Recently, I went on a School Tech Hunt.
Every classroom was set up with a teacher laptop and projector. Some more tech savvy teachers were provided with a few speakers to help support the lackluster sound coming direct from the project. Others were forced to repeatedly say "shh" while watching an instructional video so the students could hear the verbal content. VHS was still used in a few of the Social studies classes mostly due to older primary source films being produced on VHS.
A number of technological pieces were introduced to the district this fall. These recent additions includ: document cameras, Chromecast, and Apple TV. My estimation is that about 30% of classrooms have document camera's, with even less for Apple TV and Chromecast. Obsolete materials have been placed in a separate storage area or discarded. There are two computer labs that are used intermittently by students. I did not observe any Flip Classrooms, Cinematography supplies, or tech applications being used.
I remember the old M-DOS computers from Elementary School where I would visit a classroom to play computer games for 30 minutes a week. I recall High School where "cutting edge" overhead projectors where pens were used to write on a plastic sheet and project notes to students. So much has changed now. Technology connects us globally. However, as I have observed it is up to the teacher to determine how to implement and support the technology in the classroom. A number of teachers feel scared and uncertain about how to implement the technology. Without the proper training teachers can feel lost amidst a sea of ever evolving technology.
Mike, I really like your ending statements. I have talked to many teachers at Grand Haven High School who see the benefits of technology, yet prefer to do many things the "old school" way. One science teacher still utilizes project based learning activities with hands on materials and no tech. Another social studies and economics teacher never uses tech because he feels his ways are more time efficient for him and his students. This same teacher also brags that he never has to complain or adapt when the wifi is down. I agree with you that it is up to the teacher to implement technology however they choose. Tech is awesome! But there is something to be said for some of the "old" ways too. I think students should be well rounded and exposed to it all.
ReplyDeleteWhile I understand teachers concern about adapting when the Wifi goes off. I wonder if they are fully engaging students. I know that not all students are motivated by technology however, the majority appears to be. It would be interesting to take a large cross section of teachers whom are using tech and those that are not and look at the scores for their students. I am betting that those whom are using technology are getting better scores. More importantly than the scores, they are gaining skills that will make them marketable.
DeleteClare's comments speak to the need for quality PD that give teachers a solid reason for using technology. IF there's no difference in outcomes, why waste your time? Of course, that statement depends on whether people are measuring outcomes and which outcomes they're measuring.
DeleteMike,
ReplyDeleteIt sounds like your placement is just moving towards technology integration. Which is why I am fascinated by the fact that some teachers are using Chromecast and Apple TV. Do you know if these were purchased by the teachers for their own use or if the district provided them? Usually, these devices and the devices that connect to them require a common WiFi connection and yet many network administrators are reluctant to allow this. For examples, we have one-to-one iPads here and these devices are allowed on the private school WiFi, yet any personal devices can only connect via the public WiFi.
I have thought of some possibilities for the use of Apple TV or Chromecast in the classroom and so I would be interested in learning more about how they are used in your school.
Jerry
Jerry,
DeleteClarifying information: A few teachers have recently received Apple TV or Chromecast. In the past few months they have had it I have not seen it used I know one math teacher was using Apple TV however she was basically using it as a doc camera and could not get the size of the picture that was projected to be big enough. For some reason the size was about 1/2 of the screen size. I believe she has since remedied that situation. I see that a lot where someone gets a new gadget yet uses it in an ineffective way. There have been no tech trainings at my placement this year. When I ask teachers about tech trainings and committees I get funny looks.
I would love to hear some ways that Apple TV or Chromecast can be used in the classroom. I believe my mentor teacher will be receiving his in the next month. Meaning, I should have a chance to play with it before I am done student teaching.
Mike
Mike,
DeleteI was talking to a teacher from Lakeshore Middle School today who works part of his day as a technology consultant for the other teacher in the building. He was telling me that he was trying to get a Chromecast into his room but has now found something he feels is far better than that. With the Chromecast, you connect it to a WiFi network and anyone with a device connected to that network which has the ability to cast, can send something to it. He was not certain, but we both supposed that this would allow any student, even one on the other side of the building, to cast something to your screen, during class.
The students have Chromebooks and they are using Google Classroom and they have started to use an application called “Push to Classroom”. Here is the site: https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/push-to-classroom/jbneakgkpdfcjnolohhnbahjcbkleiji. He said that this allows him to push something to the screens of all the students in his classroom at once and it will take over the screen, as long as the device is on. On the other hand, students can send him things that they want him to show the class and he has full control on what goes up on the board and what doesn’t.
Let me know what more you find out.
Good luck,
Jerry
I have heard of the push to classroom however, for whatever reason we have not received out Chrome-cast yet. I must say I am a bit uneasy about thinking that students could control the content on the main screen. I talked more with the Tech guy at Fennville about Internet Safety and the filtering processes. But it seems like it there is anyone that can break the filters it would be a teenager.
DeleteI want to ensure the content is appropriate. I am a little more old school on my thoughts about content. While I have noticed a number of teachers showing films with nudity and extreme language I don't feel comfortable.
I know they see it all the time, but I want my room to be safe. Allowing students control of what is shown without being able to closely monitor it is a big concern.
Mike,
DeleteYes, tools like Push to Classroom allows for a more controlled environment. It allows the teacher to share to everyone, instantly. However, the students have to first send it to the teacher, who can then decide to send it through or just hold it.
I agree with you on the content. I go through a lot of effort to ensure that my sons are seeing safe content, if I found out that a teacher was responsible for providing that to them, I would be very upset.
Jerry
They can do that but can't put a gradebook or standards-based grading in Classroom....c'mon... ;-)
DeleteI agree with your ending statement that many teachers do not know how to use the technology that is available to them or they are seriously under utilizing it because they don't want to change. I remember when the district I was in for student teaching went to one-to-one with Macbooks. The district actually brought in representatives from Apple for a professional development day so teachers felt slightly more comfortable with the new technology. There is definitely an art to finding the right balance between what works for the classroom and what works for the teacher.
ReplyDeleteOne to one Macbooks would be a dream come true! I wonder if that district offered repeated follow up and personalized training for teachers. My wife teaches at an Elementary School and has given up multiple days to attend tech trainings on her own time only to realize nothing new was gained with only very basic information being shared. We've been taught to differentiate with our students perhaps trainings for technology should be the same!
DeleteOne to one Macbooks would be a dream come true! I wonder if that district offered repeated follow up and personalized training for teachers. My wife teaches at an Elementary School and has given up multiple days to attend tech trainings on her own time only to realize nothing new was gained with only very basic information being shared. We've been taught to differentiate with our students perhaps trainings for technology should be the same!
DeleteI think one of the major disconnects for teachers who are not "tech savvy" (myself included) is that a basic understanding of technology gives the illusion that a number of tech tools do not enhance educational experiences. Rather, they appear to be a "cool" way of presenting the exact same concepts and lessons. In my own post, I questioned whether or not using the Smartboard in my placement will teach students something that my white board writing will not. The other piece is that technology often doesn't work as planned, and unless you know how to trouble shoot, an entire lesson can disappear before your eyes (I've had this experience). I'm not sure what the solution is . . . other than education. But one major key is that teachers need GOOD and EXTENSIVE training so that they can master the technology well enough to trust their lessons will not fail because they tried to use a tool they didn't understand. Have you been through any great trainings? I'm not tech savvy, and I don't pick up and remember new tech skills easily, so if you have any suggestions, I'd love to hear them!
DeleteLindsy,
DeleteYou nailed a lot of the concerns of teachers I know. I have never been to a training on technology nor have I seen one offered. I have had to utilize youtube videos to learn how to use the tech and Frequently Asked Questions on the website of the product. Because there is a high rate of "unanticipated problems" I have a back up plan. I generally start the lesson with a 5 minute PowerPoint lecture or overview of all the main points that way if something goes wrong they still have the main points.
The last time something went wrong for me was yesterday! I was being evaluated by my mentor teacher and decided to use the cart of computers at the High School. They have 1 cart of 30 computers with about 27 of those were operational (but an additional 5-7 can decide to not work at anytime). The computers are old teacher computers that had to be refurbished. I showed a film on the Industrial Revolution and had students respond to open ended question on Todaysmeet an educator chat room after the film I had students complete a Kahoot to assess their knowledge over the first 2 lessons I had taught for the Industrial Revolution. While I had to continually think on my feet pairing up students due to lack of working computers and had to go to a Think Pair Share in between the film and Kahoot because the computer began not responding.
It did not go as planned. Yet, the students said it was fun, they were engaged, every single student was participating. The diversity of delivery in teaching such as using new tech pieces not only allowed the students to get a chance to use computers (something at my placement...they had only done a few times this year). But it also allowed all of us to get a break from the routine. Both the students and myself enjoyed the "freshness" of doing something different.
Mike
Mike,
DeleteIt sounds like your lesson went well despite the tech issues that came up. Just last week, I had a moment of panic in the computer lab. My mentor and I collaborated on a grant proposal that was awarded. The grant allows us to put together a student selected classroom library. We had the librarian meet our classes in the computer lab to teach students how to use specific book search websites that make finding and picking books of interest far less daunting, especially for students who don't spend much time reading. However, the websites recommended were blocked for students. When the librarian looked at me and said, "We have to do this a different day," I had no idea what I was going to do as the plan for the rest of the week was practice SAT testing and I didn't have any of the test materials ready for that day. Ultimately, I found other websites for students to use and had them looking up titles on amazon for reviews and more information. Mostly, it ended up being more foot work for me as students said they didn't know where to start with their book searches. It turned out okay, and I'm sure we will have a great student selected library--but the entire experience would have been greatly enhanced if students had been able to use the resources presented to them.
Part of the problem for me last week was the nature of the activity. There was no big back up plan, I didn't have a bunch of learning targets to go back to, and students had to start researching so that we can get their books on our shelves before they leave our classroom.
Congratulations on your successful trouble shooting the other day. It sounds like you were able to use well known and engaging teaching strategies to propel students learning while you took a moment to address the technology issues that arose!
Per my earlier comment...the tech has to bring something to the table in terms of activity or outcomes. If you can do it without the tech and/or get the same results...why bother?
DeleteI often feel that the best professional development in regards to technology is just using it. I was often worrying about things going wrong and then I realized by doing that I wasn't using the technology. Once I got over that and just started using I found a whole new world of how to engage students in the classroom. I have had many lessons like how Mike described that things just didn't go as planned, but when using technology it is important to have a back up plan. I was having my students complete stations on Jewish holidays and they were supposed to watch videos on Chromebooks, but the filter prevented it from happening. It worked on my computer, as a teacher, but not for the student login. My solution in the spur of the moment was that they would watch the videos on my computer with me. It was inconvenient, but the students loved it. Sometimes I find the best lesson plans are ones that have gone way off script.
ReplyDelete