On Tuesday, we talked about the article we had read on the Taxonomies of Educational Technology. Several people reported coming away from the article with completely different perspectives. Karla expressed the opinion that there really wasn't a need for a new taxonomy and what gave Mr. Bruce the idea that his taxonomy was the best or would last any longer than the earlier taxonomies? Kat said she agreed with that and also added that "taxonomy" didn't seem to
fit or be the most appropriate term for this information. It was suggested that perhaps "framework" was a better choice. Someone else said they thought Bruce was right on the money as he described the way the various media fit nicely into Dewey's Taxonomy of Learning which includes the four part division of: Inquiry, Communication, Construction and Expression. There seemed to be a problem for at least one person that the number of entries in the "Expression"
category was zero. I personally enjoyed the Bruce article and loved the way he used Dewey's taxonomy to categorize media. I also like the term media to describe the various technologies.

One other topic emerged from our discussion revolving around the issue of the "need" for teaching basic skills to students, verse handing them a media and letting them figure out how to use it on their own. This brought a lively debate, with people commenting strongly on both sides of the story. That is what I will reflect upon in this journal entry with one caveat. I will talk about why I think basic skills' training is not necessary for teachers in order for them to integrate the media within their curriculum. There are two main reasons I hold this opinion. First, teachers "think" they need to know more than they actually do about technology and rally do better when they focus on what they do know…their urriculum. Second, if they are intrinsically motivated to learn the media, they will
learn it regardless of having basic skills training.

I teach teachers…technology! I love my job! I also have had the experience of teaching computer skills to adults from other walks of life. When I worked for New Horizons Computer Learning Center, I would have 18 people a day in for a one day class where the objectives were many and the tension was high. They "needed" to learn how to use the particular software application I was teaching and they needed to learn it fast. Truth be told, just because they spent the day with me (and by evaluations I was considered a terrific teacher) does not mean that they "learned" the software, nor that
what they learned would be useful to them when they returned to their jobs. At Howell, what I have found, is that while teachers may feel the "need" to know the "how to's" of a specific application in order to use it or incorporate it into their curriculum, the truth is, they often do much better when I teach them a new piece of software via starting with their curriculum. I think this feeling of "I have to know how to use the software first, "where do I click for this and what do I do for that?" comes from the notion that teachers are supposed to be the authority…the experts. When they don't feel like an expert, it is kind of hard for them to swallow. (That statement ought to get a few of you going…) For example, when someone wants to learn Power Point (even if they have no prior knowledge) I have them open the program and begin in Outline View. I ask them to focus on the content of the lesson they want to present. Usually I suggest something that takes only about 5-10 minutes for them to cover, like classroom rules or fire drill procedures. That way, they can focus on what they know best…content, and not even think about the technology they are using. They do know how to type and with a few exceptions, they all do know how to turn the computer on and double click the
short-cut for Power Point which is on their desktop. I guess and argument can be made here that learning even those fundamental skills must have taken some time. I guess the point I make here though is this: as Punya said in class the other night, "To understand educational technology, we need to go to the learner." In this case the learner is the teacher.

On a somewhat related note, it was reported in a recent issue of eSchool News that "Forty-three percent of school leaders surveyed rate new teachers as only "average" when it comes to their competence in integrating the Internet into their instruction" and that "it is teacher expertise that is holding us back." I would argue (based on my experience with over 435 teachers at Howell Public Schools) that it is not teacher expertise…it is teacher' confidence (or lack thereof) about technology that is keeping teachers from integrating technology within their curriculum. Teachers somehow think they should know it all before they can use it. Again, I think this comes from their fear of possibly (and maybe even probably) not knowing as much as their students do about the media. So, I believe this is a confidence issue and not, as the eSchool News article suggests an issue of expertise.

Finally, if we agree that kids learn best when they are motivated to learn something, what makes teachers any different? Here is a true story. I bought my first computer in 1996. I bought it for my children (we were living in the UP and I was convinced that they would never be a part of the "real world".) I KNEW NOTHING about computers. In fact, I didn't touch the thing until mid-1997 when we first got Internet access. Then, I was REALLY MOTIVATED to use it because I felt so isolated and removed from my family and friends and knew that this thing called e-mail was an inexpensive, great way to
stay in touch with all of them on a regular basis. Heck…I became the e-mail queen in about a week's time! J It was GREAT! I taught myself what to do and how to use this terrific tool simply because I was intrinsically motivated to do so.

Bottom line…I believe teachers do not "need" to be taught basic computer skills per se in order to integrate technology within their curriculum. If they are motivated to do so, they will do it. If they focus on what they know best…content, they will be successful.

Here are some sites that talk about this issue, but more about the need for basic skills training for students…not eachers.

http://ericit.org/digests/EDO-IR-1996-04.shtml

http://www.naeyc.org/resources/position_statements/pstech98.htm

http://www.netc.org/earlyconnections/pub/brochure.pdf

http://www.kidsource.com/education/computers.children.html