I teach fourth grade math and science. I love technology, but have to admit that I really do not do a very good job of integrating it into my teaching. It is my hope to change that...... to gain ideas from others of how to change. Like many, I have learned to rely upon the standards and, unfortunately, the textbook to get students ready for the test. While I think I am beyond an entry level, it is hard to admit that this is not really the case.
I do have access to technology, but most of the time, it was not with the students I was teaching these content areas to. I went to the computer lab with sixth graders. This should have been ideal, but my understanding of what they were learning in content areas meant it was difficult to make it all connect. As a result, this time was often more test practice and isolated skill practice than it should have been.
I also have access to iPad carts that could be checked out and used within my classroom. This is what I need to incorporate. Do I do that by automatically thinking a day a week with them? I need to have them scheduled, so it can't be something that just randomly happens. That would be my ideal..... A student asks a question and the tool is there. We are moving to Bring Your Own Device. Yet, that does not seem to really work. I am sure that was a teacher "thing" and my comfort with so many different devices in the room and a fear of a child not understanding the task at hand. Or a fear of my not knowing how to guide them with a device that I was not familiar with. After all, they are ten and "need" a teacher. Not really! (I need to remember they are better versed at this than I am..... They are natives; I truly am an immigrant.) However, I do better know how to make sure that the tool is charged! Why is it that they know how to manipulate the thing, but forget to make sure that they have it fully charged? That might be my first goal-- gather enough chargers that I can make sure that they can charge their own device in the room. Just kidding, but hey, it is a start!
I need to start now, thinking about the plan. (Yet, I am not quite sure of what my schedule will be in the fall.) I want to be a part of the change for my students. I really think that I am the teacher that I am today because of innovative teachers in my life. We didn't have technology, but those teachers used every tool available to make what was going on in the classroom applicable and useful. Integrating the tools that I have and even learning to use some that I don't have at the moment, is necessary for my students to be the best they can be. Websites are a start, but student involvement in their own learning is going to be vital.
Hi Cindy, I appreciated your honest comments in your blog. I feel very much like you do (only I teach third grade)! I would like to move my students past seeing everything as a "game" or just a social activity. I loved what Will Richardson was saying about children exploring their interests and being able to learn about all sorts of topics on their own outside of the traditional classroom. I guess my problem is how to instill in third graders that inate desire to pursue a dream or explore an idea. Most of my class was purely interested in how to reach the next level in a game or how to "connect" with one another using a school-oriented Facebook-type program. They are great at figuring those things out, but trying to get them to type a reasonable written piece was like pulling teeth!! My theory is that we definitely need the technology, but I still have this nagging feeling that we need some "old-fashioned" learning. I am an immigrant, but my background in non-digital learning helps me think on a deeper level and focus on an area better than most of the students I see. Maybe it is just because I am getting to be an old fogey!
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