Discussion 2.5- Motivational Strategies for Teachers

   It's hard to know what will get teachers motivated to collaborate with their peers in order to create rich lessons that include technology.  All I can do is look at different resources and think about things that would work well for me.  When I think about integrating technology into my classroom I get overwhelmed because there's so much to be done and I never know where to start.  I know many teachers get overwhelmed when asked to do something extra on top of everything they're already doing so I think a good place to start is by sitting down and sharing concerns and ideas.  A fellow classmate mentioned in a post this week that it's important to build trust in a collaborative group because it opens the pathways of communication and allows everyone to share ideas openly without worrying about being shut down.  I think another great idea is to give teachers a list of different ways to integrate technology so that they can refer to it quickly.  The website "50 Ways to Integrate Technology" is a tool that I've enjoyed looking through and could easily share with teachers (Branch. 2010).

   Another aspect of motivation that could easily be overlooked is how much the students will gain from using technology within the curriculum.  When talking about teacher motivation, Ibrahim Kocabas says it quite well by stating that "Motivation is an extremely complicated and multi-faceted subject.  However, meeting people's needs plays a very important role in their motivation" (Kocabas. 2009.).  I think this explains teachers quite well because I haven't met a teacher who doesn't want to try and meet the needs of their students.  If teachers know that students will make great gains by using technology, they are more likely to stay focused on learning how to incorporate it and be patient as they learn because they know the ultimate goal.  I am much more likely to actually complete a plan if I know where I need to go with it.
   
   The last thing that I think would be great motivation for teachers is having help planning out the lessons that will incorporate technology.  They can do this with the help of a technology integrator within their school or district or they can find resources online.  The website teAchnology shows a step-by-step process that makes it much easier to figure out how to get technology into the classroom.  I believe that starting out small is the key to starting the process because trying to integrate technology all at once will drive anybody crazy.  I can't imagine asking a teacher to take all their lessons and put technology in every single one of them before they teach them.  I think it takes some playing around with ideas, and if teachers will sit down together with a template to look at for incorporating technology, they will start to throw ideas around and tweak lessons to fit their teaching styles and personalities.  Trust has to be a big part of collaboration, but I think that reminding each other that we do want to meet the needs of students can help to break the ice and get everyone on the same page to work toward a mutual trust and respect for one another.

Resources:

Branch, J. 2010. 50 Ways to Integrate Technology. 50 Ways to Integrate Technology in Your Classroom Tomorrow. Retrieved from https://sites.google.com/site/anchortechnologytomorrow/home/50-ways-to-anchor-technology

Kocabas, I. 2009. The Effects of Sources of Motivation of Teachers' Motivation Levels. Education 129.4. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com.ezproxy.snhu.edu/docview/196408121

Teachnology Inc. 2012. What to Consider When Writing a Lesson Plan. Retrieve from http://www.teach-nology.com/tutorials/teaching/lesson_plan/