Cantu: Chapter 6/7

Is Technology Heading Public Education into the Perfect Storm?

A February 2012 report by leading global information company, Nielson, coined a new term - Generation C to describe children born after 1990 whose lives have been experienced “connected, communicating, content-centric, computerized, community-oriented and always clicking”.  There is no doubt that the technological consumption of children is changing society-at-large, but the questions to ask should be: “How does an educator respond to a classroom full of hyperkinetic minds?”  “Where does moral accountability fit when face-to-face contact has been replaced by gadgets?”

A 21^st century educator who raises concerns about information overload, interpersonal connectivity, and the timing of high stakes assessment risks being branded a Luddite or worse.  Rather than classify such critics, as anti technological, forward-looking administrators, parents, and citizens need to understand that all persons, including educators wish for students to develop proficiency with the tools of technology.  This is the first definition of 21^st century literacy adopted by the National Council of Teachers of English.  It is this goal, along with building relationships with others to pose and solve problems collaboratively and cross-culturally; designing and sharing information for global communities to meet a variety of purposes; managing, analyzing, and synthesizing multiple streams of simultaneous information; and creating, critiquing, analyzing, and evaluating multi-media texts that should be the focal point of study in any content area.  The balance in the age of technological determinism is found in the last definition: attend to the ethical responsibilities required by these complex environments.  It is this definition that most identifies my vision for technology in my classroom.

Four steps can be used to describe my short-term goals in regards to classroom technology: planning, preparing, implementing, and evaluating.  In my first year as an educator, the most important component will be my learning and applying the school/district policies on digital citizenship.  I have a strong background working in a variety of technological fields and have kept my skills up date with the ever-changing nature of digital media, software, and hardware.  It is important to me to not only understand the school’s overall vision of the deployment and use of technology in the classroom, but also to include parents into the larger conversation.

I have worked for many years on school community partnerships and know that any long-term change in education can only come about by clearly articulating information to the community and through a sustained conversation over time with engaged and invested parents.  A lifelong learner, I look forward to opportunities in my classroom where students can research and demonstrate new tools that explore, collaborate, create, record and present content.  In this age, where technology is progressing exponentially we can no longer imply that the instructor is the only source of knowledge.  Technology can no longer be compartmentalized from learning. 

I’ve spent the last semester investigating the transition from paper-based textbooks to eBooks for my children’s school.  Besides funding concerns, one of the most difficult hurdles is professional development.  This includes both training educators to utilize new equipment, as well as, making sure that digital applications meet required standards and comply with educational objectives.

Most technology planning and preparing during my first two years will be occurring amidst mobile device and web-based applications initiatives.  I was an early adopter of tablet computers and second the conclusion of 2005 Gallup poll showing reading by the American public has increased significantly (21% to 47% of the population) since the introduction of the Internet.  The availability, portability and interactivity of multimedia has expanded my ability to connect and learn from others. I believe the adoption of tablet devices to be inevitable in education and would like to be involved on the school/district project team to discuss subjects such as: on group device management (including constructing Acceptable Use Guidelines), the wireless network, structuring the physical environment of the classroom to accommodate the new work environment, and the procedures for application purchases and management.  My professional experiences in finance, insurance, marketing and sales will be an asset in pursuing funding.

Successful implementation means that once the physical infrastructure is in place, the intellectual and pedagogical goals of the classroom/school/district need to match the redefinition of the curriculum.  Not rethinking the curriculum and the classroom and simply thinking of a tablet computer as a supplement to pre-existing curriculum will lead to the device being no more than a glorified toy, such as interactive whiteboards often become expensive classroom projectors.

One of the most exciting aspects of adopting a device like the iPad is the capability to increase differentiation.  My background in the arts and familiarity with many audio/visual apps will allow me to create lessons and assign students projects that engage them in the highest level of Bloom’s taxonomy - creation.  I’m particularly interested in timeline creation, digital storytelling, and text/image composites.  As an advocate for all children, I will use my professional network and development opportunities to push for customizable textbooks that allow educators to automatically adjust the reading level and language of the text.

Technology can be a timesaver for educators.  I’ve used my portable devices for flipped classroom learning, RSS (automatic web feeds) educational journals, communication, and Ed Tech podcasts to learn new programs and applications for several years.  I use programs like Study Blue to prepare for exams, School Site’s RenWeb and SchoolReach to keep track of all aspects of my children’s schooling and am supportive of my local district’s adoption of the CyberBully Hotline so students can report incidents of bullying.  I was recently asked by creators of SchoolhouseTest to evaluate their latest test creation software and would most definitely choose to use a program like this to design custom exams.

I’m looking forward to testing apps that aid in calling on students at random, designing seating plans, and keeping track of classroom participation during my Novice teaching experience this fall.  In my roles as a private music instructor and robotics coach, I have created newsletters to parents as a successful communication strategy.  Depending upon the preference of my school/district, I would create some version of this “in the cloud” or through an email attachment for my classroom.

As I approach year four and five of my teaching experience, I would hope that I would be a part of a school district that offers ongoing professional learning opportunities that are collaborative, embedded in teacher practice and aimed at bridging the gaps in student achievement.  I would be evaluating the level of technical support for both my students and myself when implementing new technology in the classroom and crafting suggestions for improvement.  I would be available to parents to provide basic training on the use and care of mobile devices, applications, and Internet-based instruction.  I will need to have in place a strategy for recording and reporting incidents (e.g. repairs, damage) and tracking the amount of time students use specific technology in my classroom.  I will need to create an electronic portfolio and keep evidence of student learning for my administrator to evaluate school-wide initiatives and my instructional methods.  By year five, I would be interested in supporting online courses for the mainstream population.  This is another area of education I believe will grow exponentially as state and federal budgets continue to be underfunded and more flexible student schedules are expected to be available at the secondary level.

To paraphrase Jacques Ellul, “we cannot see the future, because the future does not exist.” Every day in schools across the country, hard working educators prepare students for an economy we can’t see.  Teaching is an art for exactly that reason.  I am an optimist and a futurist, but I’m concerned we are heading for the perfect storm in education.  Media multitasking is at an all-time high at the very moment high stakes testing will be used to rate teachers, separate schools, or fire principals and teachers.  Adding to this is a political movement hell bent on ending our nations investment in the next generation.  Public education is the greatest tool we have to maintaining a middle class, but children aren’t the only ones distracted.  Studies show that our information technologies are making us less able to comprehend words printed on pages, we’re remembering less, and less able to concentrate, and people who juggle many tasks are less creative and productive that those who do one thing at a time.  In short, to the saying “Google is making us stupid” we may be able to add poor and unemployed.