I think another great motivator is actually showing teachers what the results of working with technology will look like for students and in the classroom. I'm the type of person who likes to see what I'm working toward so that I have a clear picture in my head of where I need to go with my instruction or research. I think that if we can see what technology integration looks like, how it benefits student learning, and how it can minimize teacher's workloads, everyone would be more likely to get excited to integrate it into the curriculum. The last tactic that might work for some is to have teachers pull from past experiences of their own and remember a time that they had to learn something new and overcame the challenges that were presented. There are times that I have to remind myself that I've had to learn some tough skills, but with patience and perseverance, I eventually learned that skill and it became part of my tool box, so to speak. Once you get through the hardest part, things get easier and it becomes almost second-nature to you. I have to keep that in mind when we use new tools in our classes through SNHU, because I get nervous about things I've never used before. :-)
References:
Bernard, S. 2013. Collaborative Crusader: Creating a Twenty-First-Century Learning Community for Teachers. Edutopia. Retrieved from http://www.edutopia.org/collaboration-age-technology-lisa-huff
"There are times that I have to remind myself that I've had to learn some tough skills, but with patience and perseverance, I eventually learned that skill and it became part of my tool box, so to speak. Once you get through the hardest part, things get easier and it becomes almost second-nature to you."
ReplyDeleteJulie, great insight! You reminded me about while I was attending the workshop this summer to learn programming with Scratch. I experienced the frustration that I see my students sometimes struggle with when trying to learn a new skill. It was not easy to want to admit defeat, but I persevered and eventually solved the problem that was keeping me from moving forward and thinking I might have to admit defeat. But I left it until morning, when, looking at it with fresh eyes, I was able to see what the problem was.
It was a learning experience too, that made me more aware of the struggles that my students with special needs face 100 fold every day. But I was motivated to learn the application so that I could teach it to them and I try to keep them motivated to succeed, but also have to give them time to walk away from a frustrating problem and hopefully come back with a different idea.
Cindy
Julie, Great post! I especially like how you stated that how you "think another great motivator is actually showing teachers what the results of working with technology will look like for students and in the classroom. I'm the type of person who likes to see what I'm working toward so that I have a clear picture in my head of where I need to go with my instruction or research"
ReplyDeleteI feel that am the very much the same as you when it comes to this. I am definitely a hands on and visual learner. There have been times when I have attended PD's and took away very little from it because of the way it is presented. Similar to how we handle teaching to students with a variety of learning styles, I think it is also important to present the information to teachers in a variety of formats.
Nervous is right! My daughter is horrified that I have a Twitter account as part of one of my classes. (She's easily horrified, as she's 15) but it's not my normal comfort zone. I agree with Harry, it's good to have a clear picture of where you need to go. I think it's fun to play around with new tools by having fun with them. Forget trying to immediately integrate them into the lessons, try to use them for something funny. It's easier to concentrate on the process that way. AND more fun too.
ReplyDeleteYour reply cracked me up! I agree though, it's fun to play around with new tools without constantly thinking of how you'll use it in a lesson. Maybe some day your daughter will embrace your appreciation for trying out new tech tools! Maybe... :-)
DeleteGreat point. If you just remember that you are like the students you teach. When you put yourself in their shoes when learning something new, it provides a whole new perspective.
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