As schools around the globe begin to embed the use of technology in their learning environments, these teachers can be left feeling frustrated and marginalized by the new tools they are required to use but do not understand.
Contents contributed and discussions participated by Lucretia Human
What are Discussion Forums and How do They Enhance Learning? - 21 views
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The discussion forums are a method to gain interaction among students and teachers without the pressure that some students face in a traditional classroom. Discussion forums are reflective in nature and allow students to read others perspectives and then consider a response.
Since there is a greater propensity for students to interact with one another compared to a face-to-face setting, class community is enhanced. There is more cohesion among students, with a higher degree of trust. The rate of questions and inquiries increase between students and teachers, due to this greater sense of community. Also the students feel their voice in valuable and applicable to the needs of the of the group.
The student has a greater response time, which in turn means a more thought out or researched response, adding to the educational experience and helping the student take ownership of your own learning. This also leads to students feeling a sense of empowerment that guides them to greater motivation, interest and participation.
I teach in higher ed in a face-to-face setting, however all my classes have discussion forums on our LMS, even my Histology and Embryology classes. I have learned that students will present questions and comments in a discussion forum that they will not in class. Each classmate brings a different perspective to that question and thus the students gets a variety of explanations, helping them to deepen their knowledge of the subject. In the Histology class, my discussion forums consist of case studies. The case studies have a condition that we have discussed in class, but maybe have not reached all conclusions to. The students find that using the knowledge they obtained in class and added new knowledge, through research or other students comments, that they remember and can apply the information better and easier.
5 Tips to Help Teachers Who Struggle with Technology | Edutopia - 17 views
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As the gap formed by the use of technology and those resistant to its use widens, so does the feelings of separation, loneliness, frustration and sometimes superiority among faculty. What has been your experience dealing with faculty, who has undergone these types of emotions when confronted with the use of technology in the classroom?
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Hillary, First sorry to hear about your year 2012-2013. I think that most schools and districts do not realize the importance of having many IT available. I know if my any of the technology at school goes down, we are pretty much up a creek without a paddle. Fortunately, I teach in higher ed and there a many people that keep our campus technology updated and running smoothly. If it happens to goes down for some reason, they spring into action, as if they were the Justice League out to crash the bad guy. However with all the great IT people on campus, we till have so many instructors who do not come to PD dealing with the use of technology in the classroom.
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Ben, I understand that the one teacher close to retiring did not want to re-learn what she already did, however she should have looked at as an opportunity to grow personally. We do not retire to die! We retire to feel less pressure, to do something else, and to not get up at 5:30 in the morning (however most older people still do), but we do not retire to stop learning. I agree wholeheartedly that it is the main job of the IT Dept of any school to make sure that the teachers know what the heck they are doing with technology because only the students suffer in the end.
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Nora, You are right it is not your job to train the teachers how to use Google Docs. It is very sweet of you to do that because you understand the value of doing it for the students. I would be very frustrated and angry if they school I taught at expected me to use technology or programs that I was not familiar with without offering training! I can really see why some teachers are resistant. Like Ben pointed out if the tools are presented as "fancy pencils" and not shown how they can change students lives for the better, then teacher actually have a right to frustrated.
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For all of you out there that might not be familiar with Aurasma, like me, check out this demo video. http://youtu.be/GBKy-hSedg8
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How would answer this question, if faced with it from one of your faculty?
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These are really great questions. We have all struggled at times with technology and we have all help others who were struggling. Provide some other tips that this article did not mention that you have used either when being helped or helping others.
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Tips to help us as Ed Techs help those not so tech savvy teachers
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Great ideas to help teachers use technology in their classrooms!
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Lucretia Human