Seven Brilliant Things Teachers Do With Technology

http://www.educationworld.com/a_tech/columnists/johnson/johnson033.shtml   

  In this article, Doug Johnson lists 7 positive ways he sees teachers using technology. It is in response to an article he wrote that listed 7 idiotic ways teachers use tech. I chose to try and stay positive. While I do not feel the need to touch on all seven points of the article, I do agree with almost all of the main points he makes. He writes that technology should not be a crutch, but a propellant. Use it in such a way that students who are good at something, get even better. I see this in my classroom when we do research, or when there is an issue with the technology. The students who seem to think they know a lot about a topic always love to be given time to explore it on their own, and are often the first to share with the class when they learn something new. The students who tend to be good problem solvers are the first to help the class troubleshoot a technology problem.  The tech is helping the students better themselves.

The next main point the author makes is that he says teachers need to be able to find and use technology in creative ways. He mentions a teacher making his own document camera. This is all well and fine, but some time people just do not have the know-how to be able to do something like that. In my school, I do not see that happening very often. On the other hand, I do work in a district that has provided its staff with a good amount of technology so this is not as necessary where I work.

Communication is key, according to Mr. Johnson and I completely agree with him. I use technology to communicate with students and parents in ways that I never would have imagined 10 years ago. Whether it is email, my website, the imessage app on the iPads, I am constantly communicating. The parents know what’s going on in the room, and it helps students get support from me when I am not there in person.

Johnson says it’s important to enjoy the discovery that the tech brings to the classroom. Whether it be that perfect web 2.0 tool that you've been looking for, or that piece of information the student brings to the class, technology can lead to enjoyable times in the classroom. Again, in my classroom, this occurs frequently. It’s fun to make things work and make them work the right way; It’s a sense of accomplishment if they do not work at first, and myself or a student figures out how to fix the issue. This is important because sometimes, as educators, we get stuck in our way of doing things and we refuse to change. By enjoying the discovery of new tools, you will never be in a rut, because it’s fun to find new ways to educating!

The last point I’d like to touch on, and in my opinion, the most important, is that it’s ok if the teacher does not know everything. Learn along with the students. So many teachers are afraid to fail, or to look foolish in front of the class when it comes to technology. This leads them to not even try! This is the worst mentality to have, because it will hinder all of the other main points Johnson made in this article. Try things. Mess up! Learn along with your students how to fix each issue so it goes smoothly next time. I love when this happens in my class (mostly) because it gives the students ownership of the technology. Most of the time, they enjoy figuring it out together.

            I believe that if more educators would listen to Mr. Johnson and his points on the brilliant technology use, especially the last one, then technology would be more widely accepted and used. I don’t know how to accomplish this task and I hope someday I can figure it out.