Whether to use a Shot Gun or a Rifle

One of the problems that keeps us from achieving our goal to integrate technology into the classroom is that we too often use a shot gun approach in our training. By that I mean that every time a new technology begins to emerge we throw it at our teachers in the hope that maybe someone can use it. The problem is that our teachers soon become overwhelmed and don't know what is or is not important. All our teachers hear is blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. Here is just a partial list of what has been thrown at teachers in my district during the last few years:

Atomic Learning, Epsilen, Zimbra, GroupWise, gMail, Live@edu, ePals, unitedStreaming, iMovie, Windows Movie Maker, Garage Band, Aviary, Animoto, Edmoto, Moodle, Excel, Word, PowerPoint, Google Docs, Google Sites, Weebly, Eduphoria, Edusoft, iStation, vMath, Education City, ScanTec, Computer Learning Month, IGPro, TEAMS Gradebook, SmartBoards, T3 Grant, digital video cameras, digital cameras, Audacity, iSpring, iNova, Prezi, iPads, iTouch, iTunes, NovaNet, E2020, Plato, digital document cameras, digital projectors, Internet Explorer, Firefox, Safari, NetTrekker, Yahoo, Google, Blogger, Word Press, Ning, Kidspiration, Inspiration, Bubbl.us, Wikispaces, EasyTech, ConnectedTech ...etc.

 Now I realize that part of this is a necessary evil because of the nature of technology and how rapidly it is changing. BUT, there is a lot of rabbit chasing and wasted money as well. I have a standing joke with my trainers that as a district we will swallow anything as long as it costs at least $250,000; $500,000 or $2 million is even better. It is insane madness. I also realize that not every teacher is being assaulted with every one of these technologies. Some of these technologies and promotions are worthwhile and others are not. As a whole, however, we miss the target of getting the technology into the hands of our students to achieve academic goals because we are too busy chasing after nonsense. We can't hit the target because we act like we are blindfolded and firing a shotgun mindlessly in every direction.

Is there a solution to this problem? Yes, there is. We need to take off the blindfold, put down the shotgun, and pick up a rifle, take aim, and fire. How do you do that? You begin with the curriculum. Many of the technologies listed above are worthwhile (many are not), but the question is "How does a technology help a student reach an academic goal?" If a math teacher wants his/her students to use a spreadsheet to calculate or project the results of a bake sale, then the teacher and students need to learn how to insert formulas in a spreadsheet. If a language arts teacher wants to teach her students how to brain storm a topic for an essay or develop an outline, then a tool like Kidspiration, Inspiration, or Bubbl.us would be a good choice. The point is that you use the tools in a practical hands-on approach that targets a specific objective in the classroom. The teacher immediately sees the value of the tool, and resistance begins to melt away. The teacher focuses on the tool that will help him and his students.

Timing is also critical. The training should be closely tied to the time when a specific lesson will be taught. If you are doing a training in September that won't be used until March, then the training is not relevant. You can't go deer hunting when it's not deer season (just to keep the metaphor alive).

A teacher's time is valuable. We need to respect that. Let them pick up the rifle and throw the shotgun and the blindfold away.

To Filter or Not to Filter

Yesterday, I was training at a SW Podstock conference. The conference was held at a neighboring school district. The campus is relatively new and is equipped with the latest technology. However, as I began setting up for my class, I noticed that the filtering restrictions were much more limiting than what I am used to. Now you need to understand that my basic philosophy is that when in doubt a site ought to be unblocked. For example, I believe that YouTube should be unblocked in my school district, even though as Dean Shareski, a digital educator, thinker, and lecturer with the University of Regina in Saskatchewan, Canada, stated in the keynote address, 99% is garbage. But that 1% is useful and so ubiquitous (aren't you impressed) that I believe it should be opened. Now back to my complaining about the filtering in this school district. I expected YouTube to be blocked. That is pretty standard in most school districts. However, in this district all streaming video is blocked. I also noticed that my Dropbox account was not working. (This was critical for me because this was one of the places where I had saved my presentation for that day.) Gmail was blocked. A lot of popular educational sites were blocked.

Now I know that many administrators are in the protect your tail end at all costs mentality, but there comes a point when you have to ask yourself, how far is this going to go? And if we are not going to use the technology, why are we spending billions of dollars to get it into our schools? Maybe we should just sell it and save the taxpayers a lot of money.

I don't think that is the best solution for our students, but what is a constructive approach to allowing our students to use the technology? Angela Haynes, a conference presenter from Northwest ISD, Roanoke, Texas, asked her principal why all these sites were being blocked in her district. He said that they were dangerous. Angela responded by saying that she hands out a pair of scissors to her 2nd grade students all the time and the scissors are dangerous and pose a possible threat to her students. She went on to explain that she is responsible for monitoring the students so that they don't hurt themselves or others. She is also responsible for teaching the students how to use the scissors properly. Now why can't we be just as sensible in our approach to allowing students to use technology? First, we make clear what is acceptable and unacceptable to do on the web. Second, we monitor the students carefully to make sure that they are not viewing inappropriate materials and are on task. Finally, if they persist in viewing inappropriate sites, they lose their privileges to use the technology.

One last thing.... Whenever students use computers, they should have an instructional purpose for being there. If students are bored, then they are going to get into trouble. That is just a part of human nature. Teachers cannot use computers to baby sit their students. The teacher must be well prepared to extend the lesson for those students who finish early. Give them the guidance they need. Vary the tools and make learning fun.