Technology Integration for Elementary Schools

http://www.edutopia.org/stw-differentiated-instruction-technology-integration

The article I chose was, Technology Integration for Elementary Schools. This article was a good article in that it gave examples over technology tools and ways that you can use them.

I liked how this article states that technology should enhance the content and not the other way around.  Technology should not be served as a time filler. If it is, then technology becomes less effective. Students need to be able to use technology in the classroom, not just the teacher. Students need to use these tools so that they become more familiar with them and less intimidated by them. This article gives so many examples on how these tools can be used in the classroom for students and teachers. For example students can use clickers,video cameras, computers, and mobile devices to create a variety of projects. For teachers, they can use the clickers to see if students are understanding the material that is being taught right away and also use this data for grades and for the other tools they can monitor each child's work and the progress they are making or not making.

Another idea that I liked was sharing students work with others. This is encouraging and a self-esteem booster to students. By using technology, sharing work with others in the building will be easy to do and be able to be shown again and again. By sharing students work, this may encourage other kids to try technology out and maybe even spark some ideas in another teacher to try.

The last bit of this article made me smile! As a teacher I have experienced worrying about students dropping or being destructive with technology tools to frustration when technology does not work and I am left to scramble to find something else to do. The last bit of this article tells us teachers to relax and have a backup plan. If we portray to our students that we our comfortable with technology, even when it decides not to work, and that we are eager to try new things, this will help encourage our students to try new things for themselves and even if they don't work, to keep trying!