Can technology change teacher practice?
Can technology change teacher practice?

Can technology change teacher practice?

I could not hold back. I just let it all out…

Tom Whitby offers educators really great discussion. This afternoon I got caught up in ‘Can technology change teacher practice. When it comes to technology enhanced learning, I love the gadgets but I am only interested in the learning. Do we really need to force feed it upon the profession? Here is my comment to Tom Connell’s guest post. If I was a little heavy handed, I apologise.

Learning. Passionate about my profession, I am focused on challenging and inspiring young people. With or without technology, though I am not one to ignore technology. If technology accelerates learning, count me in. If tech gets in the way, I am as happy to ignore it. And of course, there is still plenty of room and opportunity to improvement good old fashioned ‘regular’ teaching.

Let me share a few teaching and learning experiences from an exciting week to colour in or enhance that statement.

On Tuesday I watched a live theatre performance brought to our school by a local drama company. Simply amazing, I mo-blogged as I watched and tweeted to other teacher colleagues. Back in class ‘we’ ipadio’d the students opinions and published straight to blog via a phone. The students loved that to.

Wednesday I presented and shared IF (interactive fiction) for creative writing and coding. Almost all ‘old’ technology, well retro, as a motivation to stimulate students writing.

On Friday I explored shoeless teaching with three very different groups (11-16, low ability, mixed ability and middle set) and today I explored how hexagons are better than squares (http://chrisharte.typepad.com/learner_evolution_chris_h/2011/04/solo-im-ridin-solo.html) for consolidating learning / thinking. Neither are technology enhanced, both were accessed through online professional platforms and RSS.

It is short sighted to assume that technology enhanced teaching makes for better learning. That this mode is somehow preferential because learners are digital immersed. Yes learning is opening up, yes, students are creating or finding their own learning pathways. Yes, we should celebrate it. As we should celebrate those wonderful relationships created and forged between student and teacher. Let’s not down play the flexibility of regular teaching, many of my most effective teaching memories have been as of a result of student curiousity and questioning leading us astray. Where the value of abondoning the lesson plan has been greater than the value of sticking to it. Show me AI that can make that distinction.

“You don’t learn because your engaged. You’re engaged because you’re learning.” With or without tech. I have little preference.Thank you for the opportunity to comment, John Connell’s thought really got me thinking.

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