Issues in Technology
Speed and Change
Evolution of equipment very rapid
Faster, smaller, more effective components arrive daily
Prices lowering
"Dated" and "Obsolete" take new
meaning
Impersonal World
Computer taking place of human voice
Voice mail
New telephone operator--your
computer
Internet
E-mail
Video conferencing
Distance Learning
Information
Access available by Internet
Power shift?
Control of information flow--who?
Authenticity of information
Who monitors the Internet?
Money and Education
Cost of technology
Volume required
Speed equipment becomes obsolete
Software--out of control?
"How to stay up-to-date"?
Changing Old Habits
Instructional Strategies
Chalkboard or Computer
Change the classroom layout
Delivery of instruction--change?
Access
Schools
Community
Homes
Equity
National Standards
National Information Infrastructure
Goals 2000
E-rate
Proposed School Construction Initiative
Is it Worth it?
Difficult to:
Measure effectiveness
Isolate
Create an effective instrument to measure
Too new for wide audiences
Not integrated widely in education
Constant change makes effective evaluation a problem
Benefits
Report on Effectiveness of Technology in Schools
Significant positive results
Areas showing improvement
reading
writing
mathematics
science
programming languages
Active learning
Stimulating environment
Student involvement (hands-on)
Interactive
Benefits beyond academics
social awareness, self-confidence
independence, positive attitudes toward learning
willing to experiment, collaborators
positive orientation about the future
Critical thinking
Promotes higher order thinking skills
Encourage problem solving skills
Increases student inquiry and analytical skills
Individualization
Offers diversity
Self-paced learning
Small group and individual learning
Introduce computers
Decrease teacher-led (lecture) by 70%
Motivation
Makes learning exciting
Students experience more success
Increases student self-confidence
Apple computer study
showed decrease
in absenteeism in technology rich environment
Flexibility
Accommodates the special needs student discretely
Adaptive devices levels playing field for special needs
students
Cooperative Learning
Can enhance and encourage cooperative learning
One Computer Classroom
Software is key
Communication Skills
Telecommunications
Writing skills
Multi-sensory Delivery
Presents to a variety of learning styles
Audio, video, and kinesthetic emphasized
Multicultural education
Expand classroom walls
World is classroom
E-mail
Allows personal contact with individuals in all parts of globe
Implementation--How?
Match your goals to technology
SOL
Curriculum driven
Get all stakeholders involved
Teachers and Administrators
Students
Parents
Partner
Community involvement
Donations--not just stuff
Be patient
Acquire in increments
Cope with simultaneous usage of several different
generations of hardware and software
Be aware
Keep abreast of other school divisions
Model programs
Training
Train as technology arrives not before
Train not just programs but how to integrate in lessons
Train on what is in the schools
Focus on what they have not what want
Support "Peer Partnerships"
Coaching
Students as trainers
Tap student expertise
Encourage peer coaching among students
Seek the free or low cost
Download from Internet
Shareware
Freeware
Technical support
Teach troubleshooting
Teach independence
Keep abreast with innovation
Read journals, magazines
Research
Embrace change
Nothing replaces the human touch
Leave the old ways and learn the new and how to fit them
into lessons
Teach individuals rather than groups of thirty
Flexibility—must
foster
Different platforms and versions abound
Must deal with the differences in computers
Must deal with the differences in software
Things to think about
Technology is not a cure-all for student success
Technology is not a luxury--it is a prerequisite for
survival in the future
Technology is a tool which used effectively can
revolutionize education
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