(Picture by Sybren Stüvel) |
I was very much in shock when I became a mother. Nobody had really hinted to me how challenging it is at times. Parenthood, even from the pregnancy stage, can be testing and, for sure, a life changing experience. Yet, in the media we predominantly see the nice “happy family” pictures of beautiful children with their joyful parents. Far from the reality in most households I dare to say.
I feel the same way about using technology in the classroom. The Internet and education literature are full of articles, videos and podcasts on the great advantages of using technology in schools. Yet, like parenthood, none of those articles seems to address the potential challenges its integration brings.
I feel the same way about using technology in the classroom. The Internet and education literature are full of articles, videos and podcasts on the great advantages of using technology in schools. Yet, like parenthood, none of those articles seems to address the potential challenges its integration brings.
I tend to embrace technology readily. I like the idea of it facilitating our work and automatizing tasks that don’t need to be done manually. I also particularly appreciate how it can help students be less dependent on the physical presence and full attention of the teacher. And so I have been a keen user of technology in my teaching whenever the opportunity has arisen.
Still this year it has, alas, turned out to be more challenging than I would have wanted it to be.
Here are some of the lessons I have learned through this experience so far:
1. Don’t assume because it involves the use of a technological device students will be enthusiastic about it.
In my experience, some have been so used to having them and using them in their every day life and even in other classes, the novelty effect is not guaranteed.
2. Don’t assume students know (intuitively) how to use it.
This one was quite a surprise to me. Although the functioning of most tools seems to be easy to apprehend, some don’t necessarily like making the effort to figure it out. It is best to be initially quite explicit in how to use them.
3. Don’t assume they will embrace it wholeheartedly.
The use of some tools requires students to put on more effort to complete a task. They will not always embrace the challenge straight away.
4. Don’t assume they will immediately see the purpose of it or the benefit to their learning.
Even those who get excited about using a particular tool might not recognise its usefulness for their learning. Sometimes it needs to be spelled out to them before the excitement wears out.
5. It generally takes time, patience, commitment and (a lot of) trust.
Well, this one I imagine you have heard before: It doesn’t always work as you imagined it. I have found that it is taking time for students to adjust to using technology more purposefully. I have also found we all need to be patient when things don’t work out as they should have and while we figure out how to solve the problems that come up. But more that anything, I have learned that trust in the value of the process is essential. We must all be committed to making it work and be prepared to accept (and overcome) the mistakes that occur along the way.
6. If possible, don’t rush into it… But still do it!
One of the mistakes I have made this year is to try too many different tools at once. Indeed, I hadn’t realised all the potential issues explained above so I introduced some of them too quickly without fully acknowledging they were not working for some students or addressing some of the issues before trying the next one.
7. The context and the school and classroom environment matter a great deal.
I made many incorrect assumptions about my new students and I also didn’t know my new school well enough before introducing many of these tools. As a result, the experience has not always been successful. I have learned it is this important to not only know how tech-savvy students really are but also what their learning expectations and motivation are. How do they measure / define ‘successful learning’? There is a big chance some students will resist the change the use of some tools involve (ie. more work from them) so, unless there is support in the school community, the introduction of particular tools in the classroom might not succeed.
8. Sometimes it is worth delaying.
And the final, and most important lesson so far, has been to accept delaying the introduction of some technology tools is worthwhile. Learn from your mistakes, adjust some more and trust the next time it will work better; perhaps it will still not be ‘perfect’ but just better each time.
I have already made some parallels between this process and the beliefs about bilinguism slowing the development of literacy skills. The learning curve when introducing new tools and ideas in your teaching will not necessarily be straight and steep, the same way bilingual or multilingual children might take longer to develop mastery in all skills, in all the languages they are learning. Still, it is a curve that, while taking many forms, seemingly stalling at times, is always moving up until the progress becomes often exponential! It is worth the wait and the effort for sure!
Still this year it has, alas, turned out to be more challenging than I would have wanted it to be.
Here are some of the lessons I have learned through this experience so far:
1. Don’t assume because it involves the use of a technological device students will be enthusiastic about it.
In my experience, some have been so used to having them and using them in their every day life and even in other classes, the novelty effect is not guaranteed.
2. Don’t assume students know (intuitively) how to use it.
This one was quite a surprise to me. Although the functioning of most tools seems to be easy to apprehend, some don’t necessarily like making the effort to figure it out. It is best to be initially quite explicit in how to use them.
3. Don’t assume they will embrace it wholeheartedly.
The use of some tools requires students to put on more effort to complete a task. They will not always embrace the challenge straight away.
4. Don’t assume they will immediately see the purpose of it or the benefit to their learning.
Even those who get excited about using a particular tool might not recognise its usefulness for their learning. Sometimes it needs to be spelled out to them before the excitement wears out.
5. It generally takes time, patience, commitment and (a lot of) trust.
Well, this one I imagine you have heard before: It doesn’t always work as you imagined it. I have found that it is taking time for students to adjust to using technology more purposefully. I have also found we all need to be patient when things don’t work out as they should have and while we figure out how to solve the problems that come up. But more that anything, I have learned that trust in the value of the process is essential. We must all be committed to making it work and be prepared to accept (and overcome) the mistakes that occur along the way.
6. If possible, don’t rush into it… But still do it!
One of the mistakes I have made this year is to try too many different tools at once. Indeed, I hadn’t realised all the potential issues explained above so I introduced some of them too quickly without fully acknowledging they were not working for some students or addressing some of the issues before trying the next one.
7. The context and the school and classroom environment matter a great deal.
I made many incorrect assumptions about my new students and I also didn’t know my new school well enough before introducing many of these tools. As a result, the experience has not always been successful. I have learned it is this important to not only know how tech-savvy students really are but also what their learning expectations and motivation are. How do they measure / define ‘successful learning’? There is a big chance some students will resist the change the use of some tools involve (ie. more work from them) so, unless there is support in the school community, the introduction of particular tools in the classroom might not succeed.
8. Sometimes it is worth delaying.
And the final, and most important lesson so far, has been to accept delaying the introduction of some technology tools is worthwhile. Learn from your mistakes, adjust some more and trust the next time it will work better; perhaps it will still not be ‘perfect’ but just better each time.
I have already made some parallels between this process and the beliefs about bilinguism slowing the development of literacy skills. The learning curve when introducing new tools and ideas in your teaching will not necessarily be straight and steep, the same way bilingual or multilingual children might take longer to develop mastery in all skills, in all the languages they are learning. Still, it is a curve that, while taking many forms, seemingly stalling at times, is always moving up until the progress becomes often exponential! It is worth the wait and the effort for sure!