Why do we need to incorporate new technology into our teaching?
Students are immersed in technology!
The student shown on the left has chosen to identify herself as someone who spends a lot of time on the computer. As more of our students grow-up immersed in technology, they experience a greater divide between school life and life in the home or workplace. This picture illustrates why teachers need to harness student interest by utilizing current technology for learning. It is a powerful and exciting resource from a student's perspective.
The following videos speak to student perspectives on technology and the use of it in one school:
The first video by digital ethnographer Dr. Michael Wesch and his students at Kansas State U. demonstrates the disconnect between student lives and school. The second video is a reproduction of this project by an elementary school teacher, B.J. Nesbitt:
To gain an understanding of how today's technology can impact a school, watch Full Circle, two examples of high schools attempting to fully integrate technology. There are also examples of elementary schools using tech at edutopia.com:
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Rationale for Using Technology in Education:
There is no doubt that we live in a technologically bound society and this seems unlikely to change. The pace of tech innovation is so swift that education has been largely unable to keep up. Now our students are growing up and entering a workforce which their schools may not have prepared them for. It is our job as educators to ensure that our students don't miss out in their education, and that all students are prepared equally to take advantage of all the benefits technology offers. Technology is providing many new tools that enhance learning while being intrinsically motivating for students.
21st Century and Beyond:
21st Century Skills:
21st century skills are big buzz words in education today. Developed by educators in response to calls from the technology business sector to fill a need for tech savvy workers, these skills have proven to be important to many areas of our workforce today and virtually all tomorrow. Still, many educators have never even seen them. These skills include Inventive Thinking, Digital-Age Literacy, High Productivity, and Effective Communication.
Watch the short video on the left to see just how much the World has changed with the information revolution.
Learn more about
21st Century Skills:
A short document summarizing the 21st Century skills, how they were developed, and why:
http://archive.techlearning.com/
A more in depth description of the skills
http://www.metiri.com/ Learn more about 21st Century Skills:http://www.21stcenturyskills.org/
21st Century and Beyond:
Teaching Standards
National Educational Technology Standards (NETS)NETS for Teachers 2008 Facilitate and Inspire Student Learning and Creativity Design and Develop Digital-Age Learning Experiences and Assessment Model Digital-Age Work and Learning Promote and Model Digital Citizenship and Responsibility Engage in Professional Growth and Leadership.
"Teachers must become comfortable as co-learners with their students and with colleagues around the world. Today it is less about staying ahead and more about moving ahead as members of dynamic learning communities. The digital-age teaching professional must demonstrate a vision of technology infusion and develop the technology skills of others. These are the hallmarks of the new education leader."
—Don Knezek, ISTE CEO, 2008
Student Standards
ISTE's National Educational Technology Standards (NETS) standards for students, teachers, and administrators help to measure proficiency and set aspirational goals for the knowledge, skills, and attitudes needed to succeed in today’s Digital Age.
| nets_for_students_2007_standards.pdf |
Click on the following link for a great example of implementing tech standards in Kindergarten:
http://nets-implementation.iste.wikispaces.net/Videos+of+NETS%E2%80%A2S+in+Action?f=print