These were the words that the presenter began this afternoon's workshop with. She's right. And we have to adapt. She also pointed out that the most important component to using technology in the classroom is TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT.
All I could say was well "duh"... But how do we find more time to train teachers who are already so busy with lesson plans, curriculum maps, benchmarks and on and on? Yes, how? Tell me? I want to know the secret magic formula...
Well one nice thing is that she put a list of classroom items like these on the screen and asked which of our school's could supply them. I was the only to raise my hand in a room of 100 people:
Ceiling mounted wireless access point
Ceiling mounted projector and data drop
Projection screen/ whiteboard
Teacher workstation
VOiP Phone
Data Drop(s)
Printing/ scanning capability
So I guess Minnehaha Academy rocks hardware-wise, but what about that professional development? Going to put out a survey asking you some big tech questions soon so hit me back... Here are some interesting PowerPoint presentations she spoke on: http://mytechtraining.com/2011_Presentations.html
1 comment:
This is one of the discussions for a class that i am currently taking. Teachers should always stay abreast of society and technology. Students are so advanced these days. They seemingly know more than the teacher. I am an advocate for the students using more technology in the classroom; but, as your presenter stated "Teachers need more professional development". In my opinion, teachers are afraid of what students might say, if they do not know how to use the technology as well. Many assignments can be created using technology. I discussed with another colleague the impact technology can have on differentiated instruction. As educators, we must find ways to enhance our classrooms and the use of the new technology, is the new wave for instruction.
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