Leveraging Technology

I'm in the midst of taking (and teaching) a technology class in my district. It is centered around 21st Century Skills, and how to teach those to your kids. The skills we're discussing, and working on, are largely soft skills- collaboration, communication, critical thinking and problem solving. They connect with ISTE's Technology standards for students.

There are a myriad of issues to ensuring that teachers meet these standards. Ignoring glaring infrastructure issues for many districts, I think the biggest issue is a lack of understanding (by teachers) in how to use tech tools with kids. When you move along the gradient of teachers and tech, you have a high watermark of those familiar with a myriad of tools and how they can be used in the classroom. That is combined with a willingness to use those tools regularly with kids, helping them build fluency with the tools. On the other end of the spectrum are those that don't use the tech regularly (perhaps the Tech Lab once a week?!), and aren't fluent with the tools themselves. That, to me, is a big problem.

Teachers need a familiarity with the tools available to them. They need to have used them, seeing possible pitfalls along the path. Willingness to use the technology is certainly a part of this process- which is another issue altogether. But being willing does not necessarily mean that you will use the technology with your kids effectively. The issue of effectiveness, and how I can be more effective in my technology usage, is one that I'm wrestling with. I'm hoping that it will lead me to a significant change in how I plan to use computers and other tech tools.

Writing Workshop

We've kicked off our writing workshop recently. In intermediate, the suggested unit to start with is "Launching the Writing Workshop." The work is to get students to learn different strategies to generate narrative writing. Additionally they begin to learn the routines that go along with the writing workshop- mini-lesson, writing time, conferencing as needed, and sharing at the end. Two weeks in, where are we?

As a whole, it is better than it was my first year. As I stated previously, I have a greater understanding of the trajectory in each unit being taught. I also think I am living the life of a writer more than I did last year. Some of my mini-lessons fell short last year because I was not actually writing enough alongside the kids. This year I am generating those stories along with them, or in advance so that students can see a demonstration. If I write prior to our writing time, we talk about the qualities we see in the writing that can be utilized in student writing.

But I need a greater commitment to some of our routines. In particular, I need to get back to ensuring our atmosphere fosters a commitment to writing. How so you say? Well I am inconsistent in my use of background music. When there is something playing, students are often calmer and write longer. I also am not being consistent when students are talking during our writing time. I find myself giving some students multiple reminders, a clear sign that they need some help. In recent days, instead of thinking about why students are off-task, I've focused on getting kids quiet and back to work. Bad practice! Ugh. Tomorrow we'll try to wrangle those few who are off-task, and potentially work in a small group. I might also leverage student role models to have them share work with those in need of support. We'll work on it tomorrow... not soon, but tomorrow!