February 1999/March 1999, Journal
of Adventist Education, written by Janine
Lim
In the last issue we introduced this column. Now let
us examine ways principals and administrators can facilitate
the use of technology in the curriculum. We will focus
on three areas: training, funding and support, and curriculum
integration.
1. Training. Using
technology in the classroom can change the classroom
climate so dramatically that it is similar to first
year teaching. To use a new tool or strategy such as
technology, teachers need effective and extensive training.
There are many creative
ways to provide technology training: after school mini
sessions, full day inservices, summer training, and
"just-in-time" training are only a few. When
school is not in session, send the computers home in
the summer with your teachers. The best way to learn
to use a computer is to be able to practice and work
with it. Use E-mail to disseminate information at both
the school and conference level. This encourages everyone
to learn to use E-mail to keep from missing important
news. Encourage those who are familiar with technology
to train their fellow teachers and share knowledge at
staff meetings. As one technology coordinator says,
"Give teachers plenty of training opportunities
at frequent intervals. An hour before or after school
several times a year will probably do more than to have
day-long "inservicing" once or twice a year."
(1)
Businesses are moving
towards "just-in-time" training--teaching
employees new things as they need to know them. Teachers
may not be ready to learn mail merge, but when they
see another teacher sending home personalized notes,
they may be ready to learn how, too. Use a needs assessment
to determine what your teachers are ready to learn.
This past summer, the International Society of Technology
in Education (ISTE) published technology standards for
teachers.(2) Use these standards
to assess the needs of your teachers and provide training.
You can also create a survey including questions such
as:
- What equipment do you have at home?
- How much time do you use it?
- How much time do students get to use your classroom
equipment?
- What equipment do you feel you need?
- What software do you feel you need?
- What computer skills would you like to learn?
- Do you have email?
This information can
be used to plan and provide training, as well as to
guide purchasing and support decisions. Have your technology
committee members or other teachers provide training
to the teachers. The "Each one, Teach One Approach"
is the ideal way to spread technology. Keeping up with
which teachers has which skill and asking them to share
with folks who want to learn that one skill multiplies
your reach.(3) Use your needs
assessment to plan and provide training. Provide recognition
for teachers who are using technology in the classroom.
Adapt your training to the needs and time schedules
of your teachers.
2. Funding and
support for the computers. It is very difficult to use
technology in the curriculum without good computers
and maintenance. A technology committee can assist in
this area. The Adventist school in Niles, Michigan,
has a technology committee made up of community and
church members who have computer expertise. They advise
in making decisions and hardware and software support
for the school. Other schools are fortunate to have
a teacher who can do the support on the side. I encourage
you to give those teachers release time to fix the computers.
Parents can also assist
in this process. As another technology coordinator suggests,
"Let your parents know what you're doing. They're
sending their children to a parochial school not only
for a religious education, but also because they want
an excellent education product for their children. In
the past few months I've started to communicate more
with our parents about technology news in the school
and they've been great with encouragement, ideas, and
—wonderfully— donations of excellent used
equipment."
If you have a limited
number of computers, and few teachers use them, give
the technology to the teachers who request it and have
a plan for using it. This way your computers will be
used effectively.
3. Curriculum Integration.
Whenever appropriate, technology should be used within
the core curriculum. The computer is just another tool
to help the learning process. Principals can assist
in many ways, including the following:
- Require lesson plans along with requests for software.
If teachers ask for software, ask them what they plan
to do with it. How does it fit with the curriculum?
- Encourage and foster sharing of ideas to use the
technology in the curriculum. Spend some time at staff
meetings planning and sharing lesson ideas.
- Encourage teachers using technology to share their
skills and knowledge with others. Give incentives
for this if possible.
Using technology effectively
in the classroom takes time and patience. Let us continue
to persist in this ongoing process to enhance our teaching
and learning.
Internet Resources
Notes and References
- Lynn Henry (lhenry@mail.concordia-academy.pvt.k12.mn.us).
(1998, October 14). Getting started. Discussions on
CC Staff Development [Online]. Available email: crc-request@listserv.classroom.com
[1998, October 14].
- See http://www.iste.org/Resources/Projects/TechStandards/
to access the standards.
- Towne, Holly (towne@MyHome.ORG). (1998, October
10). Looking for models. Discussions on CC Staff Development
[Online]. Available email: crc-request@listserv.classroom.com
[1998, October 10].
