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Chapter 3 Teaching, Learning, and the Curriculum

This chapter describes how technology facilitators and leaders assist teachers in planning learning experiences for students (Williamson & Reddish, 2009). These students are changing rapidly and we are not providing them the types of environmenst that connect the home and school. If this trend continues these digital natives will continue to become more discouraged about school and it being outdated and irrelevant to their interests and goals. Students are strong believers in the power of technology to enrich their learning experiences (Solomon & Schrum, 2007). I think a big part of this is that teachers and/or schools are not implementing NETS*S. After reading this chapter and looking at the discussion questions it made me think a lot about my district. In our classrooms I do not see us implementing the NETS*S like they should be. I think that much of this has to do with the fact that many of the classroom teachers do not want to mess with the technology or even take the time to learn how .I worry that there will be some teachers that will not want to subscribe to utilizing technology and other resources into their planning because of the time involved in planning such rich lessons. My advice for those that do not or will not, is to ask them to go find work in another field. Our jobs as technology facilitators/leaders is to provide the teachers the best practices and model those expectations for desired learning outcomes. According to Wiggins & McTighe, 2000, we resist change in our teaching style, and we must model overcoming resistance for our students. Teaching, like learning, demands that we keep working to develop allour facets of understanding. I believe that if teachers would be held more accountable then our district would meet more of these standards and needs of these digital native students. I find it very positive though that many of the new textbooks that are being adopted have many technology standards implemented in their lessons. One of the most important tasks that facilitators and leaders must face is designing and modeling strategies so that teachers can see how meeting technology standards can become a reality in the classroom. In our classes throughout the past year and a half, we have designed professional development activities for teachers. We have created lessons that are technology rich. We have researched how to effectively develop and maintain learning communities. We have analyzed data to identify needs in our districts and on our campuses. All of these assignments have assisted us in implementing this standard. Learn as a Learner: Through my assignments in Teaching with Technology designing a lesson with colleagues that met diverse student needs, I gained experience learning to adapt lessons and integrate technology throughout the lesson. I enjoyed this process of using backward design to develop a 21st century style lesson, although I did find it difficult at first. This is to be expected as Facilitators work with teachers to integrate technology in their lessons. This experience of working with colleagues to collaborate and create a project gave me the background I will need when applying this type of project-based learning in the classroom. In the Instructional Design class we modeled the use of this standard by creating an online course. This was a very enlightening experience. I have enjoyed my experience in taking online courses, but designing one was quite the learning curve for me. I now see how frustrating it can be when not everything goes as planned. I hope to gain more experience in this because I believe it is important to educational institutes. Lifelong Learning Skills:

References: Williamson, J., & Redish, T. (2009). Iste's Technology Facilitation and Leadership Standards What Every K-12 Leader Should Know and Be Able to Do. Eugene, Oregon: International Society for Technology in Education. Solomon, G., & Schrum, L. (2007). Web 2.O New Tools, New Schools. Eugene, Oregon: International Society for Technology in Education. Wiggins, G. & McTighe, J. (2000). Understanding by Design. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.