Supporting Teachers Learning with ICT: On-going Pro D
Initial Thoughts
This week's subject holds a special place in my heart. Within my school, I am both the Technology person and the Professional Development Rep. Finding ways to make sure that my staff is continually learning about ICT skills and have enough confidence to use them in the classroom is thought-provoking, time-consuming, and tricky. Quite a few of my colleagues are a little leery of using new technology within their classrooms as they are settled in their ways, but some are willing to try. As stated in my last blog, this past year was a learning curve for many of the teachers in my school and hopefully, it kick-starts some colleagues to learning some more skills on their own.
Developing a "Bag of Tricks"
There are a few ways that educators can learn to be more proficient and pro-active when it comes to learning new ICT skills. I recommend this video by Matthew Hains to find out where you are personally with ICT. This video is very heavily towards the Microsoft Office Suite but it does help narrow down where one is in the processes of ICT skills:
Once the video has been viewed, I also show an online article by "Ivan" on AllDigitalSchool.com. Its title is "15 Resources to Boost Teacher ICT Skills for Better Learning" and it does go through some basic skills but also some very interesting applications that everyone can use to better their skills.
For the teachers in my district that want to learn more about the applications that we use, I would recommend going straight to the source: Microsoft Education. Our district 'strongly recommends' that their staffs use all the Microsoft Office applications before anything else and this where teachers can go to learn the ICT skills needed to bring them into their lives and their classrooms.
Past the Post
Some teachers already feel that they are personally ready to use ICT skills but do not know how to take them into their classrooms. To them, and for myself, I have found two infographics and the online articles that correspond to them to help start the journey.
The first one takes a single piece of social media and shows how it can be used in the classroom: Innovative ICT in Education: Twitter. Now this article was published in 2012 and things have certainly changed, but the basic ideas within this infographic still hold true.
The next infographic was actually a fluke find but one that I was happy that I made. It shows what happens when teachers can take ICT classes to the next level and bring all those learned skills into non-ICT classes and flourish.
This topic was quite interesting to investigate because it got me thinking about how I use professional development to upgrade and integrate my own ICT skills and how I can help bring these skills to my staff and students. It also showed me how easy it is to find lessons and programming to learn and teach ICT skills, you just need to look for it.
Articles of Interest
Charalambos, Vrasidas & Gene Glass. "Teacher Professional Development and ICT: Strategies and Models." Yearbook of the National Society for the Study of Education, 2007,106. 87 - 102. 10.1111/j.1744-7984.2007.00116.x. Accessed 27 Feb 2021.
While this article is quite old on ICT, it still maintains some interesting ways to include ICT into the classroom and it also looks at Authentic Engagement, Learning Designs, Collaborative Efforts, and Leadership.
Gacoin, Andrée. "Educational Technologies and Teacher Autonomy." BCTF Research Report, Feb 2018, https://bctf.ca/publications/ResearchReports.aspx?id=50534. Accessed 27 Feb 2021.
This article is from the BC Union and it talks about some very interesting ideas concerning ICT skills, the governments, and teacher autonomy.
Prestridge, Sarah. "ICT professional development for teachers in online forums: Analysing the role of discussion." Teaching and Teacher Education, Volume 26, Issue 2, 2010, Pages 252-258, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2009.04.004. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0742051X09000948. Accessed 29 Feb 2021.
Once again an older article but it "explores the role of engaging teachers in constructive dialogue within ICT professional development activity."
Works Cited
Hains, Matthew. "Preferred ICT Skills Levels for Teachers." YouTube, 15 Jan 2021, https://youtu.be/tO1CVGzpoZo.
Ivan. "15 Resources to Boost Teacher ICT Skills for Better Learning." All Digital School, 24 July 2020, https://alldigitalschool.com/resources-to-boost-teacher-ict-skills/. Accessed 28 Feb 2021.
Microsoft Education Center. Training, Lesson Plans, Programs, etc., 2021, https://education.microsoft.com/en-us. Accessed 27 Feb 2021.
Torrens, Adam. "ICT Classes vs Ed-Tech Integration Explained." Cognita, 10 Aug, https://www.cognita.com/thought-leadership/ict-classes-vs-ed-tech-integration-explained/. Accessed 27 Feb 2021.
Wickens, Ross. "Innovative ICT in Education: Twitter." @MrWickensPE, 22 May 2012, https://mrwickenspe.wordpress.com/2012/05/22/innovative-ict-in-education-twitter/. Accessed 27 Feb 2021.
Well done blog post on your own experiences, contributions and excitations around Professional Development and ICT support. You've described the current context and realities of our current environment and how best to meet teachers and peers where they are at, and help them move forward, even just a little bit. Some interesting links, infographics and other resources to check out as well as some good reminders about working with your district and finding ways to reach out to your peers. Lots of good role-modeling here!
I am envious that you are working as at TL! You have a wealth of knowledge already! I do like to use technology in the classroom but I hesitate to use it sometimes a lot like some of the teachers at your school. At times it is because I am unfamiliar but also, the tech has to add something. I think to myself that if it could be done with pencil and paper, then why would I want to go through the hassle of getting 28 computers or iPads out? For me sometimes it's seeing what is possible that convinces me to stretch and use some tech or application that I haven't used before in my classroom. I hope to try more with the help of my TL this year!
I may not have had the chance to be a TL yet, but having subbed for a few years now, it's obvious some teachers are nervous/skeptical about technology in the classroom. It seems to be the more experienced teachers (like you said, "settled in their ways") but it's through no fault of their own. I feel this is mostly because they are not aware of how to implement it, not because they are necessarily afraid to use it. It is the new generation of TLs that will be able to help them, and others, with this! Great post; very insightful into this important subject area! I also appreciate the infographics and other resources!
Thx for sharing these resources! I found the link to "15 Resources to Boost Teacher ICT Skills for Better Learning" helpful and have it bookmarked for future use. I really like the section with resources on developing presentation skills. I am finding right now with the hybrid learning model in secondary, this is an area we are seeing a lot more use in classrooms and I have heard some teachers comment that they wish their presentations were more "jazzed up" like so and so. It would be great to offer more support beyond the basics. Thx, Nicole
Thanks for sharing the pictures - I'm such a visual learner and I found it quite helpful to see so many of the concepts we explored laid out in such an accessible way. I've downloaded them all and have plans to share them with staff for the next PD session I am asked to run. My favourite one was the image comparing ICT classes to Ed-Tech Integration. When laid out side by side, it becomes very apparent the benefits to integrating technology into the classroom instead of teaching it as a stand-along subject. Some of the more mature teaching staff, still remember when we had a computer room instead of a laptop or iPad cart and wish for those days back. This is an excellent tool when having that conversation. Thanks!
Final Reflection - It's Done! ( https://www.istockphoto.com/photo/ginger-woman-having-bad-hair-day-holding-a-blank-board-gm177257870-19682387) This Vision of the Future project really was a labour of love. I truly enjoyed creating my project and I hope that it helps some teachers with the ability to use infographics in the classroom. I started working on this project with a simple idea in mind and, while the basis of the project is the same, it evolved as I found new infographics and tried to connect them to English curricular areas. I struggled with honing down my ideas. Every time that I added something else to my project, I thought about something else that I could have added. I did add some of these ideas but I also put quite a few on the back burner for future personal use. I also struggled with choosing which themes that I would cover. I wanted to make sure that this was usable for all teachers. I was talking with my school colleagues and they helped me narrow down to...
Learner Considerations The learners that I am focusing on are grade 9 English students, but the resource is meant for colleagues to help them teach with infographics. This resource will be both information for the teacher and, possibly, a new medium to learn from for the students. Colleagues I am hoping that with this resource, my colleagues will feel better about using an unfamiliar medium. I am hoping that with the curricular connections and the delivery suggestions within the resource, my colleagues will find it easier to use infographics in their classrooms. Within the slide presentation, each infographic will be located on its own with the following slide the curricular connection and some suggestions on what to ask, how to use, or even explaining the infographic (if needed). I will also include a slide on what information is usually included in infographics, a how-to teach with infographic slide, a how to develop your own infographics, a review on a site that yo...
Well done blog post on your own experiences, contributions and excitations around Professional Development and ICT support. You've described the current context and realities of our current environment and how best to meet teachers and peers where they are at, and help them move forward, even just a little bit. Some interesting links, infographics and other resources to check out as well as some good reminders about working with your district and finding ways to reach out to your peers. Lots of good role-modeling here!
ReplyDeleteI am envious that you are working as at TL! You have a wealth of knowledge already! I do like to use technology in the classroom but I hesitate to use it sometimes a lot like some of the teachers at your school. At times it is because I am unfamiliar but also, the tech has to add something. I think to myself that if it could be done with pencil and paper, then why would I want to go through the hassle of getting 28 computers or iPads out? For me sometimes it's seeing what is possible that convinces me to stretch and use some tech or application that I haven't used before in my classroom. I hope to try more with the help of my TL this year!
ReplyDeleteI may not have had the chance to be a TL yet, but having subbed for a few years now, it's obvious some teachers are nervous/skeptical about technology in the classroom. It seems to be the more experienced teachers (like you said, "settled in their ways") but it's through no fault of their own. I feel this is mostly because they are not aware of how to implement it, not because they are necessarily afraid to use it. It is the new generation of TLs that will be able to help them, and others, with this!
ReplyDeleteGreat post; very insightful into this important subject area! I also appreciate the infographics and other resources!
- Chevon
Thx for sharing these resources! I found the link to "15 Resources to Boost Teacher ICT Skills for Better Learning" helpful and have it bookmarked for future use. I really like the section with resources on developing presentation skills. I am finding right now with the hybrid learning model in secondary, this is an area we are seeing a lot more use in classrooms and I have heard some teachers comment that they wish their presentations were more "jazzed up" like so and so. It would be great to offer more support beyond the basics. Thx, Nicole
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing the pictures - I'm such a visual learner and I found it quite helpful to see so many of the concepts we explored laid out in such an accessible way. I've downloaded them all and have plans to share them with staff for the next PD session I am asked to run. My favourite one was the image comparing ICT classes to Ed-Tech Integration. When laid out side by side, it becomes very apparent the benefits to integrating technology into the classroom instead of teaching it as a stand-along subject. Some of the more mature teaching staff, still remember when we had a computer room instead of a laptop or iPad cart and wish for those days back. This is an excellent tool when having that conversation. Thanks!
ReplyDelete