this into consideration before you view this (don’t just fire it up in the classroom).

…not even sure how I ended up there but Rodd Lucier hits on the changes in reading and reading skills that I’ve been talking to teachers about…..

A couple weeks ago I was fortunate enough to present information to area Principals about the possible uses of cell phones in the classroom.  This presentation was requested as many area schools are either banning or looking to ban the use of cell phones and other handheld technologies by students.  Having been a student when bans on TI-82 calculators were being enforced and now as an educator where they are a mainstream tool used daily in Math classrooms across my region I can’t help but enjoy the ongoing discourse in education in regards to new technological tools.

I think I’ll put in my 2 cents and leave the rest for further information.  I don’t believe that this banning movement is anything new, the cell phone (iPods, MP3 players, etc.) are simply the latest tools that we as educators are failing to embrace, failing to see the educational implications for their uses, and are thus failing to educate our students in the ethical uses of these tools for life long learning.  If we are going to ban said items let’s be honest with each other when we say, these are temporary bans and we are banning them because we as educators are failing to educate our students in the proper uses of these tools.  In turn, when we’ve figured out how to use them we’ll lift the ban….. that’s a lot easier for me to stomach than placing the blame on the shoulders of our students who are simply doing the same thing that kids have been doing for generations… and that’s simply figuring it out before the adults.

Links to further information (this information is referenced from Joseph Miller, Darren Draper, and a variety of others):

• A video of Karl Fisch’s "What If?" slideshow that I previously posted.
• Liz Kolb’s K12 Online Conference Session that I referenced for our area Principals.
  • iPod ready presentation
  • Cell Phones in Learning Website.
• Tony Vincent (who I originally heard about years back with his work with handheld devices and student podcasting)
  • Mobile Web
  • Learning in Hand
• A video I found through Twitter shared by Alec Courosa
  • "The Essay"
• An article from Mark Prensky entitled: What Can You Learn From a Cell Phone? – Almost Anything! (PDF)
  • This article was published in Innovate!
• Jeff VanDrimmelen’s 8 Ways to use Camera Phones in Education
• Pay Attention movie from T4 Jordan School District
• Ellen D. Wagner’s Enabling Mobile Learning (PDF)
  • This article was published in Educause.

Has your school been talking about banning cell phones, iPods, and the like?  Here’s a site with a powerpoint that could be shared with staff.

Karl Fisch’s Fischbowl.

PowerPoint Slideshow>Video for iPod.

Listen to this podcast.

John Merrow from PBS interviews Alfie Kohn where he argues that competition undermines learning.

Took some searching but I found the working link to the podcast.  Now I’ll have it on my iPod. 

Have to check this one out when I have time: Educational Insights