Some Guidance on Implementing Technology into YOUR Classroom...

When using technology in the classroom there are some standards and conditions that we as teachers should adhere to so that it is used appropriately. Of course, it is important to remember that you should only be using technology if it is going to benefit or make your lesson better. The International Society for Technology in Education provides a list of standards for teachers, students and administrators. I'm going to touch on a few of them below.

Some Standards:

A standard that really speaks to me is to "Facilitate and Inspire Student Learning and Creativity." This is really important to me because children, at times, need the extra push to become more creative in the various activities they do at school. Using the different forms of technology can help them to become more creative because they are able to find ideas or work on the ideas they already have. While also being inspired by different articles they may read online, technology can really help to broaden a students world beyond the classroom. They can begin to think outside of their own community to the world around them. For example, a teacher could potentially have his/her students participate in helping out a third world country through figuring out ways how they can raise money to dig a well. 

Another standard to remember is to "Model Digital Age Work and Learning." It's so important that the teacher knows what he or she is doing and tries his best to stay relevant to the various issues going on in this world through technology. It's also a great way to keep in touch with the key people involved in the students life so that they can be given the best education possible. To view some more helpful standards click here. 

Some Essential Conditions:

There are so many conditions to be aware of. I'm going to highlight a few that I find really important. If you want to read the other ones click here. First of all, there needs to be a shared vision. If you are going to implement technology, everyone in the school needs to be on board. You cannot have one class do it and the next not. The teachers also need to work together to form a plan on how to implement it into the curriculum. It needs to benefit what the children are required to learn. If it doesn't do that, then technology only becomes a burden. One final condition to highlight is that of ongoing professional learning. Yes, you can take some computer courses in university as part of your teaching degree, but technology is always changing. Therefore, one needs to continually updating their knowledge so that they can stay relevant and use technology in the best and appropriate way.