Statement of Goals and Philosophy

I will start by giving a demonstration of one of the first works that I did which expounds upon my original thought of classroom technology use. This is a paper which was written for ELED/SEED 766 and was really the first time that I had thought to put my notions about educational technology into words.

This will be followed by a more brief, concise philosophy statement that I wrote later near the end of my course of study. It will demonstrate that some of my original notions on educational technology changed while others remained constant.

Finally will come my goal statements of what I hoped to achieve during my course of study.

ELED/SEED 766

Assignment #1

Philosophy of Technology and Learning

September 6, 2000

Delesa Bosworth

My name is Delesa Bosworth of White Lake, SD. I am currently a fourth grade classroom teacher in White Lake. This is my first year in this position. I had work seven years previously in preschool through fourth grade special education at Chamberlain Elementary School in Chamberlain, SD. Our school at White Lake has more than one computer lab. My students receive instruction in the lab from a computer teacher once a week. Our classroom contains four computers including the following: a Gateway “teacher’s computer,” two Compaq computers for the students with sound and CD ROM capabilities, and an old Mac. The Gateway is hooked up to its own color printer. The Mac also has a printer in the room, but the Compaqs are networked to one of the labs.

One of the forms of technology that I am most familiar with for classroom use is that of augmentative communication. This comes from my history as a SPED teacher. We used the computer with alternative keyboards and speaking software for a wide range of students. As more and more children with disabilities are included into regular classroom settings, knowledge of assistive technology will become paramount. Having access to high quality communication programs will allow students with special needs freedom and ability to interact with peers that would have never before been possible.

On the other end of the spectrum, my current use of technology applies to students in the regular education classroom. There will always be the use of computers to run tutorial software. Even though this has now been labeled “drill and kill” by some, students are eager for their turn at the computer for a game. We use the computer daily to gather and graph weather conditions from the Internet. We also do word processing along with research for projects. My class is currently planning to use the digital camera to document some of their activities from the year. The idea will be for students to make a Power Point presentation using the slides to show to their parents at conference time. This will be a way for the students to showcase their activities from the year.

One of the benefits I see from using technology in education is that of bridging the distance barrier which is so frustrating in rural South Dakota. For example, young people from all over the state now have access to higher level classes that were before only available to students from larger schools. Distance learning has made up some of the ground for smaller schools to access the expertise of hard to find subject matter teachers, yet keep their own low student-to-teacher ratio in tact.

It is also allowing students and members of the community an opportunity to begin working toward a college degree. There are senior students in White Lake High School taking college algebra courses for double credit this semester. The community was also offered the chance to take part in this class.

Personal experience has also shown me that including technology in the classroom is very motivational to all students. When a child can view his own published work and see how professional and neat it looks, he is encouraged to try more. Students today are used to seeing bells and whistles from TV shows, Nintendo games, and surfing the Internet. Allowing students to create a few frills of their own engages them in the entire learning process.

Another benefit of using technology in learning today centers around the kind of graduates society is expecting schools to turn out. Use of technology in the world of work has shifted the demand for the type of employees that are sought after. This point is illustrated in our textbook: (Newby, Stepich, Lehman, Russell, 2000, p. 6) “Where once it may have been sufficient to learn rote responses within given working environments, now the real world demands individuals use high-order reasoning skills to solve complex problems.” Even workers in the most rote jobs are now required to problem solve and take responsibility in their position. Using technology in learning allows students access to the tools they will need to take control of their learning and to problem solve. No longer do students have to rely on outdated information. They can go directly to sources and visit first hand with experts to gather information.

The communication avenues opened up by expanding digital networks have the potential to link traditional classrooms through video, email, the World Wide Web, and other technologies to learning resources outside the school. These resources broaden the concept of “community” to include al people, anywhere in the world, with access to the common technologies.” (International Society for Technology in Education, p. 3.)

Some of the problems I see related to the use of technology in the classroom include technology being used to animate a lesson that was satisfactory without the technology. Technology needs to be integrated into lessons to make them better, but this is sometimes a hard thing to do. McNabb, Hawkes, and Rouk (1999) state:

… this shift emphasizes technology’s supportive role in teaching and learning rather than making technology use and end in itself. These educators believe that indicators articulating the components of a model instructional unit in fourth-grade science, for example, are more useful than technology competencies students should demonstrate at the fourth-grade level. (p.8)

Another current concern for using technology in education is proper training for the teachers that are supposed to implement the tools they have been given. I have personally been through inservice days sponsored by the school district at Chamberlain where USD instructors came out and taught us how to use different applications on our computers. This worked well for instructors at the Middle and High School levels at that time. However, it was three months before the Elementary School teachers even saw their computers. Pretty much everything we had been taught was essentially lost in that time period and we had to learn it all over again on our own. This makes a very uncomfortable situation for teachers who are already reluctant to try technology in their classes.

One problem I always try to plan for when using technology is for the system to fail. At this point in time, our systems are not that reliable, thus creating the need for a backup plan in case of a glitch. It takes a great deal of time to integrate technology into plans, and even more to be prepared in case of a technology failure. Teachers and students both will be more comfortable using technology when it is more reliable and not as apt to cause them trouble in the middle of a project.

A big problem many districts and even federal agencies are facing right now is that of proving that the technology that has been installed is really going to raise achievement levels. There have been huge sums of money spent to create elaborate infrastructures in schools with no sure fire way of testing whether or not it has done what it was planned to do. “Parents and teachers, school boards and administrators, governors and state legislatures, and Congress all want to know if the nation’s investment in technology is providing a return in student achievement.” (McNabb, et al., 1999, p.1) There is no standardized test that can be whipped out to show that scores are up. Will it be up to teachers to prove that students do achieve better with this new technology? If we can not prove achievement to the satisfaction of the school board, will our budget be cut? Although there are committees addressing this issue at present, no certain solution is in site.

In the future, I would like to see myself in the role of facilitator of learning. My philosophy of education has always been that children do not need to be taught what to learn, but how to learn. The teacher in the roll of facilitator creates life-long learners; those who are independent and can take control of a problem situation. The teacher that facilitates learning sets up situations that encourage children to interact and seek out information on their own. These children will be prepared to face the world upon graduation. They are not ones who have been expected to spout back information that was spoon-fed to them.

In South Dakota’s future, I see teachers becoming better learning facilitators. However, students who are well prepared to face the business world have to be exposed to more than just a plain school system. I can see technology being used to incorporate input from the world of business into a school setting. Mentoring programs in which experts are involved would be a logical step in preparing students for the future. The Road Ahead (School Home Community Connections) is about broadening the scope of influence for students. No longer are teachers the only educators to be utilized. This project is being studied and should be looked at closely to see how business people can lend their expertise to school projects that simulate real life situations. (ISTE, 2000)

South Dakota learning will be shaped by distance learning in the future just because of our rural population. Hopefully, students who were considering enrolling in larger schools in order to receive better quality education will change their minds once they see how well distance education can work.

I also see a big push right here in White Lake to maintain our population and school enrollment levels. The community wants students to seek out employment within the community upon graduation, rather than moving away, as has been the case in the past. Technology in our school system could play a big role in helping this situation. The future holds more positions that will be filled by people working from their homes. Preparing students now to seek out their work and facilitate money-making situations would be a benefit to our small community.

In summary, I do not see technology going away. I feel demands will be placed upon teachers to incorporate the technology we have been given and to show that it is increasing overall student achievement. In order to make that a reality, teachers need to incorporate technology into units of study to make the learning better. It will be a learning time not only for the students, but for the teachers as well.

Newby, T., Stepich, D., Lehman, J., Russell, J. (2^nd ed.). (2000). Instructional

Personal Philosophy of Teaching and Learning in the Information Age

I have always felt that students do not need to be taught WHAT to learn, but HOW to learn.

This has never been more relevant than now in this modern information age. Learning is, in and of itself, a skill that needs to be addressed with each individual student to ensure that they are capable of achieving to the best of their ability. This applies not only in a school setting, but in the years beyond.

Today we have so much information at our fingertips and so many possibilities available. Students need more than just rote memorization to excel in the world of today. They must be engaged life long learners and problem solvers. Students of today must be motivated to make the technology which is available do more than simply entertain. They must demand more of themselves and the technology. The technology must work for them, not merely automate tasks they can already perform.

2. To learn new methods of incorporating instructional technology for elementary classroom instruction.

These goals were closely linked to the TTD program. I was able to achieve each and every one of these goals throughout my course of study. I also opted to take TTL which turned out to be a very good learning experience. The opportunities that were afforded to me over the last three years have broadened the scope of my teaching range. I am more willing to take risks and implement a new technology in my classroom than before. The technology itself has not become the central focus of my classroom, but it has expanded the resources available to me. The children are engaged learners and enthusiastic about their work. They enjoy the variety afforded by the technology that has been implemented into our class work and they have really learned to take the lead on research projects.