Michelle Watt - Educator
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Barriers to Technology Integration in the Classroom

5/26/2013

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Required reading for my ED4760  class: Communications Technology in the Curriculum this week is an article  titled, “Integrating Technology into K-12 Teaching and Learning: Current  Knowledge Gaps and Recommendations by Hew, Hhe Foon; Bush, Thomas.   My mission, because I chose to accept it, was to summarize and reflect on  the information in this article.             
      Hew et al, begin their article with a definition of what technology  integration is.  As this new  century marches forward so does technology and along with that almost a new  language – the language of technology.   It is important to understand the vernacular of technology, a challenge  as the industry of technology changes at light speed.   As defined by Hew et al, technology integration is, “the use of computing  devices such as desktop computers, laptops, handheld computers, software, or  Internet in K-12 schools for instructional purposes.”  With this definition in mind, the researchers set out to discover
“barriers” to integration and broke those barriers into six main categories:  resources, knowledge and skills, institution, attitudes and beliefs, assessment  and subculture.             
     In this paper, I will summarize what I feel to be the key information of the important barriers, and then I will reflect on that  barrier.
   
Resources-  Summary:  a) “Access to technology is more than  merely the availability of technology in a school; it involves providing the  proper amount and right types of technology in locations where teachers and  students can use them” (p 3).
 b) “The lack of technical  support is yet another resource-type barrier...technology-supported pedagogical
knowledge” (pp 3-4).
 c) “The lack of  technology-related-classroom management knowledge and skills is another  barrier.  In a
technology-integrated classroom, teachers need to be equipped with  technology-related classroom management skills such as how to organize the class  effectively so that students have equal opportunities to use computers, or what  to do if students run into technical problems when working on computers” (p
4).
          
     Reflection: a) I agree with  this statement.  I have finished  two practicum’s of student teaching and before that I was an educational  assistant for six years.  I have  worked in schools that have fantastic technology in the form of computer labs,  laptop carts and permanent computers in classrooms. 
Although computers were available, there are common barriers to using  technology across the schools in which I have taught.   The computer lab can often be booked up in September – for the year!  Laptop carts are, in theory a fantastic idea.  These carts are mobile and  generally contain class sets of computers.  The computers come the student, thus  reducing wasted time transitioning from regular classroom to a computer  lab.  However, in reality laptops  were never designed to be man-handled by children, they need to be powered down  properly, and they need to be plugged in when not in use.  These steps are not always followed, resulting in computers that do not  work due to rough handling, it takes forever for them to boot up only to have  to power them down properly before they will work and that is only if they  actually have juice.  One possible  solution would be a BYOD (bring your own device) policy.   The idea of students bringing their own laptops or tablets to school to  complete their work with is a great idea.   I am sure before my children (ages 13 and 10) graduate I will have to  supply one.  The Livingstone Range  School Division is piloting this project this semester at the high school in Ft.  Macleod.  We will have to wait and
see if this breaks down some barriers for teachers and  students.
  
b) Not only is it important to have on site or very accessible tech support,  it is paramount that those “techies” understand and support pedagogical  knowledge.  I have run in to  barriers several times in my education career (that is not very long!) already  due to techies who do not understand nor support my technology needs in the  classroom.  There needs to be  dialogue between all stakeholders.  If  all stakeholders including  superintendents,  principals,  teachers, parents, and technical support would all benefit from discussions on  what technology looks like in the classroom.  It is very important to educate our  students with technology – it is a way of life for this generation it is not a  separate class that is offered on a one time basis.  Teachers  should use “teachable moments” and build technology right into the curriculum.   Technology is a  fact.
 c) Students, on their own  computers, with internet access could be a ticking time bomb of a classroom
management issue for teachers.   Teachers need training in technology-related classroom management skills,  so that they can feel confidant allowing students on technology. Students will  need to have more than a working understanding of to further their education  career, they will only gain this knowledge by hands on experience.  Our  teachers need to feel confident that they can manage students on technology, if
  they feel secure they will allow students to explore further.  It  is by exploring that students will learn.

 Attitudes  and Beliefs: Summary: “Teacher  attitudes and beliefs towards technology can be another major barrier to  technology integration...the decision of whether and how to use technology for
instruction ultimately depends on the teachers themselves and the beliefs they  hold about technology” (p 5).             
Reflection: It is very  important to educate teachers on technology.  We all struggle with the beast that is
technology; sometimes it is your friend, sometimes your foe.   It is important for educators to understand that we all struggle with  technology at some point.  Many  educators feel that they need to be the foremost authority on a topic in order  to introduce it in their classroom.   We need to foster an environment where teachers feel safe to introduce  technology. Teacher’s need to understand that it is okay to learn with their  students and maybe even let their student teach them.   Teaching is all about taking risks with the knowledge knowing that there  is a support network for teachers.  
 
Assessment:  Summary: “High-stakes teasing can be defined as assessment with serious  attached consequences such as promotion or graduation for students...or rewards  versus sanctions for schools.  The  pressures of such testing can be a major barrier to technology integration.  Such emphasis on testing undercuts the  potential promise of technology as a teaching and learning tool.   As a result, the focus of technology use in K-12 education has not been  on the use of computers for teaching and learning, but rather on the financial  benefits of computer-based testing and the warehousing of assessment results.”
(p 6).             
Reflection: As educators in  Alberta, with the recent announcement of the demise of PATs, we are fortunate as  this is a barrier now has been erased.   What is a factor is how do we assess technology. 
We must be cognizant of what we are assessing.   It is important that the technology is only the tool to help achieve the  outcomes. When we assess, we must  remember that we assess only the outcomes, not the student’s efficiency of  technology. The two cannot be  confused.

 Subject  Culture: “refers to the ‘general set of institutionalized practices an  expectations which have grown up around a particular school subject , and shapes  the definition of that subject as a distinct area of study’...teachers are  reluctant to adopt a technology that seems incompatible with the norms of a
subject culture”. (p 6)             
Reflection:  Teachers  are in the middle of a paradigm shift in regards to technology.   Thoughts are shifting, and teachers are trying to grasp what their  subject now looks like immersed in technology.  It will take a great amount of  professional development and attitude change to allow this immersion to take
place.  Of course, pre-service  teachers just graduating have had university instruction on technology
integration.  There needs to be  provisions for  mentors for  experienced teachers and encourage collaboration to increase the integration of  technology that is available for their subject.
           
I found this article to be very informative.  It  provided a lot of food for thought.  What I think that this article provided  for me is a glimpse of what technology in the classroom is really like.  I feel that there is a bit of a  disconnect between what I have been taught in university on how to engage  students with technology – to what is actually available and allowable in a K-12  classroom.
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    The Born Again Teacher

    I am a teacher who came to education late in life, and like those who are born again I love to preach and teach about my vocation. I am a teacher who is always a student.  Here you will find my thoughts on how to improve my practice as an Educator.  I sign off with "That's my view from the 86th Pew," the reason is that I own an old church pew that sits in my front entrance and the plate on it says 86.  I love that it is a play on words in that the view is what I see as well as what I think. 

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