Technology Integration

There is no question that “integrating technology into the curriculum is a priority in most schools today” (Starr, 2009). For many teachers the system itself is mandating change by making use of new software for electronic attendance and report cards. Although some teachers may be uncomfortable with technology, I strongly agree that “educators must rise to the challenge of closing the digital divide in education” by teaching students how to “manipulate various forms of new media with a high level of comfort and skill” (Mullen, 2008). This can be a huge challenge for some teachers who lack the experience or skills to use new technology themselves. In addition, many teachers can attest that they feel they are inundated with too many daily demands placed on them by their students, parents, administrators and departmental colleagues, as illustrated in the video below:



This humorous “rant” reminded me of and article titled "All Aboard!" which stated that implementing 21st century skills instruction will be successful "only when those skills are seen as relevant to the pressing agendas that coexist in schools" (Carpenter & Carpenter, 2009). For teachers who have been around for a long time, and seen many different agendas and trends in education come and go it's easy to understand their reluctance to embrace something new. So “how can [technology] be seen as part of the solution instead of another nagging problem?” (Carpenter & Carpenter, 2009). Quite simply, teachers need to see how technology and new tools can “help make teaching and learning more meaningful and fun” as well as more effective and easier, instead of being just "one more thing" that is expected of them from administration? (George Lucas, 2010).

“Most educational experts agree that technology should be integrated, not as a separate subject or as a once-in-a-while project, but as a tool to promote and extend student learning on a daily basis” (Starr, 2009). For effective technology integration to be achieved its use should support curricular goals as well as the four key components of learning: active engagement, participation in groups, frequent interaction and feedback, and connection to real-world experts (George Lucas, 2010). Teachers should also recognize that it is still crucial to focus on the curriculum and pedagogy, not the computer skill or technological tools being used (Norris, n.d.).

Teachers need to continue to focus on designing authentic learning tasks and guided inquiry projects that meet curricular goals, but also extend the learning outside the classroom with the use of new technology. Teachers should focus on creating assignments and projects that (Johnson, 2004):
-are relevant to the student's life
-answer real questions
-are hands-on
-allow the learner to reflect, revisit, revise and improve
-are authentically assessed, and
-are shared with people who care and respond.

There are a multitude of new Web 2.0 tools that can help achieve these authentic learning experiences in all subjects and grade levels. They are relatively easy to learn and lots of fun to use! Some of my favourites that are now a part of my daily routine are:

1. Google Earth and Google Maps – As a science teacher, the applications to Google Earth, such as Google Earthquake which show real-time data is indispensable!

2. YouTube & School Tube – There are a multitude of video clips that can quickly and easily enhance ANY lesson.

3. Google Docs – Easily allow students to collaborate and share material as they are working on group projects.

4. Google Reader (RSS)- Helps students to not only create their own, specialized ‘virtual’ newspaper of sites and blogs that they like to read daily, but can also be used to search for information 24/7 and organize a multitude of information.

5. Del.icio.us & Diigo – Are excellent social bookmarking sites that can help both students and teachers find the information they are looking for, but also share pertinent sites quickly.

6. Wikispaces & Pbworks – Are wiki sites that are easy to set up and can be used for online collaboration projects with students.

7. Flickr – An amazing photo sharing site that makes it fun to take class photos of the activities we are working on. Many of the images that are available to students are a part of the Creative Commons and can also be used in student projects.

Teachers also need to take the pressure off themselves to be the ‘expert’ in the classroom and accept that it is ok, and even encouraged, that they “own their own learning first [and] that they see themselves as learners in the classroom alongside of their students”, particularly when it come to learning new technology and information literacy skills (Johnson, 2010). When students are in the computer lab, teachers should support them with content area and facilitate students working together in a collaborative fashion to help each other with the technology (Norris, n.d.). It will become obvious fairly quickly which students are experts and can assist their classmates (and teachers!) with the hardware and software they are learning (Norris, n.d.).

“Who dares to teach must never cease to learn”
- John Cotton Dana

References

Carpenter, David. Carpenter, Margaret. (Dec/Jan 2008-09). All Aboard! Learning & Leading with Technology. p. 18-21.

George Lucas Educational Foundation. (2010). Core Concepts: Technology Integration. Edutopia.org. Retrieved from: http://www.edutopia.org/tech-integration


Johnson, Doug. (March 30, 2010). Connected Teaching. Weblogg-ed. Retrieved from: http://weblogg-ed.com/

Johnson, Doug. (March 2004). Plagarism- Proofing Assignments. Doug Johnson. Retrieved from: http://www.doug-johnson.com/dougwri/plagarism-proofing-assignments.html

Mullen, Rebecca. (Nov/Dec 2008). Avoiding the Digital Abyss: Getting Started in the Classroom with YouTube, Digital Stories, and Blogs. The Clearing House (82) 2. p. 66-69.

Starr, Linda. (August 11, 2009). Technology Integration Made Easy. Education World. Retrieved from: http://www.educationworld.com/a_tech/tech/tech146.shtml

Teachers are Students & Learners Too

When I was back in Squamish for a visit last week, and I kept bumping into former students at the gas station, the grocery store, the local coffee shop and the post office. It is always so heartwarming to be greeted with a smile and “hey Ms. H, where have you been lately?” When I tell them that I took the year off teaching to become a student again, the typical response is “Cool! What are you studying?” My quick answer is usually along the lines of “Doing my masters in library studies” but truthfully, the real answer is much more complex than that. I have taken so many interesting and challenging courses this year that have given me increased knowledge and many new skills in the field of teacher-librarianship, but the most rewarding part of becoming a student again has been learning how to build my own personal learning network (PLN) through the use of new technologies. I now know that “lifelong learning is now possible in ways [I] never imagined” (Guhlin, 2009).

PLNs are learning opportunities that provide a way to move from professional development as a special event, such as a workshop or a once a year conference to “a continuous flow of learning” (Guhlin, 2009). There are many ways to develop a PLN, and many interactive and collaborative tools to use including twitter, nings, social networks, blogs, and social bookmarking sites like Diigo. A PLN becomes a “dedicated learning environment [which] is unique to each individual” and its efficacy depends on how much or how little you chose to share and learn from other individuals in your PLN (Kapuler, 2009). “What makes PLNs so great is that they are different for everybody but their goals are usually the same. That goal is to learn and share knowledge and to find a passion and follow it to the best of your ability” (Kapuler, 2009). This year I have been working on my graduate studies in relative geographic isolation, but I have found an incredible network of people who are passionate about Web 2.0 technology, teaching and libraries with whom I can engage in ongoing discussions and share resources with in an online, global environment. “Technology allows us to reach out and build communities based on resonance and commonality” and I have been very fortunate to find people that I can connect with, and who will continue to support my learning while I am both a student and a teacher (Tchcruiser, 2009). As teacher-librarian at my school, I often felt like I was working in isolation and didn’t have any colleagues to collaborate with regularly. I now feel that I have a supportive community of colleagues with whom I can ask questions and receive timely answers, discuss topics of interest with and who will help me stay aware of educational trends.


Building a PLN diagram. Sue waters.

I have been inspired to build my PLN and continue my professional development because it perfectly fit my learning needs this year. But I wonder how can I inspire and help my other colleagues build their own PLNs and become more comfortable using new strategies and technologies in their own classrooms? It has been shown that “technology infusion without professional development wrapped around it just doesn’t work, and can backfire” (Ketterer, 2008, p. 11). There are many methods and models upon which to design Educational Technology Professional Development (ETPD) and I highly recommend the “One Size Doesn’t Fit All” series of articles by Judi Harris, which not only details 20 different models to design professional development sessions, but also discusses which types of models suit various learning styles and how to assess if the training is effective. A variety of models should be used and the professional development sessions will be most effective if they “align with participating teachers’ professional learning needs, interests and contextual realities” (Harris, 2008, p.19). For teachers to ‘buy into’ furthering their own professional development and using new forms of technology, I truly believe that they need to see how it can benefit their own teaching practice. The national Staff Development Council (NSDC) has concluded that for effective professional development to occur for teachers it should (Harris, 2008, p.21):
• be conducted in school settings
• be linked to school wide efforts
• be concrete
• be planned and offered by teachers
• be differentiated according to teacher’s differing needs and interests
• address goals and contain learning activities that are chosen by teachers
• emphasize demonstrations, trials of new tools and techniques and provide opportunities for participants to both receive and give feedback
• be ongoing over time
• provide ongoing assistance and support

To initiate, encourage and support other teachers in this type of peer-to peer network, and provide mentorship, Gagliolo (2008, p.39) suggests the following steps:
1. Plan collaboratively with a focus on student learning
2. Create a network of support by holding regular meetings and short training sessions
3. Create professional development opportunities led by teacher coaches
4. co-teach in the classroom to provide extra support when implementing new ideas or technology
5. Observe classroom learning with constructive feedback
6. Celebrate success by sharing at staff meetings or posting on the school website

Most importantly, one of my colleagues pointed out this week, that before we begin “our quest to move into a more integrated technology-supported professional development model we first need to have a clear sense of what we are about and why” (Jorgenson, 2010). This reflective and collaborative values clarification is a vital step that is often missing in our staff professional development endeavors and sometimes in our personal professional development as well (Jorgenson, 2010). The goals need to be made transparent, conscious and explicit for all participants at the beginning of the professional development program (Harris, 2008).

Clear goal-setting that addresses how technology with benefit student needs, proper professional development that is differentiated to meet teacher needs, as well as ongoing collaboration and assistance from peers and mentors is essential to making technology integration part of teachers’ professional development. I believe Will Richardson is right when he says that we need to help our students understand and prepare for creating their own Personal Learning Networks. By demonstrating to our students that we are life-long learners as well as teachers, we can show them in a transparent way how “to be literate at developing their own connections around the world to be life-long learners in the truest sense” (Richardson, 2007).


References
Gagliolo, Camilla (Sept/Oct 2008). Help Teachers Mentor One Another. Learning & Leading with Technology. p.39

Guhlin, Miguel. (August 19, 2009). Light the Flame: PLNs in Schools. Around the Corner-MGuhlin.org. Retrieved from: http://www.mguhlin.org/2009/08/light-flame-plns-in-schools.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+mguhlin+(Around+the+Corner+-+MGuhlin.net)

Harris, Judi. (February 2008). One Size Doesn’t Fit All (Part 1). Learning & Leading with Technology. p. 18-23.

Jorgensen, Shirley. (March 31, 2010). Information Tech for Learning: Technology Professional Development Discussion Question One [Msg 7]. Message Posted to: https://vista4.srv.ualberta.ca/webct/urw/lc5122011.tp0/cobaltMainFrame.dowebct

Kapuler, David. (November 23, 2009). Special Guest Post: Personal Learning Networks. The Unquiet Librarian. Retrieved from: http://theunquietlibrarian.wordpress.com/2009/11/23/special-guest-post-personal-learning-networks-by-david-kapuler/

Ketterer, Kimberly. (June/July 2008). A Professional Development Menu. Learning & Leading with Technology. p.11.

Richardson, Will. (December 7, 2007). The Future. YouTube. Retrieved from: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lylamGQ6YUQ&feature=related

Tchcruiser. (December 5, 2009). Final Reflection eci831-09. YouTube. Retrieved from: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D8xiDVgFwkU

Waters, Sue. PLN Yourself Wiki. Retrieved on April 2, 2010 from: http://suewaters.wikispaces.com/

Privacy matters

I grew up just outside the small village of Wellesley, that only had a population of 500 inhabitants (give or take). Everyone in town knew who I was, and privacy did not exist – especially with the party phone lines. As a result, there is very little difference between my personal and social identities. What you see, is what you get. I feel that this is pretty important when working in a profession that keeps us constantly in the public eye, and teachers are often held to a higher standard of behaviour than the general public whether we are on or off the job. “School districts expect teachers to set a ‘moral’ example” both in person and online in both our personal and professional lives (Johnson, 2008). After several years of traveling the world and attending large Universities that allowed me to blend into the anonymity of larger crowds, I chose to settle in a small town with a similar feel to the one I grew up in. I’ve come to discover that I like knowing the cashier at my grocery store personally and appreciate seeing my students or their parents on the trails mountain biking or sailing with them during weekend races. It may not always be convenient to run into my students while sun tanning at the lake, or enjoying a bonfire with my friends at the river, but I still feel that I don’t have to live separate public and private lives. As Palfrey and Gasser note, digital natives also do not separate their personal and social identities “because these forms of identity exist simultaneously and are so closely linked to one another, Digital Natives almost never distinguish between the online and offline versions of themselves” (2008, p. 20). However, the difference that exists between me and my students is the ability to “recognize the risks associated with online activities [and] the knowledge and tools to mitigate those risks” particularly when it comes to privacy. (Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada).

According to the office of the privacy commissioner of Canada, “about half of Canadian youth say they never read privacy policies on websites they visit and the majority believes that if a website has a privacy policy, the information they provide will not be shared with anyone else”. There is also plenty of other evidence that also suggests “that no one…reads privacy policies or does much to adjust the default settings for online services” ( Palfrey & Gasser, 2008, p. 57). This false sense of security needs to be addressed with students especially when popular networking sites like Facebook change their default settings to openly share all information, as they did in December, making it even harder for people to protect their privacy. Only 35% of the population went out of their way to change their settings, meaning 65% made their material public, probably without even realizing it (Boyd, 2010). I would wager that many of my students are unaware that once information we post about ourselves is part of a public domain, it can be viewed by virtually anyone, and can be shared widely and without our being totally aware of who has access to it and can also be retrieved even after it’s been modified or removed (Stoddart, 2007).

“In many ways our privacy is diminishing, but many people’s relative lack of concern for it may have more to do with a lack of experience in life than a real change in values” (Litwin, 2006). Danah Boyd also supports this notion saying “there is a large myth out there that young people don't care about privacy, and I think that that really needs to be dispelled” (2010). Young people DO care about privacy, but they need more knowledge and education about how social networking sites collect their personal data and use it as a valuable commodity (Stoddart, 2007). “Today’s social sites are a goldmine of information for marketing companies, or political interest groups, and potential employers” and everything that you enter about yourself forms the basis for how people view your “employability, your work ethic, and your other preferences, all without your knowledge or consent, or without even being asked” (Stoddart, 2007). An education based approach is needed to discuss this very important issue, and show students how to set and maintain their privacy settings on the sites they use. It is also critical to encourage them to “think ahead to gauge the consequences of the data they are leaving behind” or the digital footprint that is being formed and teach them how to get unwanted information removed from search engines (Palfrey & Gasser, 2008, p. 53). It is also important that parents and teachers model smart behaviour in their own online contexts and share these with the young adults in their lives.

Here are some very helpful videos that you could use in the classroom to help achieve this:


How to set privacy settings:



I , for one, have happily traded some of my own personal privacy to live and teach in small community that enriches my life with a variety of diversified and rich relationships. I suspect that my students also feel the same way about their online relationships, and hopefully they can be taught to maintain their personal identities with integrity, privacy and safety both in the physical and digital world.

References

Boyd, Danah. (February 24, 2010). Millennials, media and information. Pew Research Center Publications. Retrieved from: http://pewresearch.org/pubs/1516/millennials-panel-two-millennials-medi

Johnson, Doug. (June/July 2008). Lighting Lamps. Learning and Leading with Technology. Retrieved from: http://www.iste.org/Content/NavigationMenu/Publications/LL/LLIssues/Volume_35_2007_2008_/JuneJulyNo8/L_L_June_July_2008.htm


Litwin, Rory. (May 22, 2006). The central problem of library 2.0: Privacy. Library juice blog. Retrieved from: http://libraryjuicepress.com/blog/?p=68

Palfrey, John., & Gasser, Urs. (2008) Born digital: understanding the first generation of digital natives. New York, NY: Basic Books.

Stoddart, Jennifer. (November 7, 2007) “Privacy and Social Networks”. Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada. Retrieved from: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X7gWEgHeXcA