I was lucky to attend the TIES Education Technology Conference in Minneapolis from December 9-11. The awesome speakers there highlighted best practices in educational technology and reminded us all of how 21st century teaching uses technology to engage students in meaningful experiences. Among these lessons were the following other reminders with which I walked away:
1. Using a technology tool does not equal innovation. Innovation does not equate to throwing in a project or tool to say that you use technology in your classroom. Innovation is using a technology tool as an extension of meaningful learning. Innovation is using a technology tool to take students deeper into the learning and connect them with real-world experiences that lead to a better grasp of how the concepts are used outside of the classroom.
2. Stuff is not what is important. So many use the excuse that there are not enough computers, SMARTboards, iPads, etc. for the reasons that they do not regularly integrate technology. My argument is that so much can be done with one computer and a multimedia projector. Through these you can engage your class with online interactives, videos, virtual tours, ebooks, Google Earth, or podcasts.
3. Kids need license to be creative. A 21st century student needs to be an innovator, thinker, and creator of new knowledge. Our assignments and projects need to give kids the opportunity to do this.
4. The 21st century classroom is collaborative and connected. Workers of today have no walls. They can freely communicate and work with someone on the opposite end of the world through Skype, Google Docs, Today's Meet, and many other tools. Classrooms of today need to model these same practices. Why not have students create something with a student from another part of the world? Or even with another student from another school in our district? It is important that we not limit learning to the confines of our classroom to allow students to explore collaboration and communication in a 21st century work environment. There are so many resources that will give you opportunities to connect your class to another. My favorite: Skype in the Classroom.
5. You do not need to be an expert on all things technology to integrate it into your classroom. The great thing about technology is often it is easy to learn through experimentation. If you give kids a class to try out a tool, I guarantee that the majority of them will figure it out. Use your school technology specialist to help you brainstorm ideas and teach lessons to ease the burden of having to feel like the expert in all areas. Most of all, don't be afraid to fail. Things are not always going to go as planned. The risk is definitely worth the chance of a flop.
6. Technology should be integrated into every class as a natural extension of the learning, not as an add-on course or unit. To repeat what is stated above, technology should be used to enhance the learning and not as a tool to simply state that you are using technology. It should not be an "extra" or a "bonus", but rather something that is just a part of our everyday life and the way we learn.
7. Don't assume that kids know how to use technology properly. Kids must be taught effective use, safety, ethics, and copyright. There are many important rules to consider as creators of new information. We MUST teach our students how to properly give credit, what is legal to use, and what information is safe to reveal online. As educators, this is our responsibility to teach as well as model in our own use of technology.
To access resources and handouts from the conference, visit the TIES wiki.
