Technology and the Role of School Administrators

October 30, 2009 by · Leave a Comment 

My previous post focused on motivating teachers to take the initiative and embrace the use of technology in the classroom. To be fair to my teaching friends, the responsibility for embracing and integrating technology into K-12 classrooms is certainly more than yours alone, it is shared equally by your school’s administration. In a recent tech article on the Education World website, technology consultant Cathy Chamberlain explains what a difference it makes when the principal and other school administrators are on board. Cathy notes, “In my experience, technology integration is highest in buildings in which the principal is involved and excited about technology and its possibilities and is lowest in buildings in which the principal doesn’t demonstrate technology use while encouraging others to use it too. Modeling technology usage is key if administrators want teachers to play an active role in technology integration.” This concept of modeling technology is outlined further in the article.

Many of you may be familiar with author, educator and consultant Will Richardson. Will was a classroom teacher for over 20 years who integrated blogs, RSS and Internet based technologies into his courses for over four years. For the past three years he has spoken to and worked with thousands of educators around the world on the benefits of “The Read/Write Web” (Web 2.0). In the video below called Challenges for Educational Administrators, Will discusses the role of school administrators in Twenty-first Century education. He explains that educational administrators’ active participation in the very technology they seek to integrate into their schools is important, as is developing a collected vision / long term plan with the input of teachers, parents and other vital members of the community. This will enable organized systemic change as schools make the shift from a traditional “teaching culture” to a more collaborative “learning culture”.

Will Richardson is the author of the highly praised Blogs, Wikis, Podcasts, and Other Powerful Web Tools for Classrooms. The book’s companion DVD will be released soon and, when it is, Teach History will feature a post on this much awaited product.

Filed under: Books, Technology In The Classroom, Video
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Teachers Who Embrace Technology Change Lives

October 27, 2009 by · Leave a Comment 

If we educate Twenty-first Century students utilizing only late Twentieth Century teaching methods, I believe we are doing them a great disservice. In the K-12 classroom and beyond we must foster in our students better creative thinking, communication, collaboration and problem solving skills to properly prepare them for a world and workplace where these attributes are in high demand. Students love technology – it’s obvious. Outside of school they immerse themselves in the internet, social networking, computer gaming and a myriad of digital devices. Today’s K-12 teachers can utilize this same technology to keep their students fully engaged and make them enthusiastic about the learning process. The “second generation of Internet-based services” known as Web 2.0 has given teachers the opportunity to make use of tools like blogs, microblogs (such as Twitter), wikis and more. Have you embraced this new technology or has a fear of that technology made you hesitate? At Teach History we’ll be providing tips and information on a consistent basis to help you integrate technology into your classroom.

Did you ever wonder what students would say if teachers actually asked them how they would prefer to be taught? Well now you can get their answers to that question thanks to the excellent article The 21st-Century Digital Learner by Marc Prensky and the remarkably moving video shown below called A Vision of K-12 Students Today written and produced by B. Nesbitt.

Teachers who embrace technology change lives. How many children will you help inspire today by teaching in a way they can relate to? How many students will you engage? How many lives will you change this school year?

Video link: A Vision of K-12 Students Today

Filed under: Technology In The Classroom, Video
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The Benefits of Using Podcasting in The Classroom

October 18, 2009 by · Leave a Comment 

Podcasting has been a popular method of delivering audio and video content over the internet for about the past 5 years. During this time, a growing number of teachers have embraced podcasts as an exciting way to make learning more effective and fun. Teachers have used this technology to record lectures or presentations that can be accessed by students at a later time. They have also used podcasting to record school performances and events for the benefit of students as well as their parents. Perhaps the most exciting use of this technology is its application in project-based learning. Students involved in creating podcasts must use higher levels of thinking and creativity as well as problem solving skills. They have the opportunity to use their imaginations by writing and acting out scripts while learning how to work with the technology itself.

The excellent video below reviews the benefits of podcasting from the perspective of teachers as well as students. It includes feedback from a social studies teacher and a middle school principal. Toward the end of the clip you will find links to video tutorials that can help teachers learn how to podcast in the classroom using either Garage Band or Audacity.

Filed under: Audio, Technology In The Classroom, Video
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Smart Board Lesson From a Social Studies Teacher

October 7, 2009 by · Leave a Comment 

Back in March of this year I had the opportunity to make an author visit to Leicester Memorial School in Leicester, Massachusetts. Every room was outfitted with a Smart Board and I heard rave reviews from the fifth grade teachers and their students. This was my first experience with electronic whiteboards and it really opened my eyes to the exciting future of classroom education. Smart Board is helping teachers rethink their approach to teaching. The options for imaginative lesson planning are vast. I saw firsthand how educators had instant access to a wide array of electronic resources and how this helped them to accommodate different learning styles. I was told the students showed increased motivation and enjoyed the interaction the technology offers. Today’s students are immersed in a world of electronic gadgets outside of school and they love it. It’s completely logical to utilize similar technologies in school to keep students fully engaged and make learning a lot more fun! That’s what Smart Board is doing for schools here in Massachusetts and across the country. Below are two videos that demonstrate how one Social Studies teacher is using Smart Board technology in his classroom.

Interactive Whiteboard Demonstration (as shown above)
Interactive Whiteboard Demonstration 2

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Best Revolutionary History Blog: Boston 1775

October 6, 2009 by · Leave a Comment 

bostongaz1775I’d like to make teachers aware of an outstanding online resource for information on New England just before, during, and after the Revolutionary War – the Boston 1775 blog. The blog is authored by J.L. Bell, a Massachusetts writer who specializes in the start of the American Revolution in and around Boston. J.L. has published scholarly papers and popular articles for both children and adults. His recent presentation “Gossiping about the Gores”, the story of one family from Colonial Boston, is archived by the WGBH Forum Network.

J.L. Bell is more than a writer who is passionate about history; he’s also a bit of a detective. Since 2006, the content on Boston 1775 has grown to over 1,300 posts, with many being the result of his exhaustive research into primary sources. Educators and all those passionate about history can truly spend hours on this blog learning information that will make them think about historical events in a different way. You’ll find numerous posts on Lexington and Concord, the Boston Massacre, Boston Tea Party, Bunker Hill and so much more.

Two posts I found particularly fascinating were on the myths and realities of the Quartering Act. Back in grade school I was taught that the Quartering Act forced Boston families to provide food and shelter for the King’s troops occupying the town. I had pictured colonists being required to open up their homes to soldiers without any payment in return or say in the matter. By reading posts at Boston 1775, I realized this was not the case. The Act only referred to shelter in “unoccupied” buildings and not inhabited ones.

Some Boston families did house British soldiers in their homes before the war but most did so due to economic necessity and were compensated for it in the form of rent. One example of this is the family of Old North Church sexton Robert Newman. Knowledge of the true nature of the Quartering Act came too late for me to catch a small Act related error on page 31 of my children’s book One April in Boston – but I guess that’s what second editions are for! It’s an example of what one can gain from reading Boston 1775, and ensures that today I’m conveying the correct information to the students I work with both on field trips and in the classroom. Thanks J.L. for all the time and effort you’ve invested in creating this important resource for educators and history buffs alike.

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