Technology Integration and Support - Look below for new tips on a regular basis.
Got iPads?
More and more classrooms have one or more iPads these days. That can be problematic for teachers who don't really know how to utilize them effectively. These devices should not just be used for rewards or entertainment, of course, but how does a teacher figure out how to make them an integral part of his or her teaching. Some help may be found at the Edudemic website. The graphic below is an example of some of the support you may find. Check it out at www.edudemic.co/the-ultimate-guide-to-using-ipads-in-the-classroom/
More and more classrooms have one or more iPads these days. That can be problematic for teachers who don't really know how to utilize them effectively. These devices should not just be used for rewards or entertainment, of course, but how does a teacher figure out how to make them an integral part of his or her teaching. Some help may be found at the Edudemic website. The graphic below is an example of some of the support you may find. Check it out at www.edudemic.co/the-ultimate-guide-to-using-ipads-in-the-classroom/
The TPACK Framework
As technology becomes an ever larger component of our teaching, we need to be asking ourselves, "Is what I'm doing just adding technology onto a lesson, or am I utilizing technology as the vehicle for the lesson?" In the 21st century, students need to be experiencing the power of technology to expand learning, and our lesson plans don't always support that. For example, in which of these scenarios is technology the add-on and in which is it an integral part of the lesson.
Scenario 1: Students are instructed to use several printed sources to research a topic, write a three paragraph explanation of it, and type it into a word processor for printing.
Scenario 2: Students are asked to research a topic by finding several sources on the Internet, use a digital brainstorming tool to plan their project, and create an iMovie to share what they learned.
Obviously the second scenario is much closer to the kinds of endeavors students will be asked to do in the real world in just a few short years, once they are out of school. The image above is a diagram of how most teachers implement technology. Most of these teachers coordinate their content knowledge (CK) and their pedagogical knowledge (PK) very well, but the technological knowledge (TK) is just added on at the end after the bulk of the lesson plan is worked out, often to meet some standard or building requirement.
Ideally, as in Scenario 2, technology is taken into account from the beginning and the lesson would not afford the same learning experience without it. In this kind of planning, the teacher thoroughly coordinates CK, PK, and TK in the manner of the graphic below, a framework called TPACK. The most powerful learning takes place where the three constructs overlap each other. Which graphic does your lesson planning most closely resemble?
Graphics from Mishra & Koehler, 2006
Managing Mobile Devices
Teachers with the luxury of several mobile devices in a classroom may be frustrated with how to manage them. Lisa Nielsen, author of the popular educational blog The Innovative Educator, offers 5 useful tips to overcome these issues. You can find her solutions at
http://theinnovativeeducator.blogspot.com/2013/08/5-back-to-school-management-tips-for.html#links
Speaking of technology integration. Allan Carrington is continuing to evolve the Padagogy Wheel, a fantastic tool that brings together, Bloom's Taxonomy levels, questions and tasks related to the various levels, along with mobile device (mostly iPad) apps that correspond. The addition in version 2.0 is the outer ring which utilizes the SAMR model for tech integration: Substitution (the most basic kind of integration in which you simply find a new app that students can use to do the same kind of print-based activities you've always required of them), Augmentation (which involves substitution, but with improvements), Modification (which moves into total task redesign), and Redefinition (which means doing things through use of technology that could not even be considered without it). Whatever level you may be at in your technology/pedagogy integration journey, this wheel will be helpful. The QR codes on the chart can take you to even more helpful resources. The wheel can be found at the following website: http://www.unity.net.au/padwheel/padwheelposter.pdf