Chapters 7 and 8

In these two chapters, a lot of different quotes stood out at me, and made me think….duh! Being the second post out of this text, I have had a number of these “Well duh!” moments when reading the required chapters. These are moments that either from other classes or readings, I am sitting there thinking that this information has been addressed before, and while the solutions may not be completely the same, I know what they are (so why don’t school officials). This is not necessarily a big deal, except I am not a teacher and do not currently work in or around education. And then I think, maybe that is my problem, while I am studying to be a teacher, I don’t necessarily look at these issues through a teacher’s perspective, instead I use my business background.

“Investments in equipment have not always been accompanied by changes in teaching” (Areglado & Perry Jr., 2001, p.87). Anytime I read a quote like this, I tend to think that someone, somewhere either was given a GREAT sales pitch, a GREAT discount, or did not ask enough questions about the product-to figure out how valuable it would actually be for a school or schools. It seems that almost everyone would agree that technology needs to be incorporated into schools, and more importantly into daily classrooms. The issue seems to be that no one can agree how to implement it. The text argues that we need to align the goals of school leaders, politicians and other stakeholders to promote learning and restructuring of our educational system (Areglado & Perry Jr., 2001; Zimmerman, 2001). When I think of restructuring there is a plan in place that everyone must follow, starting from the top-down. This is not the case in education as the national government, state government, county government, school board officials, principals, and classroom teachers all interpret standards and work within the standards differently. This could at least be part of the problem.When discussing technology the problem seems to be even greater, I believe, because there are people who do and do not embrace technology. It is at this point that school leaders need to set the standards and work with the schools to get everyone on board when using technology. The statement, “Leaders believe that when it ‘ain’t broke may be the only time you can fix it’” (Areglado & Perry Jr., 2001, p. 89), was another Duh moment for me. This time however, I believe my business experiences are similar to the experiences talked about in the text and by teachers (classmates and my wife and her friends). Anytime I have seen or heard of this happening, it tends to be harder on those that are forced to make the changes, because the first decision is not necessarily the best, and it will not necessarily be the only change required. I think (and I know I am not the only one who thinks this way) that it would be most beneficial, if everyone involved in education looked at schools and figured out how we can improve and use technology better, instead of leaders buying hardware or software and then letting teachers figure out how it can be used to enrich the classrooms. Buying hardware is not enough; we need to all take an active role in implementing it into classrooms (Areglado & Perry Jr., 2001).

The integration of technology is not only important the pedagogy behind it is just as important (Zimmerman, 2001). Unfortunately politicians hold the purse strings for our schools and they need to see results and involvement in order to support any project. If we want them to open up the purse for schools, there needs to be complete school and community support. This takes many forms: letters, petitions, grant requests, phone calls and other forms of communication to political figures (e-mails especially as the Commonwealth of Virginia tries to remove the ITRT position out of the state’s schools). Good old fashioned grassroots support starts with each school employee (Zimmerman, 2001). However, communication and grass roots campaigns are not enough, teachers must show definitive proof that technology improves instruction. This is where SOL scores and AYP become an important factor-even though they are probably considered a little more important than they should be. However, the politicians like them, so if the politicians hold the purse strings and they like SOL scores and AYP data that is what teachers MUST give them.

Is there an easy answer for restructuring schools so that technology is implemented efficiently in every classroom? If there was, I doubt that it would be an area that is discussed so much, and certainly would not create Duh moments for me. It would be nice if every school had the same opportunities for technology, but since some do not even have working heat, I doubt that new (or even working) computers are the highest priority. At least for the time being, it seems it is going to have to continue the way it is, those schools that have the funding will get the technology first and those that do not will have to wait. While I believe this should be reversed; so the schools that are behind get MORE funding, which I will go out on a limb and say that I am not the only person who feels this way. However, we do not control the funding. It would be great if every student had their own laptop for use in school, and every school was wired for internet access. It would even be acceptable if each department in every school had a mobile computer lab. This would at least cut down on the competition that is signing up for computer lab times. Unfortunately, this is not the case, and probably will not be the case, anytime soon. Instead every teacher must work within the parameters set by their schools and try to find their own way to implement technology so it is complementary and enriching to the classroom lessons.

References

Areglado, R.J. & Perry Jr., G.S. (2001). The computers are here!: Now what does the principal do?. In Collier, C. & LeBaron, J.F. (eds.) . Technology in its place: Successful technology infusion in schools. San Francisco, CA:Jossey- Bass Inc.

Zimmerman, I.K. (2001). Building public support: The politics of technology transformation. In Collier, C. & LeBaron, J.F. (eds.). Technology in its place: Successful technology infusion in schools. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass Inc.