| Are
there differences in how technology can support TEACHING as compared to
how it can support LEARNING? Explain similarities and differences you
see between these two, using examples from the work we have done and/or
the readings (for this unit or previous units.)
I believe
there are differences in the way technology supports teaching and learning.
There are “teacher tools” and there are “student learning
tools.” The teacher tools are technologies that allow teachers to
be more efficient in their daily duties. My personal theory is that once
a teacher becomes more comfortable with using these technologies, they
will have more time to spend on learning the “student learning tools.”
The reverse argument might be made by saying that once teachers get used
to using “student learning tools” they will have more time
to spend on learning teacher tools. Student learning tools are the technologies
that enhance student learning and allow affordances for student learning
that might not otherwise exist. Some tools support both realms.
Outlook (or GroupWise or Lotus Notes or whatever email/calendar program
you may be using) is what I call a “teacher tool.” Using one
of these programs consistently (along with your colleagues) helps the
teacher to be more organized, streamlined and expedient with regard to
communication. No longer do you have to send a child down the hall with
a note for the principal or another teacher (taking that child out of
the classroom for even a few minutes.) No longer do you have to spend
time at staff meetings re-hashing what was talked about at the previous
meeting because you may well have received the minutes from the last meeting
through e-mail and you have had time to look at these notes before going
into the current meeting. No longer do you have to disturb other teachers
during their class time or prep time trying to figure out when everyone
has free time to get together to meet. All of the above mentioned things
can be done swiftly, accurately and more transparently than ever before
with the use of technology. These are great things, wonderful thing, but
none-the-less, do not really impact student learning at all, except in
the sense that once the tool becomes a transparent feature in the life
of the teacher, the teacher then has more time to spend on the student
learning tools.
There are features in programs like Word or Excel that also are more “teacher
oriented.” Teachers use Mail Merge in Word to send parent letters
that have a ”personal” touch (also cutting down on the time
it takes to send individual letters to each and every parent), or Templates
in Word to create worksheets and tests and journals and newsletters and
again, these features save the teacher time (in the long run.) In Excel,
teachers can create automated formulas to keep grade books (or they can
choose from any number of electronic grade book programs to do this for
them as well.) All of these technology tools offer affordances for teachers.
The biggest affordance is that of TIME! They save teachers time. They
do not enhance student learning.
Other “teacher tools” include LCD projectors, Smart Boards,
Digital video Retrieval Systems and PDA’s, although an argument
can be made that Smart Boards and PDA’s are also student-learning
tools. Mostly though, these tools help the teacher…either by saving
time or presenting information in new and engaging ways.
I see digital cameras, programs like Geometers Sketchpad, KidPix, HyperStudio
and certain features in Word and Excel as student learning tools (to name
just a few.) Students use digital cameras to record progress of their
own work over a length of time as well as progress in individual assignments
in a short period of time. They use digital cameras to view differences
in scientific experiments and they use images for dramatic effect in social
studies projects or language arts assignments. Geometers Sketchpad allows
students to dramatically and dynamically represent abstract geometric
problems in a way that engages and enhances student learning. KidPix and
HyperStudio are programs that allow students to draw, write and learn
by using multimedia, again in a way that motivates students to learn more.
In Word, when students write and then are able to edit and revise, edit
and revise and then create a final draft of their work, it becomes a tool
for student learning. I also see students creating newsletters and brochures,
inserting graphics and clip art and designing web pages in Word. These
are examples of using Word for student learning. Excel is another program
that offers student-learning features. Students learn to use complicated
mathematical formulas to solve problems and then dynamically chart their
data to present their calculations visually.
Some technologies support both teaching and learning. The Internet is
one of the most common examples of this. The Internet affords access to
so much information that might not otherwise be available for either the
teacher or the student. PowerPoint is a technology that offers affordances
for both teachers and students. For teachers, using Power Point engages
students and can be used for whole class presentations and review. Students
can use Power Point to showcase their work over the course of the year
(electronic portfolios) or for individual assignment presentations. Inspiration
is another program that allows affordances for both teachers and students
in very much the same way. Smart Boards, PDA’s, digital cameras
and even products like Alpha Smart Keyboards allow representation of information
for both students and teachers. Programs like Jasper and WISE allow affordances
for both teachers and students. They offer information, representation,
transformation and collaboration (for students) and especially boundaries
and pedagogical content for teachers. Although we have not yet discussed
webquests, I see these as technologies that offer affordances for both
teachers and students. They are web lessons that are structured and organized
so that students can do the work and know exactly what is expected of
them. Teachers get the chance to monitor student work and typically there
are rubrics for grading the work already built into the lesson. Webquests
tend to utilize primary resources quite well.
There are so many technologies available for both teachers and students
and the challenge today for teachers is to be able to discern which technologies
will offer affordances for both teaching and learning. Technology, for
the sake of technology, typically is not an effective use of the tool.
The key, then, becomes finding effective ways to integrate technology
into the curriculum or, for the teacher, into the life of the teacher.
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