Using technology in schools

Attributes NETS Arizona Professional Teacher Standards

Teacher should design and develop digital age learning experiences Teacher should design and plan instructions that develops students’ ability to meet set goals

Varied formative and summative assessments aligned with technology standards and use resulting data to inform learning Teachers are supposed to address prior knowledge by use of variety of methods, materials and resources. Appropriate assessment is to be incorporated for student performance analysis.

Collaborate with students, peers, parents and the community using digital tools and resources to support student success and innovation Teacher to create and maintain a learning environment that supports the students’ ability to meet the set academic standards.

Promotes and models digital citizenship and responsibilities by advocating for legal, safe and ethical use of digital technology and information. Teacher implements and manages instructions that incorporate strategies that address diverse needs of learners and demonstrates multicultural sensitivity.

Engage in professional growth and leadership by contributing to effectiveness, vitality, and self-renewal of the teaching profession in their schools and the community. Teachers are supposed to apply the existing and new knowledge to daily practice the ethics of the profession.

The ISTE NETS and performance indicators for students are set to encourage students to utilize technology for a brighter future. The students should demonstrate creative and constructive knowledge that will develop innovative products and process using technology. Thus, they are supposed to utilize any existing knowledge to generate new ideas and products. They should instead use simulations to explore complex systems and identify ways and trends to forecast possibilities. They should be able to communicate and interact with peers and experts alike by employing a variety of digital environments at their disposal. Further, they are supposed to apply digital methods of gathering, evaluating and utilizing analyzed information from different sources and media to their advantage. This implies that they must be fluent in research and information utilization. They are also supposed to use learnt critical and creative evaluation skills to plan and conduct research, solve problems, manage projects, and make informed decisions from the available digital technology (University Microfilms, 2005). They should apply practical use of safe, legal and ethical use of information technology to exhibit diligent leadership skills in digital citizenship. This means that they have to exhibit a positive attitude towards use of technology to support collaborative learning and productivity. Personal responsibility is the key towards proper digital citizenship. They should at all times demonstrate understanding of technological systems and use applications effectively and productively for the benefit of all. They should transfer current knowledge to learning new technologies and maximizing their use to their benefit (University Microfilms, 2005).

Different technologies are available for teachers to utilize in the classroom. Many educationists advocate for the current technological advancement to be utilized as part of the classroom learning. Since a great deal of these technologies is available at home, it goes without saying that they are already exposed to it and find it interesting. For children in k-12, anything that elicits curiosity should be utilized to benefit their learning skills (Farstrup, 2002). Examples include the DVDs and CD-ROMs which may be utilized to teach various social sciences. Projectors may be used to relay information in graphical manner that will create vivid mental pictures and memories in the minds of the students. E-toys may be used to elicit creative application of skills and prior knowledge in mathematics, science, art and social sciences. Computers are creating an important mark in the teaching profession. The earlier the teachers become fluent in the use of advancing technologies, the easier they can utilize the many options presented by the internet (Farstrup, 2002). Students can perform a whole lot of things by just logging in to the World Wide Web.

Using the e-toys in k-5 is the easiest mode of technological application to enhance learning. The e-toys combine multi-media authoring tools and tile based scripting. Here, students are urged to assemble their ideas and come up with definite structures. From these e-toys, students learn a great deal in assembling different ideas to come up with a constructive one. This employs the cognitive learning of the students and enhances their ability to use appropriate vocabulary to describe a certain pattern (Ellis, 2004). From this, the teacher will analyze their prior knowledge, their reasoning ability and how the concept can be developed from what they have observed. However, the only difficulty in this kind of technological use is the time required to go through one concept given the fact that there are slow learners in class. Another factor is the limited resources to avail all the required materials to all needy schools without overlooking any of them. Public schools are many through out the state and providing all the necessary equipment could be a hustle. For private schools, this could be convenient since they sponsor themselves or have other sources of finance that could assist them greatly (Ellis, 2004).

Skills are supposed to be introduced from lower grades and continually developed to the end of the elementary education. Some of the skills that need to be developed in the grade include making proper use of the internet and being able to internalize knowledge gathered from these sources to their advantage. These skills will enable them to use technology to their advantage and most of all become responsible digital ambassadors through out their lives. These skills will enable them utilize the internet in a responsible and ethical way even at such a tender age (Ellis, 2004).

References:

Ellis, K. (2004), a study of young children’s interaction with computers: Toddler techies. Information Technology in Childhood Education Annual, vol. 20 (5), p.458-463

Farstrup, Alan E.( 2002). What Research Has to Say About Reading Instruction. Delaware: International Reading Association.

NETS from ISTE website. Retrieved on 07 November, 2010. http://www.iste.org/standards.aspx

University Microfilms (2005), The humanities and social sciences: Dissertation abstracts international, Florida: University Microfilms International