I just discovered an excellent reference website that coins itself a “one-stop shop for 21st century skills-related information, resources and community tools.” Route 21 is an initiative of the Partnership for 21st Century Skills. It is an invaluable resource for locating information, resources and examples of effective 21st century teaching. Be sure to visit Route 21 for some excellent teaching ideas.
Education is “dead last” in technology use compared with all major industrial sectors, according to a paper published this month by the State Education Technology Directors Association (SETDA), the International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE), and the Partnership for 21st Century Skills at the SETDA Leadership Summit and Education Forum in Washington, DC.
The report, Maximizing the Impact: the Pivotal Role of Technology in a 21st Century Education System, addresses the changing landscape of the modern work force and asserts that today’s students must have sound digital literacy skills in order to compete in the global marketplace. The report debunks the myth that schools are already using technology as an integral, indispensable tool, which certainly is the case in leading businesses and organizations.
The report also stresses the need for technology to support innovative teaching and learning. “To keep pace with a changing world, schools need to offer more rigorous, relevant and engaging opportunities for students to learn—and to apply their knowledge and skills in meaningful ways.”
Maximizing the Impact is a thought-provoking article that certainly raises eyebrows in the education sector. Rather than taking a doom-and-gloom stance on this article, I find its suggestions to be invigorating and achievable. As conscientious educators, we can use this article as a catalyst to continue molding our classrooms into the engaging, inquisitive, 21st-century learning centers. You can download the report to read more about its findings.
I came across this excellent article by Martin Levins when reading my November issue of Australian MacWorld. Levins is a teacher and director of Information Technology at the Armidale School in New South Wales, Australia.
Levins article, “Caged”, discusses his theory on why educational reform is so slow with regards to technology integration in classrooms. Not an article about technology itself, this brilliant essay uncovers the pedagogical constraints that underpin the slow uptake of technology in the educational sector. The article raises many important issues that educators should be discussing when forming or auditing their school’s technology immersion program.
John is probably best known for his 1952 composition 4’33”, whose three movements are performed in “silence” without a single note being played. Not many know that he was a bit of a philosopher as well, once claiming: “I can’t understand why people are frightened by new ideas. I’m frightened by old ones.”What are the “old ideas” that should frighten us? First, let’s look at how we view change. Calling a motor vehicle a “horseless carriage” seems quaint now – the province of black and white movies – but the phrase is indicative of the way we think when we experience change. A carriage was for, well, carrying, and the horse provided the (ahem) horsepower. So everything remains the same, except for the fuel, and less manure.Similarly, the development of technology in education can result in our doing the same sort of teaching and learning as we always have.
It’s a sad indictment that a didactic, industrial mode education is still acceptable and measurements of success boil down (in a lot of areas) to how many marks you can amass in one three-hour time period.
So it’s not surprising that the “new ideas” promised by technology are rejected, nor that the technology itself becomes the focus.
I’ve recently heard claims that the installation of Interactive White Boards can result in 100 percent of teachers using the appropriate digital tools, but I question the word “appropriate.” I have yet to see much use of these in any way other than didactic. Their very placement would support this mode of “delivery”, with teachers as a sort of academic FedEx.
I don’t believe that a kids’ mind should be considered as a tabula rasa, ready for ideas to be delivered like so much pizza. Rather I believe a child’s mind to be a plastic organisational thingy that tries to make sense of its surroundings and builds its own model of its environment.
The argument goes that older teachers will resist the uptake of technology, so let’s give them something simpler – like an Interactive White Board.
It’s tempting to state that as we age, our brain, like our skin, becomes less plastic, but this isn’t the case. People of all ages will accept technologies when they are seen to be enabling, empowering, engaging and relevant to the user. Good teachers will pick up good ideas because they are good teachers, they see that things have changed “since they went to school” and want to adapt their teaching and learning experiences accordingly.
Others will adopt a technology that supports their teacher-centric, didactic comfort zone only so someone can check a box that says “We use technology in teaching.” This is not a recent complaint – in the early 1990s, Larry Cuban advanced his “oversold and underused” argument, proposing that a lot of technology is there for its own sake (although a lot of technology has changed since he wrote this).
In an interview conducted in 2000 he said, “We need to ask the right questions. What are the goals of schooling? Do we care most about literacy? Social development? Other goals? The school community needs to reach a consensus, then ask, ‘Now, how might the technology help us reach these goals?’”
Can we reach a consensus?
Parents are a big part of our community. Yet there is a basic disconnect between their view of education and the reform that technology both invites and expedites. Schools need to be careful that parents are included in the decision matrix, but they need to recognise that parents need educating too. With couples having children at an increasingly older age, it can easily be 20-25 years since a parent of a year seven child attended school.
Old ideas are quite scary here as they impede this reform, exacerbating thei problems faced by a student facing a world that has moved on from the industrial age.
“My child needs to practise handwriting” , “computers are only used for word processing and surfing the web” , and “computers will make my child less creative” are examples of these old ideas.
No amount of cool technology will advance its use. We have to escape the cargo cult mentality of technology accumulation, hoping for reform. Reform of pedagogy is where we need to focus – even when the leopard is let out of the cage – so let’s get out of ours.
I recently read a posting on Jeremy Gypton’s Thoughts on Teaching & Educational Technology blog called Do Computers Increase Student Achievement? Jeremy raised some excellent points and really got me thinking about the big picture.
As educators, we must always ask ourselves if our classroom activities are challenging, enriching and engaging. In other words, are we basing our activities on strong pedagogy? I have to be careful as a technology teacher that I don’t allow the technology to drive instruction. Technology is just a tool — a tool that can be used well and a tool that can be used poorly. How the tool is used is up to the teacher. It’s tempting to get swept into the excitement of all the latest gadgets and internet technologies. They certainly have a wow factor. But they are only useful if creative teachers use them in ways that promote higher-order thinking, problem-solving skills and critical literacy. One should never plan a lesson around a particular technology. Instead, one should begin with an instructional outcome and then locate the appropriate technologies to support it. If the appropriate technology is a pen and paper, then go with it.
I don’t believe computers increase student achievement. I believe good teachers use computers effectively to increase student achievement. There’s a big difference between these two statements. It’s all about the pedagogy, not the computers. Good teaching and learning must always be the driving force. Computers and technology are only as effective as the teacher who uses them.
I am absolutely in love with Google Docs. Imagine having universal access to your word processing, spreadsheet and slide presentation documents. Google Docs allows you to create these documents online using their easy web interface. Documents are saved in your online Google account, which means you can access and edit them any time, anywhere (as long as you have an internet connection). You can even share them with others and allow them to collaborate in their creation. I’ve even imported Microsoft Word documents into my Google Docs for universal access. No more carrying around USB drives or emailing documents back and forth. I’m currently using Google Docs to write report card comments for my students. I can open it up anywhere and continue working where I left off. Since I use multiple computers between school and home, this is a great solution for me. Here’s a Commoncraft tutorial video “Google Docs in Plain English.”
The Partnership for 21st Century Skills recently released a nationwide poll that indicates that Americans want their schools to better train students to meet the demands of the 21st century workplace. Eighty-eight percent of voters say they believe that schools can and should incorporate 21st century skills such as critical thinking and problem-solving skills, computer and technology skills, and communication and self-direction skills into their curriculum. If our educational system does not re-evaluate its priorities, American school children will lose their competitive edge within the global community.
Although this poll is based on the opinions of the American public, I believe the results and reflections can easily be applied to other countries. This is a wake-up call for educational systems and curriculum designers. It’s time to engage in self reflection and ensure that our classrooms are creating a generation of citizens ready to meet the demands of the 21st century.
Follow this link for a complete report on the findings of this poll.
The real power behind Web 2.0 tools is realized when regular, everyday classroom teachers begin embedding them into their teaching repertoire. Realistically, though, most teachers have barely heard of these technologies, let alone feel confident enough to go out on a limb and implement them.
It was the average, everyday teacher that I had in mind when I created a Web 2.0 tutorial on Wikispaces. I wanted to create an atmosphere where technology novices could get to know some of these new technologies without getting bogged down with computer jargon. I wanted to convey how easy it is to use these technologies, and how the Read/Write Web supports the values and goals of 21st century education.
This tutorial discusses blogs, wikis, RSS feeds and social bookmarking. It provides easy definitions, educational benefits, classroom applications, concerns and solutions, real-world examples from teachers and links to other useful sites. I also include links to more detailed “how-to” tutorials and helpful videos I have found along the way. This wiki is by no means finished, but it is finally in a presentable format. In the true spirit of a wiki, I encourage others to contribute. Feel free to add additional resources and insights. I hope you find this wiki useful in your school as part of a wider professional development program.
You can find the Web 2.0 tutorial at http://web2tutorial.wikispaces.com.
I came across this excellent multimedia presentation on TeacherTube called A New Way to Publish: The Rise of Web 2.0. The presentation is perfect for teachers wishing to learn more about the Web 2.0 phenomenon. It defines Web 2.0, and then it goes on to show classroom examples, as well as instructions on how to begin implementing blogs and wikis. This is really good material for technology novices who resolve to begin using some of these exciting, 21st century teaching tools.
Download Video: Posted by suziea at TeacherTube.com.
As classrooms evolve into 21st century learning environments, new teaching ideologies are helping to create a generation of students who are globally connected, real-world problem solvers. In what has been dubbed Classroom 2.0, teachers are preparing their pupils for 21st century life by providing authentic learning experiences that allow students to explore the world around them, collaborate with others, manage information and demonstrate higher-order thinking skills using technology. In the Information Age, the classroom is no longer defined by a physical location. Learning happens anywhere and everywhere. Twenty-first century learning environments require innovative teaching strategies. In comparing 19th and 20th century teaching strategies with 21st century teaching strategies, one can quickly see that learning is becoming increasingly participatory and social.
Traditional vs. New Teaching Environments
As we re-think the purpose of education in the 21st century, we gain a better appreciation for the types of skills and thought processes that will best prepare our children for life in the Digital Age.
A new social networking site, Ning, has been gathering serious momentum over the past couple of months. Ning is a free web service that allows you to “create your own social network for anything.”
Many professionals and educators are using Ning to share ideas with others in their field. Several education Nings are popping up, allowing teachers and administrators from all over the world to share ideas in forums and blogs. Files and multimedia are also shared. Teachers can meet here to collaborate projects with other teachers, linking classrooms from all over the globe. Some teachers are even creating their own class Ning as a method of communicating with their students, parents and community.
Some of the Ning networks I belong to include:
I would love to see examples of Nings set up for classrooms, particularly ones being used by students. If you have any stories about using Nings in this way (advantages, pitfalls, etc.) please share your thoughts. Happy Ninging!
