As always…
I remain frustrated by our lack of technology use. My district is far and above most districts its size in terms of the technology tools we have available for teachers and students – yet so many of these tools go relatively unused. At the beginning of the school year our district superintendent admonished four schools who did not make AYP last year – “if you do as you have always done you will get what you have always gotten” – didn’t make too many friends with this statement, yet he is correct. I frequently hear variousteachers complain that the students can’t/won’t learn, yet they are teaching the way I was taught 30+ years ago. I was bored to tears in middle school and I didn’t have a computer, video game, Wii, PS2, DS, etc. to go home to. Now that I am in education, I really get the whole Charlie Brown teacher thing – I hear it all day long.
Okay, done venting – Jackie Gerstein has put together this wonderful page – go look and be inspired: http://classroom-technology.weebly.com/index.html
October 6th, 2009 at 7:01 pm
I too am frustrated by the lack of technology in our schools. I am frustrated by the lack of technology skill that I posess to use with my students. That is why I have signed up for your class …… Have I found the right blog? Will I get the extra credit? HAHA!
October 25th, 2009 at 3:15 pm
Our schools have an abundance of technology, some might say an overabundance. What we need is time to use it, and until technology can gain us the time needed to use it, it is doomed to marginalization. Using technology for the sake of technology doesn’t accomplish anything. If it makes our job easier or student learning faster then we teachers snatch it up. If it doesn’t, then we put it to the side and chalk it up as one more thing that was mandated by someone who hasn’t spent enough time in the regular, well-run, well-taught classroom. Thank God, I am proof of such a class and my students and school ace the SOL’s and AYP.
October 29th, 2009 at 10:13 pm
It seems to me that teachers are under so much pressure, stress, and workload, that they don’t want to take the extra time to assimilate the technology. There is a learning curve and at first it doesn’t seem to be worth the extra effort.
I’m convinced that any technology is worth the effort to learn, and I’m convinced that it will lead to less tedious work. (Which I’m all for!) I think it comes down to leading the horse to water and waiting for them to get thirsty enough to drink.
p.s. – all this time, I thought your blog was located here: http://mrollosson.blogspot.com/
:p