Results driven is needed to help in changing the ways of teachers. Principals or technology leaders need to provide staff with professional development programs that are meaningful to teacher and can help them. There are five types of people one may encounter when trying to implement new ideas. 1. Trailblazers are people who are willing to try new ideas without hesitation. 2. Pioneers are individuals who are willing to try new ideas however they need more information in making sure that the change is worth their time. 3. Sellers are individuals who are in the middle. They are not necessarily against of for the ideas but they can go either way. 4. Resisters are individuals who are complacent with how things are and they do not care for change or new ideas. 5. Saboteurs are individuals who are complete against and they will do what it take to go completely against the new ideas. This chapter list a number of reason why individuals may resistance change and new ideas. I can understand reasoning for all. The resisters and saboteurs can make or break the implementation of the new ideas and an individual as a tech leader who is trying to implement new ideas, must be able to deal with these types of people so that they can respond accordingly so that there is not complete resistance of everyone and change can begin to occur.
Evaluating technology in the classroom is about how the teacher is teacher it not just what she is using, The fact that a teacher is using technology does not matter if they are not implementing it in a way that is engaging the students. Evaluation of teacher is a must for principals because they helps in identifying teachers strengths and weaknesses. It also helps in determining staff development needs for improvement. One of the biggest misconceptions is that technology is simply about hardware and software but it is more than that. There are frameworks and standards that help in incorporating the technology with the subject. This helps in maximizing the engagement and the learning experiences. The teacher must serve as a facilitator, guide, co-learner and co-investigator and the students must be willing to explore, think and reproduce what they learned. Technology in the classroom must be used in a way such that there is engagement and collaboration in the activity.
While planning and implementation are needed to keep technology programs running,in order to keep a technology program running effectively there has to also be good balance of leadership and management.
As technology advances it is determined that it can both help and hurt schools The future of technology is constantly changing at rates unknown. The invention of the overhead projector was slow and teachers had time to prepare and adjust to it. With computer technology, everything is constantly changing at a quick pace. Adapting times are short and when teachers adapt to one thing, it is then being updated or added and the process starts all over again. Technology can help in engaging students but it has to be properly done In order to bridge this gap between the help and hurt stages, the teachers and leaders must get together to plan design, implement, manage, evaluate, and sustain effective technology.
There will be Trailblazers, Sellers and Saboteurs in any new idea or program that comes along. No one can be left out of planning in order for the program to progress. This is something I need to keep in mind to get the "whole picture."
ReplyDeleteI agree with your post about technology in the classroom. Technology is not a requirement in the classroom, however, engaged students are a requirement. If technology is the means to engage, then bring the technology on!
Tech leaders do need to be able to work with all kinds of teachers including trailblazers and saboteurs! I think that it is easy to push the saboteurs to the side, but saboteurs can often be beneficial to pushing technology to the next level (even if they don't realize they are!).
ReplyDeleteI agree that technology use is not beneficial unless it is used to engage students. Teachers should be evaluated on how effectively they use technology in the classroom. It is true that evaluation measures can help drive the focus of staff development. Also, I think teachers would be more likely to use technology to increase engagement if they were evaluted on those standards.
Proper collaboration can definitely bridge the "technology gap." I think that we can all take the initiative to be a part of this collaboration in our own schools.
We do have a technology requirement in our teacher assessment tool, but it doesn't clarify to what extent it is to be used. A lot of teachers do not realize that just because you can turn on a interactive whiteboard and display something on it that doesn't mean you are using it effectively or to it's full potential. I think it is important for administrators to tell teachers what they want and expect to see when using technology and not just check off wether it was "used" or "not used" for the lesson observation.
ReplyDeleteYou think the overhead projectors were resisted in the beginning? :) I know we're moving a lot faster than that these days and it is harder for teachers who are not as tech savvy to catch up or get on board. Support is crutial.