Teacher centered tech vs student centered tech
My recent educational/philosophical leanings are toward a more student centered/student empowered classroom experience in the k12 environment where the teacher serves as a formal teacher of background knowledge but where students do the majority of the work, and therefore, do the majority of the learning.
Freire’s conscientizacao construct and ed tech can go hand in hand if ed tech is implemented in a student centered manner. In many schools technology purchases are usually teacher focused…and by this I mean monies are generally allocated toward things like smart boards, document cameras, lcd projectors, etc which are really just 21st century extensions of the chalk board or overhead projector. The tools are still in the teachers’ hands and students are still the passive recipients of instruction.
If educators and policy makers reflected critically on their practice and, as an extension, the types of tech purchases that systems make, I think educators would request purchases of more interactive technologies and software packages.
There must be a genuine buy in from policy makers at the highest levels of decision making as well as a commitment from classroom teachers to truly engage in professional development to shore up the gap between themselves and their students when it comes to using interactive technology. I point out that the technology must be interactive if it is to be of any value.
I personally push the purchase of older hardware and the installation of a Linux OS. This can create a lower student/teacher/computer ratio…and drive software costs across a district down. Doing so will free up resources that can be used to purchase tablet pc’s, or even wacom style pen input devices which can be used in a virtual whiteboard environment like on elluminate in mathematics classes. There are a number of other inputs and devices that can be used across the content areas but my point is that technology and student centered classrooms will require a mixture of technological know how, a willingness to depart from the status quo in instruction and technology, and a critical reflection on what students need to learn for themselves.
For more on this topic please listen to this excellent podcast: 4 Guys Talking
Also, please feel free to share technologies that you use in your classroom ( software, hardware, or web based tech )
Freire’s conscientizacao construct and ed tech can go hand in hand if ed tech is implemented in a student centered manner. In many schools technology purchases are usually teacher focused…and by this I mean monies are generally allocated toward things like smart boards, document cameras, lcd projectors, etc which are really just 21st century extensions of the chalk board or overhead projector. The tools are still in the teachers’ hands and students are still the passive recipients of instruction.
If educators and policy makers reflected critically on their practice and, as an extension, the types of tech purchases that systems make, I think educators would request purchases of more interactive technologies and software packages.
There must be a genuine buy in from policy makers at the highest levels of decision making as well as a commitment from classroom teachers to truly engage in professional development to shore up the gap between themselves and their students when it comes to using interactive technology. I point out that the technology must be interactive if it is to be of any value.
I personally push the purchase of older hardware and the installation of a Linux OS. This can create a lower student/teacher/computer ratio…and drive software costs across a district down. Doing so will free up resources that can be used to purchase tablet pc’s, or even wacom style pen input devices which can be used in a virtual whiteboard environment like on elluminate in mathematics classes. There are a number of other inputs and devices that can be used across the content areas but my point is that technology and student centered classrooms will require a mixture of technological know how, a willingness to depart from the status quo in instruction and technology, and a critical reflection on what students need to learn for themselves.
For more on this topic please listen to this excellent podcast: 4 Guys Talking
Also, please feel free to share technologies that you use in your classroom ( software, hardware, or web based tech )
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Comment by Melinda Pongrey on March 1, 2009 at 10:19am -
Just working on trying to set up tech for students in a small classroom of 10 - 14 5th & 6th grade students --looking into getting Lenavo S10's for each student---? or...? I have a donor giving me $7000 for set - up - I am the teacher and will be the "tech support" !! (small school!) - I have my own hp laptop and projector that I use but no document camera (which I've used other places for students to share their work...)
want to get digital cameras - and webhosting/voicethreads has been suggested - use terabyte hard drive for our backup/storage $135! Any ideas?
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Comment by Jovan D. Miles on March 1, 2009 at 11:15am -
The backup HDD is an awesome idea. We used that at our school for students to store projects, etc.
I really like the idea of spending some money on some pen tablets from Wacom or Genius. They can great for math, art, etc.
Also, check out google sketch up 7. It's free and is awesome for teaching perspective, properties of solids, etc.
Geogebra is another great piece of software...also free...It lends itself more to middle and high school but you can get some really specific uses out of it for younger students.
As far as student interaction goes I recommend http://www.scriblink.com/. The service is free and it is basically an online interactive whiteboard. I haven't used it yet myself but I hear good things about it!
Glad to hear you're integrating tech into the classroom. The kids really need that at as an early an age as possible.
Happy Teaching!
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Comment by Melinda Pongrey on March 1, 2009 at 11:26am
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Oh - this is exciting! Thanks -will look into all of this!
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Comment by Matt Townsley on March 1, 2009 at 11:32am -
I also listened to the first episode of that podcast, Jovan. Here's the URL:
http://www.blogtalkradio.com/uceacastle/2009/02/26/4-Guys-Talking
It has a nice discussion beginning around the 13 or 14 minute mark about "teacher-centered" vs. "student-centered" technology.
Geogebra and Linux/OSS - I couldn't agree more!
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