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Teachers Using Technology

Welcome! The purpose of this wiki is to give you a starting point for using technology in the classroom. As a young teacher, you may be puzzled, frightened, ambivalent, or excited about using technology. Hopefully, this wiki will help you find your way and get you started in the right direction.

Feel free to use the discussion tab above to begin a dialog about using technology--questions or ideas--and explore the tabs at the left to find resources and ideas you can use in your classroom.

Two ways teachers use technology Teachers use technology is two distinct ways. One, //professionally//. We use technology to manage data (attendance, grades), create materials (handouts, tests/quizzes, etc.), communicate with other teachers and parents (email, teacher/district websites), present information and provide lessons (presentation software, interactive whiteboards), and build a professional learning network.

The second way is by //integrating// it in the classroom. Use technology in your classroom to enrich your lessons and to engage your students.

What not to do! Here's a video to watch. . . if you are a fan of The Office, you will recognize the characters portrayed in this video. Even if you've never seen the show, the video will speak to you. Posted on YouTube by DUInnovations, this is a humorous portrayal of a "digital immigrant" and his attempt to use technology in the classroom.

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Well, should we give Michael credit for trying? There is a better way to use technology. . . a good place to start, a way to proceed. . . a way to grow. The best way to use technology is as a tool to accomplish the objective. . . not for the sake of using technology.

What to do. . . Use technology as a tool to accomplish the objective of the lesson. It's not effective for students just to try out a "cool application" if it doesn't help them learn the lesson you have planned.

Engage your students. Get them involved in the lesson so that they are doing, exploring, making, writing, performing. . . they are "in" the lesson rather than watching you. Students learn better when they discover, rather than listening to you tell them. When they ask questions and answer those questions themselves, learning is meaningful and effective.

Where to start? Start at the end. What is the objective of your lesson? What is it that you want your students to accomplish/learn? How will they show that they have accomplished/learned it? Here's where technology comes in. . . What is the technology tool your students will use to show what they have learned? Now, find a tool that will fit your needs.

Your Challenge __Develop a PLN.__ Set a goal to learn something new each week or two. Because technology changes so rapidly, there's no rest--there is always something new to discover and use!

__Integrate.__ Start slowly, and use technology to enhance your lessons. This takes time, planning, and patience.
 * Know the district policy. Find out the policy for technology use in the classroom and the procedures you'll need to follow. What can you do if a website is blocked? How do you schedule a computer lab? Are the students allowed to use cell phones in the classroom? What restrictions are placed on students and teachers?
 * Always have a plan B. It never fails, the perfect lesson never happens because the server goes down, the site you want to use is blocked, computers are broken . . . you name it, it can happen. However, learning can't stop. Plan.
 * Always run through your lesson and use the technology to make sure it accomplishes what you expect. For example, you might ask your students to participate in an online discussion using the Discussion tab of your wiki--only to find out too late that it's for general discussion, not a threaded discussion. Do your homework.