Technological Brilliance!

I feel as if I have been on a roll lately! I have to admit, I felt pretty defeated after my first blog post. I had been having difficulty thinking of ways to incorporate meaningful technology into my classroom and my first post had a bit of a dismal outlook. With my second post, however, I discovered the world of blogging in the classroom and using online "pen pals" for my students to connect with other students around the world. Free ways to add technology in the classroom! Brilliant! Now, I have been introduced to a new brilliant idea: "Bring Your Own Device" (or B.Y.O.D for short).

In my first blog post, Teaching a Digital Generation in a Traditional Classroom, I agreed with comments made by Johanna Hayes, who was the national teacher of the year for 2016. When asked about technology in the classroom, Hayes said that schools are not able to keep up with the pace of new technology (Hayes, 2016), which I believe is absolutely true. The beauty of B.Y.O.D, however, is that schools wouldn't necessarily have to keep up the pace with all technology! In the B.Y.O.D method, students are able to bring in their own technological devices. This alleviates the need for districts to provide schools the funding necessary to provide students with devices. Also, according to https://www.k12blueprint.com/toolkits/byod, 2 out of 3 students prefer to use their own personal devices and 3 out of 4 students prefer tablets over textbooks. This means that by using their own devices, students will be more comfortable using technology in the classroom and be more engaged than they would using traditional textbooks and resources. Students bringing their own devices would also allow for the funding schools do receive for technology to be directed only towards those students who are unable to provide their own devices. This way no one would miss out on the opportunity to engage with technology in the classroom.

Of course, there are also concerns about using technology in the classroom. With all students bringing their own devices, there would be inconsistency in the capabilities of each device and many of these devices may not be compatible with classroom use. If B.Y.O.D continues to gain popularity, however, hopefully these issues are ones that can be alleviated. For example, in the early stages of B.Y.O.D, additional funding could be used to help students who either cannot afford a technological device or students who do not own devices that are appropriate for classroom use. During this early stage, schools could also relay information to parents about which devices are the most compatible for use in the classroom. Then, as students replace their personal devices every few years, parents could keep in mind the devices that serve students best in the classroom. As B.Y.O.D became more of a mainstream practice, more and more students would own a compatible device. This way, all funding could then be directed only towards students who cannot afford their own devices.

https://www.k12blueprint.com/toolkits/byod also provides readers with success stories and other resources related to B.Y.O.D. What are your own thoughts on B.Y.O.D? Could it be a big solution for the technological gap in classrooms or is it an idea that seems good in theory, but out of reach realistically? Let me know!

BYOD (2012). Retrieved from https://www.k12blueprint.com/toolkits/byod.

Madda, M. (2016, August 02). “We don’t have resources to keep up with technology”: 2016  

teacher of the year Jahana Hayes talks to EdSurge. EdSurge. Retrieved  

from https://www.edsurge.com/news/2016-08-02-we-don-t-have-resources-to-keep-up-with-technology-2016-teacher-of-the-year-jahana-hayes-talks-to-edsurge. 

How Can we be Connected Educators?

  

        As discussed in my previous blog post, it is difficult for schools to keep up with new technological devices for students to use. While the lessons presented to them are computer based and projected on a screen, actual student interaction with technology is lower than would be expected in the world of technology our students live in.

         So, with this lack of technology in the classroom, how can we as teachers close the gap for our students? After mulling this question over to myself, I have come to think that being “connected educators” and using free internet resources, such as blogging and ePals, could be the answer. After all, while schools may not have the funding for each student to have a mobile device or tablet, most schools at least have computers with internet available to their students. Elementary schools will typically have a few computers in the classroom, or have a computer lab for students. With the availability of free and kid-safe blogging websites, implementing blogging in the classroom is a cost friendly and effective way to bring technology into the classroom.

         While blogging might seem like something that is only for upper-grade elementary classrooms, it can be implemented in primary level classrooms, as well. Of course, as with anything new we introduce in the classroom, blogging needs to be modeled and introduced slowly to students. For example, teachers could begin by introducing what blogs are and how they are used, having student centered discussions about blogs made by other students and teachers, and how students could appropriately comment on them.

After a foundational knowledge of blogging has been established, teachers could start creating a weekly blog post about what the class has learned that week. Then, at the end of the week, students could comment on the post by sharing the lesson that “stuck” with them or helped them learn the most from the week. Teachers could then use the comments that were made to spark class discussions about not only what students enjoyed learning, but also “netiquette,” as well (Gunter and Gunter, 2015, p. 84).

         Once students become more comfortable with typing and navigating blogs, more blogging activities could be added. One way students could expand their blogging skills is by using a method referred to as “Hub-and-Spoke” blogging (Walatka, 2012, p. 373). In Hub-and-Spoke blogging, students create a blog post based on material learned in class. For example, if my second grade class were learning about Native American tribes, my students could type up a blog post about their favorite tribe we discussed in class and why it was their favorite. Then, students would have to respond to one another’s blog posts. By doing this, the teacher “is given a valuable glimpse into student understanding… and responses provide starting points for in-class discussion” (Walatka, 2012, p. 373).

         Students becoming familiar with how to communicate with each other online could even evolve into students connecting with other students in the world, as well. ePals is a global community for students and educators. Students as young as 3 can be signed up to collaborate with other students their age. Communicating with other students is a valuable experience for students, as they will grow up in a world rich with online communication. Teachers can sign up their students to be matched with other students based on country, age, language(s) spoken, student interests, and more. Students can then communicate with the student they have been matched up with whenever the internet is made available for them to do so.

         I would love to hear thoughts about these ideas or any other ideas about implementing free online resources in the elementary classroom! Please let me know in your comments if you have any thoughts. Thank you!

Gunter, G. A., & Gunter, R. E. (2015).     Teachers discovering    computers: Integrating technology in a  changing world (8th ed., pp. 55). Boston,  MA: Cengage Learning.

Walatka, T. (2012). Hub‐and‐Spoke    student blogging and advantages  for classroom discussion. Teaching  Theology & Religion, 15(4), 372-383.

Teaching a "Digital Generation" in a Traditional Classroom

If you watch the video Did You Know? by Dr. Jose Esteves, you will read many enlightening facts that prove we are all living in a world that is growing and changing at an incredible rate. For example, as you watch the 6 minute and 56 second video, “60 babies will be born in the United States, 244 babies will be born in China, and 351 people will be born in India.” Also, according to the video, “there has never been a bigger force for change than technology.” As teachers, this means that we are currently teaching students that are living in this ever changing world of technology, as well. In our classrooms, we are “preparing students for jobs that don’t yet exist, using technologies that haven’t been invented yet” (Esteves, 2016). In order for students to begin growing and evolving with these new, yet to be invented technologies, they must be allowed opportunities to utilize, engage with, and learn with current technologies. So, it becomes a responsibility of educators to provide them with these engaging opportunities. However, in the current state of technological availability in the classroom, these opportunities are not always easy to come by. 

As the 2016 national teacher of the year, Jahana Hayes, mentioned in her interview with EdSurge, “technology has changed teaching. You have access to unlimited resources that are right at your fingertips” (Hayes, 2016). I myself can attest to this statement, as my own personal use of technology in the classroom has evolved greatly since I began teaching 8 years ago. The greatest evolution has occurred in the way I plan my lessons and find resources for activities. In the beginning of my career, I would use workbooks, software provided by our curriculum, CD’s (even cassette tapes, too), and other books and resources available in our school’s media center to plan my lessons. Today, I barely leave my computer to do my planning. I search teacher blogs, Teachers Pay Teachers, and Pinterest to find new, engaging lessons for my students. 

However, while the way I plan my lessons has become more technology based, the implementation of the lessons themselves has not changed much. In fact, my student’s involvement in technology has actually decreased, as the availability of student technology at my current school is less than that of the school I taught at previously. 

As to the cause of this lack of technological availability, I agree with Jahana Hayes when she said that schools aren’t able to keep up with the pace of new technology (Hayes, 2016). For example, the school I am currently teaching at just installed new technology in each classroom this summer that will allow our projectors to connect to a Window’s Surface tablet and allow students to write on the board using a stylus that will connect to the tablet as they write. While it is exciting to have this available to incorporate technology in our lessons, this technology is not exactly new. In my internship 9 years ago and at the school I taught at previously, we used similar technology daily with our students. Also, while the stylus is new and fun to the students and offers interesting options while writing, it is not much different from a learning standpoint than using a dry erase marker on the white board. If the rate of technological advances are occurring as quickly as suggested in Did You Know?, there is a definite disconnect between the technology in the real world and technology in the classroom. Thus, we are left with a classroom environment that is anachronistic in comparison to the world outside our classroom door. 

As Hayes also mentioned in her interview, it would be wonderful if high tech companies could sponsor the implementation of technology in the classroom. It is hopeful to believe that in a world of ever evolving technology funded and created by big tech companies, at some point the education system will be taken under their wing. If education were a priority in the world of technology, maybe classrooms in all communities would be updated meet the needs of this digital generation of students. Until then, we as teachers must work together to collaborate ideas on how we can maximize student involvement with the technology we have. However, on the other hand, if companies did begin sponsoring technology in the classroom, would it bring with it the question of “do we as teachers and schools now need to advertise the company supplying us with this amazing technology?” What are your thoughts? Let me know in your comments! 

Esteves, J. (2016, January 18). Did You Know? Retreived from  

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uqZiIO0YI7Y 

Madda, M. (2016, August 02). “We don’t have resources to keep up with technology”: 2016  

teacher of the year Jahana Hayes talks to EdSurge. EdSurge. Retrieved  

from https://www.edsurge.com/news/2016-08-02-we-don-t-have-resources-to-keep-up-with-technology-2016-teacher-of-the-year-jahana-hayes-talks-to-edsurge.