Before Buying Technology, Asking "Why?"
It seems so simple, right? But how often do districts buy devices only to ask later "Now what??" This article mentioned how nearly $400 million was given out by the US Depart. of Education for its Race to the Top grant program. Almost all of the 21 districts that received these funds, used the money to create 1 to 1 digital device plans.
Of course, any technology providers are not going to turn down money from the schools. so districts believe that these major technology purchases will help guide students into a more personalized learning school. But that is not always the case!
One representative from the International Association for K-12 online learning said that she receives 5 to 6 calls a day from different principals and superintendents who are "buying the technology without thinking through what their specific learning goals and outcomes are, and technology might not be the right tool for that." Personalized learning can be implemented without technology. It may be easier with technology, but its not impossible.
What I found most interesting about this article, is the suggestion that a good 1-to-1 program will take 3-5 years to implement!! Time to craft a plan, get parties on board, and time to integrate instructional changes. We all know teachers who have been given tablets, apple tvs, smartboards, Chormebooks, iPads etc only to have them sit there, unused. Another key to implementing, is to TRAIN teachers, principals and parents even BEFORE distributing and having students manage them.
Its the typical "cart before the horse" logic. We give students these devices before we know how to use them ourselves or before we know what to do with them. I work with a teacher who would LOVE to utilize the technology given to her, I know she would use it more efficiently, but she honestly doesn't understand the basic parts to the devices (iPads) given to her and she is "afraid to mess it up" by adding things to it. Right now her iPads are being used for center times/games but I know she would like to do more with them. It turns into a time issue, when to have the time to do it and I know she would like to have someone with her the entire time (step by step) while she is trying to use it. (Sounds like the perfect PD plan, right?)
This article ended with a simple "the vision needs to come first" statement. Before giving teachers the latest gadget because they are new and cool and "thats what the other schools are using" we need to talk to the teachers and see what their needs are in the classroom. We need to provide time to train and use the products before the kids get ahold of them. It can be as simple as asking "why" and "what for".
This is something that I feel our district REALLY needs to work on. Being one of the main technology go-to people in the elementary schools, one would think that I get a little input in devices and purchases made for the school but I feel that I am skipped over often. And the professional development piece is definitely a problem.
ReplyDeleteTo avoid having thousands of dollars worth of devices just sitting in a classroom can be avoided with training and you can't forget accountability. Administration has to hold all of their teachers accountable for using technology!
Our district is questioning even investing in the devices to go 1:1 in the spring or next fall. I do feel too many districts are spending money buying devices without setting goals on how to implement their use in the classroom. I agree with Amy that there has to be accountability, but before accountability, there also has to be an investment in training. I suggested to someone in our district last week that instead of buying the devices for every student, districts should be leasing or selling the devices to the students and using the money to invest in training.
ReplyDeleteSpeaking from experience as a teacher whose school has a 1:1 intiative program, I found the detail about 3-5 years to implement a plan interesting. It is so important for an administrator to have a vision AND a well-thought-out plan before pushing these devices into teachers' and students' hands. My district definitely employed the "cart before the horse" method, and now we are spending time and resources to compensate insufficent planning. We also struggle with teacher buy-in to the program because of lack of sufficent training and professional development in regards to using technology in the classroom.
ReplyDeleteIt's interesting that the article I posted talked ten key factors in successful technology integration. One pillar was about creating an environment that makes it easier for teachers to buy-in to technology use and several (I think four) of the ten key elements he talked about had to do with providing adequate professional development which included time to train and also time to plan.
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