Toward the end of the class on Wednesday we were discussing technology used in schools across the nation. I believe it was Ashley who brought up the subject of schools in less fortunate communities who might not have access to computers/technology/the Web, to which I brought up the school district in Camden, NJ. I feel that our concerns were not necessarily addressed fully, honestly. That is o.k. What I was trying to explain/ask (and I'm not sure about what Ashley, so understand this is just my opinion), was though I understand several schools across the nation are equipped to help us incorporate technology in the classroom, what happens if we encounter a school district that cannot help us accommodate students with such a wonderful opportunity? It was not my way of making excuses to not use technology, nor was I trying to run away from my responsibilities of incorporating such in my teachings. I was merely bringing up a realistic idea: we could be faced with this.
I will admit that it is less likely. I was researching some websites to find out how many students have computers in their homes and how many schools have access to computer use. Science and Engineering Indicators 2006 explains "The ratio of public school students to online school computers improved from 12:1 in 1998 to 4:1 in 2003," and " In 2003, 77% of K–12 students lived in a household with a computer and 67% had Internet access at home." This is wonderful and I hope their research is accurate. I also reviewed IES: National Center for Education Statistics which talks about and shows statistics of how educators are using technology in their classrooms (note: Schools that did not have computer/Internet use were not included in the statistics). So I do recognize the most schools have access to the Web and to technology. I just feel it is important to question and acknowledge the realistic situation/possibility of educating in a school that is less fortunate to be able to accommodate to exposing students to such a wonderful (as well as important and prominent) part of our society. It needs to be addressed that there are schools that exist that may/do not have the money/funding.
Regardless, I have thought up some ideas for overcoming this potential problem. For example, if you wish to include technology, such as Web access, in your classroom but your district has limited funding and the Internet is not available in your particular school you could arrange a field trip to a school (in your district of another) that does have Web access OR arrange a trip to a local library that may allow student to use the Internet to do research. This way, students will be receiving the opportunity to use technology for their class in their class, instead of being responsible for using it solely on their own time and trying to find a computer if they do not own one personally.
I hope I have clarified instead of further confused what I was trying to explain.
12 years ago
5 comments:
Dear Jessica, thank you for posting your "clarification" which is important.
I did not mean to dismiss your real concerns--not at all. They ARE concerns we should all have. I am in complete agreement with you.
I was only trying to make the point that this revolution is seismic and you will find that even in the first half dozen years of your young career the available options will grow exponentially in ways we cannot imagine now.
Remember, I have a history as a teacher that informs what I say in class. E.G. Just TEN years ago no one in the building where I worked used email or even had an email acct. Not to mention every other innovation that has come along in the last decade.
Actually you may be surprised to hear that the Syr. City h.s. in the poorest sector of Syr. is better equipped technologically, and has been for a long tiime, than many suburban schools I visit. This is a result of grant monies available to urban school districts for this very reason--to close the digital divide. This is the school a few years ago in which students tracked one of the last space explorations with very sophisticated computer technologies.
I also too often hear (and NOT from you) the excuse, "well we teachers (or the kids) won't have access."
Sure, there will be challenges. And you may have to be the tech committee person whose role is "advance guard" for your teacher colleagues.
But the issue of what the rich and what the poor have has never been any different. Very recently urban high schools I visited as a supervisor in MI did not have science labs. Unbelievable you may think.
And in the schools I visit in Syr. kids can't take the books home they are required to read. Now there's a no-brainer. Duh! These schools' standardized test scores are in the cellar but kids don't have books. Unbelieveable you may say. Shameful you would agree. Suburban parents would not stand for that!!
So the divide is a reality in areas other than technology of course. Yet we seem so much less concerned about kids not having books. No one in my YA Lit classes every brings that up as a problem, for example, but I always hear the digitial divide "argument."
Usually I hear it as a stand-in for the real concern--that is--what more do I have to learn to be a good teacher? Whew!!! Now I've got to learn how to use technology too!! And I understand that anxiety all too well.
But you are right these are realities--and Camden is an excellent example of where these realities bump up against the pressing need for all of our kids to have access.
I appreciate your very intelligent post.
Let's not dismiss or downplay the issues associated with schools/kids that do not have access. Instead we need to continue to be creative--as you are--and get ready to lead the revolution.
I'm not educating followers!
And let's be sure that as we become property tax homeowners our voices are heard in the continuing debate about how to fund all schools equally no matter what the color of the skin or the class of the parents of the kids who go to that school. Now wouldn't that be a revolution!!!
I agree with you - this is a concern that I have thought about as well. What if I learn about all this technology, get excited, base my lesson plans on technology, and then can't use it? That would be disappointing.
However, I do understand that many schools will be getting more technology every year as it becomes more important. Even if there aren't enough computers for students to use in the classrooms, hopefully there will be time to go to the computer room to work if need be. Even though this would be inconvenient, we have to "roll with the punches" and do what we can with what we have.
Hey Jessica,
That sure was one heck of a post!
You brought up a alot of good ideas on how to elborate the use of technology for students that may not have access to it and I agree with all of them.
I also agree with Savanna that it wouldn't be good if we planned all of our lesson plans on the use of technology and then don't have access to it. That's where we really step into play. It will be our responsibility to have back up plans on paper so that in the event the computers, overhead, etc. are down, we can continue with our lesson.
In reference to your other blog, it is very scary that we, as the richest Nation, are not even as advanced as Japan is. It's hard to believe but it sure as hell is happening.
Yes, but don't we need to become very sophisticated about adolescents' technology use whether or not we have access (to a full lab all of the time) in our school buildings? All of the articles we've been reading suggest that teens are living much of their lives multi-tasking online in digital environments.
As teachers we need to respond to who's sitting in front of us. What kinds of learners are they? How do they learn best? What "forms"/literacies do they routinely engage in? What skills do they have as a result? What attitudes do they bring to our classrooms/lessons? What about the student quoted in the TIME article who says "we don't read WHOLE books anymore." Ok, so what now?
We need to answer all of these questions to be good teachers of the "M" generation.
And our needing to answer them is irrespective of the school sponsored technology available to us.
I agree with you. I don't want to be like Savannah, getting all excited about what I've learned and then getting to a school where there is a problem and I'm not allowed or able to teach some of the things we are learning.
It is an issue that we do need to be concerned about and Dr. Sterns is right, I too have heard comments from people that are despairing, because "it's one more thing we've got to learn!" I have to say, yes it is one more thing, but it's one more thing that has a very high potential of becoming that "worthwhile thing" that is the determining factor of whether or not a student is successful at learning.
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