Wednesday 14 September 2011

Hesitation to Technology

This week I have been preparing for my micro lesson, which I taught today. It took me 8 minutes to teach the lesson and approximately 4 hours to prepare. When I was preparing for my lesson I tried to implement a variety of way to teach the lesson to accommodate for different learning styles. I created a handout which had step by step instructions on it. Then I decided I needed visual pictures to go along with the written descriptions. Finally, I demonstrated the activity with the class.  I searched the internet for the visual aids and even watched a couple you tube videos to give me some ideas on the best approach. I was thinking about where I would have been without technology... I wouldn’t have had the ability to check out other people’s ideas and I would have had to create the visual aids myself on the computer. Suddenly, a lesson that took 4 hours to prepare would have probably taken me 6 or more.  

After I thought about this, I realized that even though I utilized technology in my lesson preparation, I didn’t use it at all in my actual teaching. It got me wondering why it is so easy for teachers to use technology but so hard for us to implement it into our classrooms. I realize that my lesson was only 8 minutes but there are ways I could have used some technology. I could have used a projector that would allow that class to see my demonstrations on screen or even played an audio clip on how the game is played while the class was still working. With all these tools available what makes us hesitate?

3 comments:

  1. An interesting post Kristen. There is a sense in which the questions you ask about the use of technology are the questions every teacher, teacher-educator and administrator should be asking. "What is holding us back".

    I happen to think that the answer to the question is sitting right in front of us (all of us)...in your post.

    That's all I'm going to say, except for the fact that I look forward to following your journey this year.

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  2. I'll I can think about after reading your post was..."It took me 8 minutes to teach the lesson and approximately 4 hours to prepare". I resonated with that.
    I wonder, did that 4 hours, that planning, that searching for resources and pictures on line - was it engaging in itself? I hate to sound cliche but it really is that journey that counts most. I wonder how to give the students the same experience.

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  3. Honestly, the 4 hours flew by. It was engaging looking through all of these resources and putting everything together because I wanted to create something that I would be proud to present. Something that I knew a variety of people would be able to learn from. That of course requires time and effort.

    The journey does count the most. In order to want this kind of experience you have to be interested in what you're doing. That is the key to giving students the same experience...we have to present them with a topic or project that they will be interested in and excited about.

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