Speak Up 2010

If you haven't had the chance to read and review the data found within Speak Up 2010's national technology survey, you should hurry up and get on that! Or, at least, read the shortened version available on Read, Write, Web.

One particular aspect I enjoyed about the report is that it focuses research through three key concepts, which I think teachers should embrace on a daily basis:

"• Enabling students to reach their potential through increased access to educational resources and experts that extend learning beyond the capacities or limitations of their school or community.
• Engaging students in rich, compelling learning experiences that develop deeper knowledge and skill development especially the problem-solving, creativity and critical thinking skills so highly desired for
  our world today.
• Empowering students to take responsibility for their own educational destinies and to explore knowledge with an unfettered curiosity, thus creating a new generation of life long learners." (3)

The report highlights some interesting things. Administrators are not on the bandwagon yet, particularly on the use of mobile learning devices, such as smart phones. There still seems to be concern with access to social networking sites and the idea that these are distracting from the classroom content.

To some degree, I think I can agree. If I were personally given a device during my high school career, I would have found it much more tempting to chat on Facebook or play on-line games if there was unrestricted internet access. However, this is my own perception. Some people -- particularly today's students -- are different and are simply better at strategically multitasking, so I don't find this too much of an issue. In truth, if students were habitually on Facebook or game web sites, I would stop and think about my lesson plans: am I really creating engaging material? Would I want to participate in my lesson if I were a student? How can I successfully reinvent content to make it exciting, meaningful, and challenging?


One idea that I would like to personally explore in the future is the nature of podcasts and videos of lessons. I've always been a proponent of bridge-building between teachers and parents in concern with their child's academic success, and I think that parents would be interested in knowing what students are being taught in the classroom.

Parents value collaborative relationships with teachers. 

Parents (and the rest of society, really) are seeing the benefits of technology as a way to increasingly examine the quality of their students' educations. The fact of the matter is that teachers need to be willing to adapt and utilize technology in a meaningful manner for both their students and their parents.

-Mr. G

Image courtesy of Speak Up 2010 report, pg. 13