5 Blog Questions
1. Which method of teaching is most effective, traditional or modern? Why?
2. Do you believe some lower economic based schools are low performing because of the lack of technological resources at the school?
3. Do you believe teachers at lower performing schools are less proficient than teachers at higher performing schools?
4. For those schools with ample technological resources, do you believe the resources are used in the most effective manner?
5. What do you believe is the biggest factor in the lack of teacher proficiency with technology? Insecurities, lack of interest, lack of training opportunity, or lack of technology resources.
Summary of Article 1
Supporting Teachers' Use of Technology in Science Instruction Though Professional Development: A literature Review.
This article examines the relationship between professional devilment of technology and the effect it has on the science classes. In the science class, there is the need for the inquiry approach to learning. The Inquiry approach support the idea that the students must identify a problem, design experiments, gather evidence, construct models, and form arguments. This requires students and teachers to think critically about the information sources and claims. In order for this method to effective in the classroom, teachers must modify their teaching strategies, some of these changes relate to the usage of technological resources. The increasing of technology usage in society requires that not only the students, but the teachers be fluent with technology usages. The article identifies that this learning process involves not only the teacher having content knowledge, but also basic technological skills. The four principal of SKI (Scaffold Knowledge Integration) encourages the students to add new ideas to their science knowledge. This method that promotes student knowledge integration is: making science accessible, making thinking visible, helping students learn from each other, and promoting lifelong learners.
These beliefs will assist student learning as well as the teachers as learners. This article identifies that inadequate materials, unreliable technology, and low content knowledge for both the student and the teacher were barriers to the inquiry based science instruction. Most classrooms contain computers. The article revealed that most computers in low socio-economic schools were most likely to use a drill and practicing activities. This ineffective method is evidence that teachers are insufficiently prepared to use the technology. The study showed that some teachers used the overhead, videos, along with computers, but the majority of science teachers perceived a need for more technology integration knowledge. Evidence of the need for Professional development was demonstrated by data collected from student performances. After using a new curriculum, the students' performance did not improve. After implementing professional devilment to the teachers on how to address the student difficulties, the student performance improved significantly. In a study, Becker found that exemplary computer -using teachers were most likely to work in a school with other computer-using teachers and exemplary users. They usually worked in schools with significant technical support and most likely to have begun because of a technology coordinator or administrator.
The teachers who made substantial use of laptops in the teaching, spent more time planning for lessons with colleagues. Teachers with a support network were more likely to be successful in the technology implementation. The only way to make this trend a reality, one must challenge the beliefs of their learning and instruction, and provide support for teachers. In order to change the teacher's belief, we show them the coherence between their goals and the goals of the professional development program. It is important for professional develop mentors allow teachers to work collaborate to challenge their beliefs about technology and the existing beliefs. We must show that technology usage can enable the student to make their thinking visible beyond writing and speaking and allow teachers to have technological tools to access student' works. Technology is a powerful tool to help students understand more, but this method can only work, if the teachers learn how to use it more effectively in the classroom
· Article Summary #2
Building Teachers' Capacity for Using Technologies in Schools: A case study of in-service professional development in Barbados
The opening of this article reinforces the belief that the teacher's role in the ICT- mediated learning environment is the most important role. The teachers must maintain the role of a mediator and knowledge broker. Their focus to provide guidance, strategic approach to learning, and assists the students obtain their own responsible goals for learning. A well design ICT learning environment provides opportunities for students to make decisions about what to learn, where to learn from, and how to learn. This allows the students to have greater flexibility and determination in constructing their own meaning of the information the collected. The major factor in the learning or not learning tin this classroom is the teacher's role. especially as it relates to technology. In Barbados, the biggest challenge for the Ministries of Education is to prepare teachers who are open to new ideas, new practices and ICT. They must learn and re-learn the need for change. Many of the teachers have been teaching in the traditional method, and have a hard time letting go of traditional teaching beliefs. They tend to perceive teaching as giving out information and the learning should be taking their own responsibility for their own learning. In order to build the capacity of teachers to use the ICT in their classrooms, there is a need for professional development to helps this teachers relate their own teacher philosophies to one that incorporates ICT.
Barbados, although small in population, has one of the highest literacy rates in the world at 98%. Since 1990's, the Ministry of Education recognized the need to ensure the provision for a conductive learning environment. In order to obtain this goal, the MES embarked on a training of appropriate curriculum, teacher training and re-training, and the establishment of benchmarks to performance targets, the heart of their program was the curriculum that includes lessons on heritage, citizenship, entrepreneurship, and conflict resolution. The curriculum would be facilitated by ICT and the new technologies were placed into every school. This included computers, servers, printers, digital cameras, electronic whiteboards, high speed internet, and a range of computer programs. One key factor is the professional development for the teachers in ICT. They worked with teachers developing programs for the core teachers and helped them develop strategies for incorporating ICT in their curriculum. The also provide follow up visits on the classrooms to assist with on-site technology rich lessons. The Officer of The MES were responsible for developing the in-service programs for teachers. The work sessions were based on 3 themes: how to integrate ICT in and across the curriculum, applied ICT use skills, knowledge of teaching contexts and student learning, and the integration of ICT in curricular learning activities and assessments. During the professional development lessons, the participants were encouraged to collaborate in pairs with teachers from their core instruction group and one from the audio/visiual/edtech department. These groups would pair up and create micro LESSONS that allowed not only the core teacher instruction, but allowed the technology teachers to assist with adding technology into the lesson activity. The experiences in this group paring, demonstrated the strengths of such a partnership, where the curriculum teacher has the content and the audio-visual/ edutech teacher would have the technical expertise. The Centres for Excellence for the ICT Integration program were created to serve as models for other schools. The staff from these schools could share their expertise with other staff members from other schools. This first implementation of this professional development took place in Feb. 2005 and June 2005. They outcomes were more ICT mediated lessons were being used, positive feedback from the teachers, higher peer to peer and teacher to student's interactions, and high level of engagement among students during the ICT lesson were observed. After the success of this training, the following recommendations were made. The training for Education Officers at each school would prepare the Education Officer to eventually run their own professional development programs in the area. Second they would train students to become not only ICT helpers in the classroom, but also serve as ICT experts. Third, help develop incentives so teachers can develop positive attitude towards ICT. Fourth, appoint an ICT technical assistant at each school for trouble shooting. Fifth, continue the professional development in ICT for teachers so they can continue the approaches to ICT in the classroom.
Building Teachers' Capacity for Using Technologies in Schools: A case study of in-service professional development in Barbados
The opening of this article reinforces the belief that the teacher's role in the ICT- mediated learning environment is the most important role. The teachers must maintain the role of a mediator and knowledge broker. Their focus to provide guidance, strategic approach to learning, and assists the students obtain their own responsible goals for learning. A well design ICT learning environment provides opportunities for students to make decisions about what to learn, where to learn from, and how to learn. This allows the students to have greater flexibility and determination in constructing their own meaning of the information the collected. The major factor in the learning or not learning tin this classroom is the teacher's role. especially as it relates to technology. In Barbados, the biggest challenge for the Ministries of Education is to prepare teachers who are open to new ideas, new practices and ICT. They must learn and re-learn the need for change. Many of the teachers have been teaching in the traditional method, and have a hard time letting go of traditional teaching beliefs. They tend to perceive teaching as giving out information and the learning should be taking their own responsibility for their own learning. In order to build the capacity of teachers to use the ICT in their classrooms, there is a need for professional development to helps this teachers relate their own teacher philosophies to one that incorporates ICT.
Barbados, although small in population, has one of the highest literacy rates in the world at 98%. Since 1990's, the Ministry of Education recognized the need to ensure the provision for a conductive learning environment. In order to obtain this goal, the MES embarked on a training of appropriate curriculum, teacher training and re-training, and the establishment of benchmarks to performance targets, the heart of their program was the curriculum that includes lessons on heritage, citizenship, entrepreneurship, and conflict resolution. The curriculum would be facilitated by ICT and the new technologies were placed into every school. This included computers, servers, printers, digital cameras, electronic whiteboards, high speed internet, and a range of computer programs. One key factor is the professional development for the teachers in ICT. They worked with teachers developing programs for the core teachers and helped them develop strategies for incorporating ICT in their curriculum. The also provide follow up visits on the classrooms to assist with on-site technology rich lessons. The Officer of The MES were responsible for developing the in-service programs for teachers. The work sessions were based on 3 themes: how to integrate ICT in and across the curriculum, applied ICT use skills, knowledge of teaching contexts and student learning, and the integration of ICT in curricular learning activities and assessments. During the professional development lessons, the participants were encouraged to collaborate in pairs with teachers from their core instruction group and one from the audio/visiual/edtech department. These groups would pair up and create micro LESSONS that allowed not only the core teacher instruction, but allowed the technology teachers to assist with adding technology into the lesson activity. The experiences in this group paring, demonstrated the strengths of such a partnership, where the curriculum teacher has the content and the audio-visual/ edutech teacher would have the technical expertise. The Centres for Excellence for the ICT Integration program were created to serve as models for other schools. The staff from these schools could share their expertise with other staff members from other schools. This first implementation of this professional development took place in Feb. 2005 and June 2005. They outcomes were more ICT mediated lessons were being used, positive feedback from the teachers, higher peer to peer and teacher to student's interactions, and high level of engagement among students during the ICT lesson were observed. After the success of this training, the following recommendations were made. The training for Education Officers at each school would prepare the Education Officer to eventually run their own professional development programs in the area. Second they would train students to become not only ICT helpers in the classroom, but also serve as ICT experts. Third, help develop incentives so teachers can develop positive attitude towards ICT. Fourth, appoint an ICT technical assistant at each school for trouble shooting. Fifth, continue the professional development in ICT for teachers so they can continue the approaches to ICT in the classroom.
Article Summary #2
Building Teachers' Capacity for Using Technologies in Schools: A case study of in-service professional development in Barbados
The opening of this article reinforces the belief that the teacher's role in the ICT- mediated learning environment is the most important role. The teachers must maintain the role of a mediator and knowledge broker. Their focus to provide guidance, strategic approach to learning, and assists the students obtain their own responsible goals for learning. A well design ICT learning environment provides opportunities for students to make decisions about what to learn, where to learn from, and how to learn. This allows the students to have greater flexibility and determination in constructing their own meaning of the information the collected. The major factor in the learning or not learning tin this classroom is the teacher's role. especially as it relates to technology. In Barbados, the biggest challenge for the Ministries of Education is to prepare teachers who are open to new ideas, new practices and ICT. They must learn and re-learn the need for change. Many of the teachers have been teaching in the traditional method, and have a hard time letting go of traditional teaching beliefs. They tend to perceive teaching as giving out information and the learning should be taking their own responsibility for their own learning. In order to build the capacity of teachers to use the ICT in their classrooms, there is a need for professional development to helps this teachers relate their own teacher philosophies to one that incorporates ICT.
Barbados, although small in population, has one of the highest literacy rates in the world at 98%. Since 1990's, the Ministry of Education recognized the need to ensure the provision for a conductive learning environment. In order to obtain this goal, the MES embarked on a training of appropriate curriculum, teacher training and re-training, and the establishment of benchmarks to performance targets, the heart of their program was the curriculum that includes lessons on heritage, citizenship, entrepreneurship, and conflict resolution. The curriculum would be facilitated by ICT and the new technologies were placed into every school. This included computers, servers, printers, digital cameras, electronic whiteboards, high speed internet, and a range of computer programs. One key factor is the professional development for the teachers in ICT. They worked with teachers developing programs for the core teachers and helped them develop strategies for incorporating ICT in their curriculum. The also provide follow up visits on the classrooms to assist with on-site technology rich lessons. The Officer of The MES were responsible for developing the in-service programs for teachers. The work sessions were based on 3 themes: how to integrate ICT in and across the curriculum, applied ICT use skills, knowledge of teaching contexts and student learning, and the integration of ICT in curricular learning activities and assessments. During the professional development lessons, the participants were encouraged to collaborate in pairs with teachers from their core instruction group and one from the audio/visiual/edtech department. These groups would pair up and create micro LESSONS that allowed not only the core teacher instruction, but allowed the technology teachers to assist with adding technology into the lesson activity. The experiences in this group paring, demonstrated the strengths of such a partnership, where the curriculum teacher has the content and the audio-visual/ edutech teacher would have the technical expertise. The Centres for Excellence for the ICT Integration program were created to serve as models for other schools. The staff from these schools could share their expertise with other staff members from other schools. This first implementation of this professional development took place in Feb. 2005 and June 2005. They outcomes were more ICT mediated lessons were being used, positive feedback from the teachers, higher peer to peer and teacher to student's interactions, and high level of engagement among students during the ICT lesson were observed. After the success of this training, the following recommendations were made. The training for Education Officers at each school would prepare the Education Officer to eventually run their own professional development programs in the area. Second they would train students to become not only ICT helpers in the classroom, but also serve as ICT experts. Third, help develop incentives so teachers can develop positive attitude towards ICT. Fourth, appoint an ICT technical assistant at each school for trouble shooting. Fifth, continue the professional development in ICT for teachers so they can continue the approaches to ICT in the classroom.
Building Teachers' Capacity for Using Technologies in Schools: A case study of in-service professional development in Barbados
The opening of this article reinforces the belief that the teacher's role in the ICT- mediated learning environment is the most important role. The teachers must maintain the role of a mediator and knowledge broker. Their focus to provide guidance, strategic approach to learning, and assists the students obtain their own responsible goals for learning. A well design ICT learning environment provides opportunities for students to make decisions about what to learn, where to learn from, and how to learn. This allows the students to have greater flexibility and determination in constructing their own meaning of the information the collected. The major factor in the learning or not learning tin this classroom is the teacher's role. especially as it relates to technology. In Barbados, the biggest challenge for the Ministries of Education is to prepare teachers who are open to new ideas, new practices and ICT. They must learn and re-learn the need for change. Many of the teachers have been teaching in the traditional method, and have a hard time letting go of traditional teaching beliefs. They tend to perceive teaching as giving out information and the learning should be taking their own responsibility for their own learning. In order to build the capacity of teachers to use the ICT in their classrooms, there is a need for professional development to helps this teachers relate their own teacher philosophies to one that incorporates ICT.
Barbados, although small in population, has one of the highest literacy rates in the world at 98%. Since 1990's, the Ministry of Education recognized the need to ensure the provision for a conductive learning environment. In order to obtain this goal, the MES embarked on a training of appropriate curriculum, teacher training and re-training, and the establishment of benchmarks to performance targets, the heart of their program was the curriculum that includes lessons on heritage, citizenship, entrepreneurship, and conflict resolution. The curriculum would be facilitated by ICT and the new technologies were placed into every school. This included computers, servers, printers, digital cameras, electronic whiteboards, high speed internet, and a range of computer programs. One key factor is the professional development for the teachers in ICT. They worked with teachers developing programs for the core teachers and helped them develop strategies for incorporating ICT in their curriculum. The also provide follow up visits on the classrooms to assist with on-site technology rich lessons. The Officer of The MES were responsible for developing the in-service programs for teachers. The work sessions were based on 3 themes: how to integrate ICT in and across the curriculum, applied ICT use skills, knowledge of teaching contexts and student learning, and the integration of ICT in curricular learning activities and assessments. During the professional development lessons, the participants were encouraged to collaborate in pairs with teachers from their core instruction group and one from the audio/visiual/edtech department. These groups would pair up and create micro LESSONS that allowed not only the core teacher instruction, but allowed the technology teachers to assist with adding technology into the lesson activity. The experiences in this group paring, demonstrated the strengths of such a partnership, where the curriculum teacher has the content and the audio-visual/ edutech teacher would have the technical expertise. The Centres for Excellence for the ICT Integration program were created to serve as models for other schools. The staff from these schools could share their expertise with other staff members from other schools. This first implementation of this professional development took place in Feb. 2005 and June 2005. They outcomes were more ICT mediated lessons were being used, positive feedback from the teachers, higher peer to peer and teacher to student's interactions, and high level of engagement among students during the ICT lesson were observed. After the success of this training, the following recommendations were made. The training for Education Officers at each school would prepare the Education Officer to eventually run their own professional development programs in the area. Second they would train students to become not only ICT helpers in the classroom, but also serve as ICT experts. Third, help develop incentives so teachers can develop positive attitude towards ICT. Fourth, appoint an ICT technical assistant at each school for trouble shooting. Fifth, continue the professional development in ICT for teachers so they can continue the approaches to ICT in the classroom.
