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Posted by ijduran in : Monitoring Technology, Training, managing change , trackback
In recent Tech Bucks sessions we have discussed how important it is to monitor the use of technology in our classrooms. Technology can easily become really cool stuff that has superficial impact in a classroom or it can be viewed and used as dynamic tool to transform a classroom. I am more of an advocate of the latter believing that the addition of new technology can significantly increase engagement of student learning and teacher enthusiasm.
The International Society of Technology in Education recently came out with a Classroom Observation Tool that can be used in a variety of ways to monitor the use of technology integration in a classroom. I like the way they focus on student roles and teacher roles and really asking the question, “How essential was technology to the teaching and learning activities?”
Your assignment for this month’s session is to go the web site and to check out the tool. You can work with it online or you can download a PDF. Use it or some part of it in your classroom monitoring and then come back to this blog site and post a comment. What did you notice in classrooms? What questions did you focus on when visiting classrooms? Any big insights? You get the idea…
Once you go this website you will need to register and create an account. Please read the section on “Training Resources” first. This will give you some ideas and suggestions for how you can use this tool. There are also some video links here that Professional Technical can staff can view and gather some observational data as well.
You can download the tool (It will install a program called Adobe Air) or I have posted it here on this blog as well. Go for the spirit of this and I would like people to focus on “How is Technology Being Used in Your School?” Use this as your guiding question when you go and visit classrooms or watching the videos and then blog about what you have learned. That will meet the expectations. I will give you credit for the Tech Bucks Session once you have posted a blog.
Have fun!
ISTE ICOT Site: http://icot.iste.org/
ICOT in PDF Format: icot_observation.pdf
Comments»
I continue to find myself technologically challenged. This tech monitoring is good “stuff”. I am realizing how little we are actually doing in our building. We are definitley in the implementation stages in many classrooms. The possibilities are limitless. With our population Technology is definitly the tool to raise the level of engagement needed to raise student achievement
The monitoring tool is definitely something that can raise awareness for teachers as to the skill level of of individuals as well as depth of understanding as to how technology will/can impact instruction.
I have had an opportunity to see a variety of buildings and content classrooms since August, many with technology in place (audio stations, visualizers, interactive white boards (sometimes two!), laptops for every student, clickers, teacher laptops to project United Streaming Videos, teachers using Power Points, Flip video cameras, etc.) and some without anything more than an overhead projector. While I am a true believer in the simple power of paper, pencils, and a variety of print materials (at their purest level) as tools for learning, I would advocate for more cool gadgets in every classroom in this district, especially at the secondary level. Teacher demonstrations, sharing effective pedagogy, progress monitoring, and student learning are always streamlined or enhanced with the support of technology. Schools are often the only place APS students have access to 21st century learning materials.
Monitoring the use of technology has to be integrated into our new teacher evaluation tool. Is anyone keeping that in mind who is on the committee? I particularly like the checklist addressing the NETS standards and the three-minute chart. I found that my teachers were using the smartboard for whole group instruction only and not for small group or independent learning. If we only use 15-20 min out of an hour for whole group instruction, how much time is the smartboard being used. What would it look like for small group instruction?
The technology list also reminded me of all the tools that can be used by teachers and by students we currently have access to and we are not using. I’m still having trouble with teachers comfortably using the G: drive to share data and to effectively email documents. Lots of work to do!
I am the School to Work Program Coordinator. I work with students either individually or in a small group. This activity has reminded me that technology does support learning. I find that I tend to limit my technology use to either pen/paper, PowerPoint presentations, training DVD’s and Internet use. I believe that if I implement more technology into my program I can reach more students. All of my students have a mild to moderate disability. Therefore I often find it difficult to teach due to different learning styles and types of disabilities. There are times that I will speak to them, but they aren’t responsive. Then I have them view a training DVD or use the Internet and I get a different response even though it is the same information being provided. We are a society that uses technology on a daily basis, so why not have it an essential part of our classroom or Job Club. Many of our students will also need to use technology in the workforce; therefore, we need to expose them to as much technology as possible. From a researcher standpoint I would like to observe how technology use relates to getting a job and maintaining employment. I believe the forms provided through Classroom Observation Tool can be used/modified to conduct this research. My goal is to increase engagement of student learning by using more technology in my Job Club.
I really like this Classroom Observation Tool. At least at first it would give administrators a guide as to what to expect to see in a 21st Century classroom. It reminds admin. to observe whether the teacher is mostly lecturing or doing more interactive activities with students. What are the activities being done in the classrooom? Are they really interactive or is it something that was done 10 or even 20 years ago (ie. cutting and using scissors rather than cutting and pasting on a computer). I really like the question “How essential was technology to the teaching and learning activities?” Not every lesson/activity will be tech. based, but a good place assess the classroom environment. And then holding the teacher accountable is instrumental. What technologies did the student and the teacher use and what standards did the teacher meet? Again, I think it is a good form to start with and then once an admin. knows what to expect, they can modify the form to really fit their needs and teacher expectations.
I agree with Barb, this Classroom Observation Tool is a good guide for teachers and administrators. This is a good tool to have where teachers can re-arrange their lesson plans and make the lesson more interactive for the students. With our 21st century learners, technology is a crucial tool to engage the students more, which in turn will raise student achievement. We are living in a new era and technology impacts instruction and the classroom in many ways. We have to find more creative ways to engage these learners since most tend to get bored real easy. As a technology facilitator some years ago, I found that it is not what tools you use but how you use them. One of my first lessons was to show the students the parts of the computer and get them familiar with the terms. I tried to show them a picture and projected it on the screen with my LCD projector. I saw some of the students were engaged but others were not and I changed that lesson and found a 3-D video of the hardware and how it worked, mixed that with some excerpt clips from Magic School Bus when they explore the inside of the computer and all the kids were engaged and asking many questions. I think this Classroom Observation Tool will help determine what is working and what is not.
Wow! It is so great to have a monitoring tool that can be either localized to my computer or online. It does make me realize that we are underutilizing a lot of our technology or possibly just not using it to its fullest extent possible. Having an observational protocol sheet also ensures that my look-for’s in classrooms are purposeful and concise. As I roved our school for our current use of technology I noticed that many students were engaged in the use of the technology, whether it is the use of a laptop to type a paper, the use of a visualizer that is hooked up to a computer that is displaying a video from United Streaming, or students checking out a website through OnePlace. What I also realized through my observations is that the use of an observation protocol attached to a continuum of learning can support teachers in developing their next steps that are aligned with the curriculum and standards.