tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8705078887057341738.post210584390404617666..comments2024-03-19T07:30:55.288-04:00Comments on Curmudgeon: New and Improved! Technology initiatives in education.Curmudgeonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04323026187622872114noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8705078887057341738.post-43752326193413380532010-02-04T01:03:35.392-05:002010-02-04T01:03:35.392-05:00amen! We have been told next year we have to use ...amen! We have been told next year we have to use a online gradebook site so parents can log in to see their kids' grades. So we have been suggested to use it last year and this year. Sounds nice and all, but it doesn't do half the stuff any regular grade book program does. How about putting the class average on a printout? Nope. How about seeing the grades updated as I put them in? Nope I have to check a box that says "grading completed" then submit! <br /><br />I won't go on, but I sent an email asking for help/suggestions about it and it turned into a school wide bitch session about the thing. I even got a nice visit from our dean of technology who was in charge of putting it together. I was told that, "we should embrace technology" and that my "emails might scare some of the staff from wanting to try it." <br /><br />ok I'm done.Mr. Whttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13282059797251178491noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8705078887057341738.post-12038366282583413002010-02-01T07:58:51.432-05:002010-02-01T07:58:51.432-05:00A few thoughts:
1. I am in complete agreement wit...A few thoughts:<br /><br />1. I am in complete agreement with most of what you've said here. Many of the tech vendors are snake oil salesmen, pitching products with little meaning or usefulness to practicing teachers. Moreover, many of the technologies that potentially could be really helpful to classroom instructors are poorly designed, unnecessarily complex, created without knowledge of teachers' real work, etc. For the most part, administrators are not savvy evaluators and purchasers of technology products. The IT people who make many of the purchasing decisions often have little understanding of teachers' day-to-day reality. Smart districts that actually want educators to effectively use these tools that are bought with preciously scant dollars will involve front-end users in purchasing decisions. And, as you note, how most schools do tech training for teachers is simply horrendous.<br /><br />2. There always is an implementation dip:<br /><br /> http://bit.ly/8Z4arp<br /><br />Administrators and teachers need to recognize and plan for it.<br /><br />3. The world IS digital now. We can't pretend that P-12 schooling will somehow be immune from the technological shifts that are transforming other information-oriented societal sectors. <br /><br /> http://bit.ly/7bI9HH<br /> <br /> http://bit.ly/bCW0Um<br /> <br />4. I try not to be an uncritical cheerleader of technology. I do spend a lot of time thinking about counter-arguments and what schools do well. For example:<br /><br /> http://bit.ly/cDIgL2<br /> <br />That said, I also try to be realistic about the fact that this technology / information revolution that's upheaving our society outside school will change how we think about and do schooling as well.<br /><br />5. If you have the time and inclination, I'd be interested in reading your thoughts sometime about my December presentation to the NEA Board of Directors:<br /><br /> http://bit.ly/5dPUkQ<br /> (see the Update for a synchronized version)<br /><br />Thanks for the thoughtful post.Scott McLeodhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08368435018346090846noreply@blogger.com