Hey Misty! Great insight here. I'm impressed that you found an IT person who puts content first. That has not been the case in my experience. I wonder how you will use what you have learned in your augmentative reality research.... Best, Doc
Hi Dr. Courduff, I was a little taken back by his response as well, as I have only had a few meetings with Mr. Petruzzi during my four years working for the district. I am curious as well to see how everything will work out, especially in researching augmentative reality. Misty
Hey Misty! I like your comment - that technology doesn't drive the instruction, but the instruction drives the technology. I completely agree with that, in fact, i often say in my own job that the technology is here to serve me, not me to serve the technology. Technology is simply a tool to complete things, but especially in the classroom, it can't be the only tool. Nice job in tying it into the BYOD topic as well! Hope you have a great week! -Zach
Hey Misty, Instruction drives technology versus the technology driving the instruction I believe is a very important point. I love the example of bring your own device questions. We truly need to put the student first. I think many of us do tend to jump on the bandwagon without thinking about those who are less tech savvy. While it is a skill we should be teaching students, not every teachers is ready for the demands of technology rich environment. I can just imagine how flustered a veteran teacher could be if there were several devices in a room that he/she had little experience with. Regardless of their ability to teach, it would not be in the best interest of the student to have the teacher in that situation. As a facilitator, I believe I will try to be more mindful of the impact technology will have on those that are not as inclined with it while looking for a way to support them through implementations. Thanks for a thought provoking post!
Hey Kelly! Thanks for your response. I have to remind myself sometimes not to get frustrated with students, as they don't have access at home to certain hardware of software. Sometimes I feel like the students should just know what to do with technology. However, with just a little bit of facilitation, they normally have it under control in no time. I enjoyed reading your point about veteran teachers, as I have experienced first hand what you have described. Misty
Misty, Thanks for bringing in BYOD into the conversation for this week's topic. As I stated on our discussion board, my school district has adopted this policy this year. I personally do not feel that BYOD is a bandwagon movement; I believe it is a necessity in k-12 education due mainly to lack of technology funding in many districts. However, I do agree with you that firm policies need to be in place before the implementation of any new technology, and considering the needs of students is always essential. In our district students who do not have the technology simply share devices with other students or use devices provided by the teacher. Of course this is not ideal but seems to be working for now. Introducing students to educational technology, even when they do not have their own personal devices, can broaden their horizons. It is our job to prepare them for the 21st century workforce and teaching students to utilize technology for educational purposes can only be done when technology is introduced in the classroom. For many districts this is best done in the BYOD environment.
Hey Misty!
ReplyDeleteGreat insight here. I'm impressed that you found an IT person who puts content first. That has not been the case in my experience. I wonder how you will use what you have learned in your augmentative reality research....
Best,
Doc
Hi Dr. Courduff,
DeleteI was a little taken back by his response as well, as I have only had a few meetings with Mr. Petruzzi during my four years working for the district. I am curious as well to see how everything will work out, especially in researching augmentative reality.
Misty
Hey Misty!
ReplyDeleteI like your comment - that technology doesn't drive the instruction, but the instruction drives the technology. I completely agree with that, in fact, i often say in my own job that the technology is here to serve me, not me to serve the technology. Technology is simply a tool to complete things, but especially in the classroom, it can't be the only tool. Nice job in tying it into the BYOD topic as well! Hope you have a great week!
-Zach
Hi Zach,
DeleteThanks for your response. I agree that technology is only a tool, and it is something that we should never take for granted.
Hey Misty,
ReplyDeleteInstruction drives technology versus the technology driving the instruction I believe is a very important point. I love the example of bring your own device questions. We truly need to put the student first. I think many of us do tend to jump on the bandwagon without thinking about those who are less tech savvy. While it is a skill we should be teaching students, not every teachers is ready for the demands of technology rich environment. I can just imagine how flustered a veteran teacher could be if there were several devices in a room that he/she had little experience with. Regardless of their ability to teach, it would not be in the best interest of the student to have the teacher in that situation. As a facilitator, I believe I will try to be more mindful of the impact technology will have on those that are not as inclined with it while looking for a way to support them through implementations. Thanks for a thought provoking post!
Hey Kelly!
DeleteThanks for your response. I have to remind myself sometimes not to get frustrated with students, as they don't have access at home to certain hardware of software. Sometimes I feel like the students should just know what to do with technology. However, with just a little bit of facilitation, they normally have it under control in no time. I enjoyed reading your point about veteran teachers, as I have experienced first hand what you have described.
Misty
Misty,
ReplyDeleteThanks for bringing in BYOD into the conversation for this week's topic. As I stated on our discussion board, my school district has adopted this policy this year. I personally do not feel that BYOD is a bandwagon movement; I believe it is a necessity in k-12 education due mainly to lack of technology funding in many districts. However, I do agree with you that firm policies need to be in place before the implementation of any new technology, and considering the needs of students is always essential. In our district students who do not have the technology simply share devices with other students or use devices provided by the teacher. Of course this is not ideal but seems to be working for now. Introducing students to educational technology, even when they do not have their own personal devices, can broaden their horizons. It is our job to prepare them for the 21st century workforce and teaching students to utilize technology for educational purposes can only be done when technology is introduced in the classroom. For many districts this is best done in the BYOD environment.