Almost immediately following my learning surrounding the use of technology for learning, I had the opportunity to visit two classrooms in which technology was being used but I had to question if it was for learning. In both classrooms, the teachers were attempting to have students use Google Docs to give feedback to their peers on an essay. In both classrooms, almost the entire period was spent trying to get the students logged on to Google and share their Doc with another student to edit. While observing these classrooms and reflecting on the observations afterward with other observers, I kept thinking about the Use of Technology for Learning "elevator" guide and I was left with several questions/wonderings.
- Was the technology being used FOR learning? What I witnessed was more learning technology not learning or engaging with the content.
- Did the technology support knowledge construction? It could have, but in an entire period, it didn't, at least in terms of content knowledge construction.
- Was the technology required for knowledge construction? No, students could have easily given feedback on paper using a pen.
- When is it appropriate for students to learn how to use certain technology without taking away from the learning of content? I still have no good answer to this question. It is important for students to use technology correctly and, in order to do, they need to be taught how BUT how can this be done without losing time for content? After all, technology is a tool for 21st Century Learning not a necessity.
If I were in the classroom, I would carefully evaluate what technology I was having students use and when. I would be constantly asking myself questions such as is it necessary?, is it going to take too much time away from the content to teach students how to use the technology? do I have a good enough understanding of the technology I am asking my students to use in order to facilitate their knowledge construction? These are the same questions I am asking of the teachers I currently work with. If I was at a school that was one-to-one, these questions may not be necessary or may change as students would be using technology more consistently but that is not the current reality.
Hey Mary, I recently use Padlet in my classroom. One of the big Ah-ha's I had while I was setting it up was "what are the students doing with technology and why?" I went through and planned the lesson as teacher then walked through it as a teacher. I made sure to plan for the areas where the students were going to get stuck with the technology and it made a HUGE difference. The students were able to use it for learning and constructing their knowledge of the content instead of fighting with the technology.
ReplyDeleteNona, I love that! So often as teachers we plan lessons or activities and don't work through them ourselves (often due to lack of time) but when we do we find holes or glitches that we can fix prior to the lesson as well as better anticipate what the students will learn and understand.
ReplyDeleteThis is a concept I had to make clear to my students as well. Some students think that technology is only used for video games or social media. It has been good for students to learn and use technology for research and communication and the other useful things we can use it for.
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