Rosemary's+Work

With the use of technology in schools and classrooms on the rise, there is no doubt that students, teachers and administrators will need to considered some of the ways that technology will change how we teach and learn. In 1996, the US Department of Education reported that, “Networked schools…are a very new phenomena. In 1996 only 9% of schools in the United States were connected to the Internet, and of those schools that were connected, only a handful offered more than minimal access (Wasser, 1). While “digital educational technology (has) been entering the scene gradually,” schools are rethinking what it means to teach using technology. Students are adapting to the new ways in which they are being asked, and offered, to learn (Wasser, 1).

One of the biggest shifts in thinking about what and how we teach and learn, focuses around the development and accessibility of the Internet. The content of this class, blogging and using Wikis, is just a small part of how using the Internet in the classroom can transform the way that education looks. The Internet is the connection between teachers and learners that is often missing when we think about school; “With the Internet...students have access to a richer set of resources than ever before” (Feldman, 45). This availability of the Internet allows teachers to ask “questions [that] are broader in scope, deeper, and more reflective. This change [occurs] because of evolving skill(s) in using the numerous resources available to the students (Feldman, 45).

Students are not the only ones benefitting from the increases used and availability of technology. Today, “58% of all U.S. schools reported that 90% of their teachers use a computer every day for teaching or planning” (Hollands, 5). Teachers are able to share resources more easily than before. In this way, how we teach and what we teach is constantly changing as educators develop new and better ways to teach content to their students. While “Few schools as a whole have embraced technology and used it to transform the content and mode of instruction,” technology is ever-changing the way that we think about teaching and learning today (Wasser, 1-2). There are, of course, certain changes that could occur in schools in order to help teachers and administrators to more effectively use technology in teaching and as a tool for transforming instruction – among these, the most significant being availability of technology, professional development, and changes in policy around technology.

First, technology must be available to teachers and students, reliably. Historically, it has been that perhaps only the most ambitious teachers have ventured in the world of technology and brought it back to their classrooms. Today, however, all teachers need to be venturing out in to the world of technology because, “Changing the expectations of teachers and students require(s) changing certain assumptions about technology…Rather than technology being employed by a few ‘gung-ho’ teachers and students, school and district administrators now view it as integral to teaching and learning in all grades and subjects” (Feldman 1, 46). In order for this change to happen, technology must be readily available to teachers and students, and it must be reliable. This means investing in technology as a school district. Without proper support, hesitancy to use technology will only be validated.

Second, if teachers are to use technology to transform teaching in their classrooms, they must feel confident in doing so. This means adequate training. Teachers must be offered and encouraged to partake in professional development around the use of technology in developing and implementing instruction in the classroom. Alan Feldmen, et al suggest that learning together is the best way for professionals to explore technology. They have seen a connection between “professional learning community of highly motivated teachers committed to linking technology and improved teaching and learning practices” (Feldman, 47). Essentially, the teachers that learn together, can explore together, and feel more confident in branching out to explore additional pieces of technology. The sense of camaraderie in technological exploration has great benefits. However, to best encourage this exploration, policy will also need to change to enforce this development.

As technology becomes an embedded part of our culture, it becomes more and more critical that teachers work with their students to develop skills and habits that will serve them in this technological age. To ensure that our students are being served in these ways, schools may consider “…updating the district’s curriculum and student learning goals to reflect technology’s new role” (Feldman 1, 46). Additionally, to encourage all educators to implement technology in their instruction, some schools have “…updated teacher evaluation and student assessment procedures that would give clear recognition to the importance of technology integration in all subjects” (Feldman 1, 46). While some such changes may be drastic for some schools, ensuring that teachers can keep a finger on the pulse of technology is critical to serving their students.

There are ways to ensure that teachers feel confident using technology in their classroom, but they are dependent on support from administration, stakeholders and policymakers. Teacher training, for example, requires money and outside resources. Nonetheless, “states should develop a range of incentives to encourage teacher participation… providing release time from classes, recertification credits, and additional resources (Hollands, 13). This type of support requires policymakers to see technology as a priority in school systems. Additionally, policymakers need to consider the availability of resources in the classrooms. Without proper funding and investment, the changes that need to take place in our classrooms, cannot.

Furthermore, potential changes in educational policy around the use of technology will likely lead to a shift in best practices, however, these best practices are still largely in development, because technology in the classroom is still an emerging concept. There is a balance between urgency and effectiveness when it comes to the formation of best practices. In order to offer students exposure to cutting edge technology, “teaching practices need to change to take advantage of rapidly emerging technologies” (Feldman, 43). However, “The addition of the technology [does] not [drive] these changes in teaching and learning but rather [it will] [support] them” (Feldman, 45). In other words, what is done with technology needs to be meaningful to the content being taught; it needs to enhance what teachers already do. Best practice will require individuals to consider ways to, “embed[ed] professional development – focusing on the teachers’ own curriculum through coaching, co-planning, and co-teaching” (Feldman, 45). Through a network of small learning communities, various professional development opportunities, and support from a technology integrationist, these individuals might seek ways to create “consistent introduction and use of technology from grade to grade…[where] Students…expect to use and enhance the software skills they developed each year” (Feldman, 46).

As best practices in technology begin to emerge, a reoccurring theme rears its head: we need find a way to include technology in our classrooms, and we need to explore the ways in which we can teach students to use technology effectively and responsibly. In The Virtual Geography of Networked Schools, Judith Davidson Wasser, et al states: “As new technologies came in to school, we accommodated: to understanding software, to learning about email, and to beginning to use the web. Now we have to assimilate those possibilities into a wider framework of educational purposes and practices – shifting our thinking so that we no longer see various technologies and their functions as separate items, but rather as part of a larger networked whole (a cohesive virtual geography) that has complimentary parts” (3-4). The practice of including technology in our teaching and learning is one that we have only begun to try to define. Policymakers are attempting to determine how much money to spend on technology and what form it should take. Administrators are seeking opportunities to offer professional develop to staff members. Teachers are seeking ways to use technology in meaningful ways to support content, and students are looking to understand the role that technology plays in their futures. The ultimate goal at hand is to “infuse technology throughout…schools so that learning with technology becomes a deeply accepted part of daily school life for all member of the school community” (Hollands 6). Once we have a better of understanding of how to do this, best practices will begin to define themselves.

Source 1 Feldman, Alan, B. Coulter, C. Konold. “Linking Technology, Learning, and School Change.” Telecommunications: Learning & Leading with Technology. Volume 28, Number 4. Copyright 2001, ISTE. 42-47. 9 May 2010.

Source 2 Hollands, Fiona. “How Technology Policy Translates to Student Computer Use in New York City Schools.” School Technology Policies. Teachers College, Columbia University. 1- 14. 9 May 2010.

Source 3 Wasser, Judith Davidson, E. McNamara, C.M. Grant, TERC. “Electronic Networks and Systematic School Reform: Understanding the diverse roles and functions of telecommunications in changing school environments.” Presented at the American Educational Research Association. April, 1998. 1-31. 9 May 9, 2010