Supporting Teachers Learning with ICT

Supporting Teachers Learning with ICT;

Supporting teachers learning with Information, Communication and Technology in order to  bring about an active learning pedagogy that supports the literacy needs of the 21st century learner is crucial for a better more equitable world where tools shown by teachers can bring down access barriers. For example allowing English Language Learners ; students with disabilitiesand lower income students who may not have access at home to use free public spaces like schools and libraries to make connections/access information etc; the world is at their finger tips!  Teacher librarians are the front guides in the purposeful use of ICT and therefore we need to take a leading role in how and for what purpose we use technology in the classroom/library. By first interacting and understanding the tools first and demonstrating their use to students so they too can use technology for their  continued educational learning and tools for life long learning outside of school.

When I think about supporting teachers learning to create an active engaging pedagogy I thought about four major areas:

 1.The framework and structures which technology can be aligned with pedagogical intent 

 2.Tech developers connection and support they provide in teaching teachers in application of their apps and listening to teachers

3.School division support of use of ICT and professional development opportunities online and on location such as the Google Classroom Convention that happened in Victoria or web google hangouts to connect with PLN's..

 4.Finally with the use of technology educators can easily learn from other educators beyond the staff room  with a PLN Personal Learning Network check out a ;Edublog on Personal Learning Network .PLN can be created with Twitter in choosing whom to follow; and which groups to follow like EdTech; Buncee etc and then interacting by commenting; retweeting and then sharing your own knowledge with personal blogs and links to create a global network.

A support to educators is using frameworks/structures and terminology on ways to use and view digital tools such as; flipped lessons ; blended lessons; lesson flow/app flow and SAMR. I will explain a little about each;
      1.Flipped classroom where students  use technology like a video; online lecture to get the big picture first and students interact online and pose questions this creates interest and activity with the use of technology as a starting point.Then students use class time more to collaborate and master concepts introduced.This can be enhanced if students also have control of error in their learning and/or to check their own work so the emphasis is on mastery not just completion. This is commonly done in the elementary Montessori classroom; like the Great Lesson of how the earth was made using a very long piece of cloth  to unfold with major events. Then later information is given realted to their inquiry. Graphite is an interactive tool that is a practical way for teachers to introduce students students to a variety of apps in a meaningful structure.Click below for a video:
2. Lessonflow/app flow

Use of Graphite  for teachers to incorporate Digital apps in a lesson flow;you can discover tools on Common Sense Education and then align them to each part of your lesson –- the hook, direct instruction, guided practice, independent practice, and wrap-up –- thinking with purpose about your lesson redesign. For examples click on; Graphite and commonsense for alignment to Lesson Flow. App flows can also be shared with other teachers helping them..

• Lesson Flow/app flow is a framework for use of aligning digital tools into a lesson; as explained here Reading Rockets App flow which involves these steps;
• Hook that engages
• Guided Practice
• Individual Practice
• Wrap up

Blended lesson is a combination of tradional face to face instruction and use of technology in a lesson for more details check out;Blended Lessons.
With all of these frameworks and use of so many apps; I 
found the SAMR model a useful way for teachers to categorize how your use of the digital tool is being used:  SAMR model with examples

1. Substitute  
2. Augmentation
3. Modification

Redefintion; this is the best goal to strive for;

For teachers professional development being connected to the Tech industries is also helpful in providing feedback to them and reviews/blogs of their apps for other teachers on Twitter or commonsense media etc; to assist in their chooses and application. I appreciated when Buncee did a Webinar just for me for an hour and was so helpful; this was new to me!

                                                      

        

1.blogblog.com. (2017). Cite a Website - Cite This For Me. [online] Available at: https://img1.blogblog.com/img/video_object.png [Accessed 15 Oct. 2017].