How do we Integrate Technology into the Classrooms?

 

Note: This entire piece is based on the article by (Bitner and Bitner, 2002) on integrating technology in the classroom.

 

How do we Integrate Technology into the Classrooms?

Successful integration of technology in the class requires several strategies, (a) funding, (b) a dynamic plan, (c) platform, (d) hardware and software and, most importantly, (e) the teacher. The skills and attitude of the teacher is most important for an effective inclusion of technology in the curriculum. Teachers must be open to learning and be influenced by technology to modify their teaching style.

For example, in our school, Veracross is used as an LMS platform. I have seen teachers still using a notebook to keep the scores of the kids and uploading it all on Veracross at the end of the year. I, on the other hand, found that the LMS made my work efficient and time effective. So, I integrated it to upload scores immediately, send mails to the parents and upload homework on it too. I did have to work hard to get the kids used to it to see the homework or the scores, but after half a year of consistent ‘check Veracross and not me’, it finally worked.

 

How I did it!

Some of the strategies I have used in my math class to integrate technology are (a) use the computer to conduct research, (b) online CW or HW, (c) mail them to task sheets for projects, (d) flipped the class and (e) asked them to mail the project power points via email or Google drive.  

Veracross was used as the online grading system for posting student’s grades, their attendance pattern and manage data for everyone to easily access information and monitor progress. For example, I divided the class into groups, asked them to explore Scientific Notation using some probing questions and then send me a paper on it via email. The next class was for discussion and a short assessment.

 

However, there are challenges!

·         In my country, India, schools do not always have access to the internet or electricity. Not all schools have the money for infrastructure or to professionally upgrade the teachers. This exerts a burden on the teachers to learn on their own and often they lose interest. Maintenance and technical support may not always be accessible when there is a technology breakdown.

·         Poor parental involvement can also pose a challenge. Parents of low economic status might not be able to afford computers for students to work at home.

·         Kids in the middle school I work in do not have the discipline to carry a charged laptop or the charger. Their self-sufficiency skills to use Veracross as the medium of content is missing at times. The emotional dependence on the teacher is large and one of the ways to connect is to discuss grades or homework.

 

In Conclusion

It would not be enough to expect technology to be integrated in the classroom. This is a community issue and not a teacher issue. We require trained teachers, infrastructure support and parental openness to invest in technology to make it successful.

Teachers, brought up in a system of non-technology and human connect, may not take to technology very quickly. Emotional care and support are needed to create a safe space for the teachers to be open to technology. Teachers need training from empathic individuals and not the salesmen or women only focused on making a sale irrespective of the learning transferred.

Learning needs to be the impetus in the school and not technology. Technology is an enabler and not a replacement. When schools become a space where experiments are allowed and there is space for mistakes, teachers will learn.

 

 

Reference

 Bitner, N., & Bitner, J. (2002). Integrating technology into the classroom: Eight keys to success. Journal of Technology and Teacher Education, 10(1), 95–100.  https://www.learntechlib.org/p/9304/