On Friday, I was fortunate to be able to attend Tech Forum, a one day conference put on my Tech & Learning Magazine.
It was a day filled with meet ups with friends and colleagues who work in technology in education. It is always so great to chat with people who do what I do. Often, I feel alone in my school as no one else does the job I do. This year, as most years, I look back on the school year and wish that I had more of an impact in changing the way students learn in our school.
TechForum and the people I heard speak have reignited me. Andy Kohl, Elizabeth Greene and Dan Rezak's presentation about how to approach technology integration holistically really helped me to take stock of our progress in my school. After sitting, talking and listening to their presentation, I have decided to change some of my strategies to get teacher by in.
Each week, I do a Thursday Tech Three email (also shared in their blog)to the staff with links to videos, great apps, nice resources students, motivating blog posts, really, a spattering of different resources. The staff tell me they love it, and I have cotaught with many teachers around the tools I have shared in that email each week. But in reality, upon reflection at Tech Forum, I realized that it probably is helpful for the teachers who are open to changing their delivery methods, but those teachers who are still "covering the curriculum" and "getting through the material" with their students are really the ones who need the resources more are not even opening it.
Adopt A Teacher
To reach the reluctant teachers, I am going to change my co teaching style. I am going to "adopt a teacher", and work with one teacher over a longer period of time. That is, we will set some big goals together, and then I will be in their classroom with them each day, each period if need be, to support them as they teach. I will be there as an extra hand, a sounding board for their ideas, bring tech creativity tools, help the teacher let the students uncover the curriculum, work in more creativity, choices, collaboration and freedom. I have worked often with some of my teachers, and the more time I spend with them in their rooms, not even teaching, but supporting, the more risks they take, the more tech they integrate and the more creative their students become.
Tech Avengers/ Tech Deputies
Students are the ones who are the most comfortable with the tech, so I am going to give them the lisence to be the experts in the classrooms. I will start a club, which I had done in a previous school with much success, and train students on web tools, simple trouble shooting, how to care for the computer carts, etc. I will get to the teachers through the students. The kids will create screencasts of how to use apps, or tools that would be great resources to use for sharing student learning. The kids will be Tech Avengers, and they will help (or push) the teachers to let them try new tools in the classroom. They will have a form to complete if they need more help, and one to submit each time they do help in the class. That way, we will have data around the good they are doing in moving our building forward!
Gather the Cool Ideas
I am going to start a document gathering all the great tools, student samples and what successes the students are having in different rooms with different teachers. It will be a simple spot where I can track, store and celebrate what is going on each day in our school. I want to gather the successes! Track the change, see who is doing what...so that there is evidence of the change our school is accomplishing.
Get a Seat at the Table
I am going to approach my Assistant Superintendent of Curriculum and Instruction and ask for a seat on the Social Studies curriculum review committee. I am going to ask if I can be present during the meetings to listen, to share ideas, to ask good questions and to be a part of the change from the moment that it starts. One of the problems I see in my school and in education generally is that we adopt a new curriculum, ask the teachers to change habits, tools, resources etc. then ask them to layer technology on top of all that change. Then, the teachers have the out of using tech because they are "so busy learning the new curriculum". If I am at the table, then the tech can be integrated and seen as a value from the beginning. To help the teachers move beyond substitution and automation in the SAMR model.
Okay, that was really 4 ideas I am going to implement going forward...I can't wait to get change going!
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