Skip to main content

Tech Standards and Literacy



ED 625 MD Tech Standards and Literacy


Liam Breathnach


I work in a school which has a 1-1 iPad program and if you ask the teachers how they feel about that, well, the jury is still out. There is no questions but we can do many more things than could be done in a classroom even 10 years ago, but technology comes with a burden. I often try to think back to my own days in classes and compare with modern day. Is the iPad the modern equivalent of staring out the window? Is it worse?


Whatever your stance, technology is here to stay, in school and beyond. As teachers, our job is to send out mature people, capable of functioning in the world, and that does includes being able to use technology in a productive, safe manner (Flinders and Thornton, 2013). It may seem to anyone of my age that I am already slipping behind the waves of technology and that teenagers do not need my help in navigating new systems, but that is not entirely true. While students do adapt and adjust more quickly than, in a world of shortening attention spans and increased information, there are skills they must be taught (Snowman & McCown, 2015).


The first standard with the MSDE is about making sure students understand the technology to the point where they know how to use it in a capable fashion (MSDE, 2007). The iPad has an operating system which most students are comfortable. I will admit that if I am not sure how to complete something there is often a slew of students who can help me out. However, new students may not all have the luxury of previous experience with these machines. If such a student arrived in my classroom it would require time with me or with new classmates to get them up to speed.


But there are still lengths I will go to from the start of a school year to make sure everyone is fluent in the class requirements. Students will use school email, a school program for grades and homework and the internet. I need to make sure that students know the rules and how to navigate these programs and will spend time during the first two weeks ensuring students follow guidelines for emails and can send in homework and check grades without any issue.


Students would need to have the required vocabulary in order to use these systems. While the vast majority of students will be fluent in this jargon it is worth being explicit with the language and having a word wall for common vocabulary or making a sheet of words and phrases for each student to have. I have found in my experience that what is taught to the students in these cases should also be passed on to parents. Parents often communicate via email, and will also interested in their sons grades and progress. The school has provided training evenings in the past for parents but they are not well attended. I will be including the information to all parents next year in a syllabus and in quarterly emails.


Standard two is to do with students and their use of technology, their role in society and the impact of their technology use (MSDE, 2007). I feel like this is a very important area, and not one that students with their underdeveloped frontal lobes appreciate (Snowman & McCown, 2015). School bullying is unfortunately common on the front pages of newspapers and can have terrible effects. It is important to model good behavior to the students and monitor their behavior where possible. The Guidance Department runs an anti-bullying workshop every year and we are tasked with passing on the same message in our daily Faculty Advisory classes. 


Another area which needs monitoring is plagiarism. The iPads make it very easy and with extensive work from the internet it is an easy, attractive solution to some. A quick we search will give you many websites and apps’s to detect it, but students should be educated on the issue and warned of the schools strict policy on plagiarism. Students and parents are encouraged to read the Student Handbook and it contains a section on plagiarism.


One little thing I do every year on this topic is show a sections of a documentary hosted by Michio Kaku (2007). A section of the show looks at Second Life and on-line role playing games, where some people can spend amazing numbers of hours in an online world. Some interviewees speak of a day when people will have their brains plugged into the internet. Often the students are a bit shocked and dismissive of the people in the show but with a pointed questions and conversation they start to see how close they are to such a situation, especially in their parents eyes!   


Students will ne to be educated in how to correctly follow plagiarism rules. To do this they would nedd the vocabulary but also the skills to correctly give credit when using data and information which is not original.


Standards three four and five would have some overlap in the classroom. They all would be displayed by a student researching, preparing and communicating findings of a project. They how students use technology to enhance their learning and understanding, and then use technology to communicate it to others (MSDE, 2007). The use of technology in the classroom is vital for our students futures, as the world they enter is becoming increasingly technology driven (Bellanca and Brandt, 2010). Using technology can help differentiate the classroom and can help students research, critically think, collaboration and communicate. These are all elements of modern literacy (McLaughlin, 2015). Research is large part of the scientists work and it is a skill our students will need to know. If they are researching using the internet this bring its own issues with it. The volume of information quickly can get overwhelming and students will need to know where to go, what information to take, how to assimilate it and communicate it where necessary (Mcaughlin 2015). When students are presented with a project such as,  “Evolution of the Hominid Skeleton in 5 Million years of Fossil Record” they need a different set of skills when reading from the internet to researching in a book. From using browsers to choosing reputable sites to gathering the information which may be “hidden” in layers of the website there are a lot of skills required (Coiro and Dobler, 2007). Parts of this will seem like second nature to some but others will require training and demonstration in order to achieve it. If students are working in groups I think they will naturally learn tricks and strategies from each other but they may well also require explicit instruction from the teacher through more focused demonstration.


There are a huge number of internet tools to help students learn. Many of the colleges have wonderful interactive sites where there is content, interactive tools and further resources for students. A recent example I used is Evolution 101 http://evolution.berkeley.edu/evolibrary/article/evo_01 . PBS and Smithsonian and National Geographic have large websites about science too.


If students are started out on small scale research projects where they work in groups and are given targeted websites to access and take information from they will become more competent. A version of think alouds would also be a great strategy to model how students should use the internet. Looking at simple things like the URL and using on page links and tabs correctly would give students the tools they require. Group work would allow them to share the burden of work and learn from each other.


Student collaboration is easily enhanced by the internet with sharing sites like Twitter. Facebook, Skype and similar sites are fantastic for getting students to collaborate with others who may be miles or thousands of miles away. Learning about recycling? Why not have a skype with students from Sweden where they are importing waste in order to recycle it (Sheffield, 2016).


The internet has many places students can use in order to communicate their findings. They can write blogs, and systems such as VoiceThread or Youtube where students can make video presentations (Castek and Beach, 2013). Using Dropbox or a cloud system allows for easy sharing of large files. Using Powerpoint, Prezi or Powtoons are great ways of divulging information to people, and you can be as creative as you like.  


Standard 6 is related to using technology for problem solving and decision making. Once again the wealth of knowledge online helps students in this regard. And once again the issue can be finding reliable, sound information. This point also has roots in things we spoke of earlier. If students are internet savvy they will be able to find solid information about almost any topic.


A project I have used in the past is requiring students to make a 3D model of an Animal Cell. Tis wold require the studenst research the cell, materials and even what previous people have done in similar situations. Should we use a shoe box, molding lay or polystyrene? When a group determines a question or problem, each student could go and research independently before returning to present their solution. . It is often a good w to grow if you have peer review of ideas when trying to generate solutions. Students could even do this remotely using communication systems such as a message board, Google Hangouts or some equivalent. Message boards could also be a great forum for extending the audience to collaborate with others outside of the immediate group. Students can also use blogs and journals to keep their research in a place where it can be reviewed and reflected on. Review and reflection can be great tools when there is an ongoing situation which requires a solution (Mansbach, 2015).  


Modern literacy and technology are deeply intertwined. Students of today need to be capable working together to trawl through the masses of information readily available to us, find what they require and be creative in how they disseminate it to others. Each of these steps implies using the technology we have. There is no doubt that today’s students have some of the skill set required for these tasks, but they require direction and education to put the mindless scrolling and scanning to a more constructive use.


Thanks


References


Mansbach, J. (2015 ) Using Technology to Develop Students Critical Thinking Skills. Retrieved from  https://dl.sps.northwestern.edu/blog/2015/09/using-technology-to-develop-students-critical-thinking-skills/






Coiro, J., Dobler, E. (2007). Exploring the Online Reading Comprehension Strategies Used by Sixth Grade Skilled Readers To Search for And Locate Information On The Internet.  Retrieved from https://blackboard.stevenson.edu/bbcswebdav/pid-1380211-dt-content-rid-5436387_1/courses/15U8W1_ED_625_OL1/Exploring%20the%20Online%20Reading%20Comprehension.pdf


Maryland State Department of Education. (2007)  Maryland Technology Literacy Standards for Student. Retrieved from http://mdk12.msde.maryland.gov/instruction/curriculum/technology_literacy/vsc_technology_literacy_standards.pdf   


Kaku, M. Visions of the Future. TV. Directed by Panic, M. 2007, BBC, London. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YyvmnwNmUtE
Bellanca, J. & Brandt, R. (2010). 21st Century Skills; Rethinking How Students Learn. Solution Tree


Press


Flinders, D. & Thornton, S. (2013). The Curriculum Series Reader (4th Ed.). Routledge


McLaughlin, M. (2015). Content Area Reading: Teaching and Learning for College and Career Readiness. Boston, MA: Pearson


 


 


 


 

Comments

Post a Comment