Response to Technology Standards
It was very
interesting further researching the 21st Century Skills, the NETS,
and the Information Literacy Standards.
My first thoughts upon exploring the different technology standards are
that of probably any busy classroom teacher: Here is yet another thing I have
to make time to squeeze into my already busy school day. However, I feel that
this is a mindset that separates novice teachers from master teachers.
Incorporating technology into the classroom just requires a little bit of
knowledge about the technologies at hand, and the know-how to seamlessly weave
them into our already existing curriculum. These skills are so necessary to our
students today that to not integrate them into our instruction would be doing
our students an extreme disservice. There are so many innovative ways to
include technology, if only you’re willing to change your mindset, do a little
research, and try out new things. I got
many exciting ideas just pursuing the technology standards, and I will begin to
really dive in to find new and innovative ways to include technology in my
every day instruction.
I have gained many insights into my
own instruction by studying the technology standards. First of all, the 21st
Century Skills, the NETS, and the Information Literacy Standards are aligned.
They are not there to add more to my plate. They are there to help me better
teach what I already have to teach. For example: the 21st Century
Skills categories include, 1) Inquire, think critically, and gain knowledge, 2)
Draw conclusions, make
informed decisions, apply knowledge to new situations,
and create new knowledge, 3) Share knowledge and
participate ethically and
productively as members of our democratic society, and 4) Pursue personal and
aesthetic growth. These are all things I want and need to teach my students.
But now I have lists of skills to get me there, learning objectives to give my
students, and self-assessment strategies for them. The standards are a toolbox
from which I can pull resources to help me be a better teacher.
There are many ways I am going to
start trying to integrate these skills and standards into my classroom. For
example, one of the skills in many of the technology standards is students will
be able to read, view, and listen for pleasure and personal growth. Another
skill from the standards is Students will be able to identify own areas of
interest. In my classroom I will address these standards together using iPads
and Kindles. These technologies give students much more
choice in what they read than my classroom library can offer, so students can
find out new topics of interest to them. Also,
the buy-in of getting to read on an iPad instead of a regular book can get even
the most reluctant readers to begin to enjoy reading, solely because of the
technology involved. So this is something I would have to teach normally, and I
hit two technology standards without even going out of my way. The standards
actually helped me engage students and differentiate for my struggling readers.
Lastly, I am confident in my ability to successfully integrate these standards
in my classroom because there are so many wonderful resources available to me
online. One website was particularly helpful with their holistic view of the standards
in a rainbow shaped graphic.
Annotated Bibliography
American
Library Association. (2008). Learning 4 life. Retrieved November 19, 2012, from
American Association of School Librarians website:
http://www.ala.org/aasl/learning4life
This document is an overview of the implementation plan
for the 21st century standards by a specific 2008 task force. While the learning standards and program
guidelines define what “should be” in terms of information literacy, research
through guided inquiry, and the integration of technology in the traditional
school context, they also acknowledge varied and new forms of teaching and
learning in a social and global context. One of their core principles is that one size does not fit all in terms of the
diversity and multicultural makeup of the students we teach. Another core
principle is that a common vocabulary
and message are critical to the success of implementation. Also included is a communication plan, the
target audiences of the plan, and 18 objectives of the plan to implement the 21st
century standards.
American Library Association. (2007). Standards for the 21st century learner. Retrieved November 19, 2012, from American Association of School Librarians website:http://www.ala.org/aasl/sites/ala.org.aasl/files/content/guidelinesandstandards/learningstandards/AASL_LearningStandards.pdf
This
document by the American Library Association explains the common beliefs of
everyone trying to implement 21st century standards in schools. Some
of these beliefs are that reading is a window to the world, the definition of information
literacy
has become more complex as resources and technologies have changed,
learning has a social context, inquiry provides a framework for learning, and
school libraries are essential to the development of learning skills. It also describes in detail what skills are needed for
students to be successful in the field of information literacy. Some examples
of this includes Use prior and
background knowledge
as context for new learning, Collaborate with others to
broaden and deepen understanding, and demonstrate mastery of technology tools
for accessing information and pursuing inquiry.
Duran, E., Yaussy, D., & Yaussy, L. (2011). Race to the future: Integrating 21st century skills into science instruction. Science Activities: Classroom Projects and Curriculum Ideas,, 48(3), 98-106.
This article is a description of a
specific activity that some teachers have developed in order to integrate 21st
century skills in the classroom. The activity is called The Amazing Race.
Students are put into small groups and given a clue. When they complete each
clue they receive another. In order to solve each clue they need to access
different technologies such as laptops, CDs, and websites. Duran explains 21st century skills as creativity,
innovation, critical thinking, problem solving, communication, collaboration,
personal responsibility, global awareness, social/intercultural skills, team
learning, and mastery of rigorous academic content. Activities such as this one
do an excellent job of integrating those skills into the classroom in a
meaningful way.
Integrating web sites into the gifted education classroom. (2006). Gifted Child Today, 29(1), 28-34.
Besnoy
begins his article with the statement, “Not since the invention of the printing press has a
development such as the Internet had such a revolutionary impact on how
information is shared.” The International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE)
created the National Education Technology Standards (NETS) for administrators,
teachers, and students. In addition to improving teaching practices, NETS also
established student learning objectives. However, The National Association for Gifted Children (NAGC) has no
standards for technology. He goes on to explain the many benefits of using
websites for gifted education.
Lemke,
C. (Ed.). (n.d.). Dimensions21. Retrieved November 19, 2012, from Metiri Group
website: http://metiri.com/
The Metiri Group has created D21, or
Dimensions 21. Dimensions21 provides the What,
Why, Where, and How To for advancing 21st Century Learning in schools, as well
how to track a school’s progress. D21 consists of a definitional
framework, multiple data collection strategies, and information-rich reports on
the readiness of your schools to engage students in this important work, The
group sells many of their resources, as well as their consulting services.
P21
(Ed.). (n.d.). The partnership for 21st century skills. Retrieved November 22,
2012, from http://www.p21.org
This is an excellent website that is put
together by the Partnership for 21st Century Skills. It is a
national organization that is promoting students readiness in 21st
century skills. The website explains that The 21st
century Framework that they have created presents a holistic view of 21st
century teaching and learning that combines a discrete focus on 21st
century student outcomes with innovative support systems to help students
master the multi-dimensional abilities required of them in the 21st century.
There is also a large collection of resources for teachers and administrators
to help them integrate these skills into their classrooms.
NETS for teachers and students. (n.d.). Retrieved November 19, 2012, from http://www.iste.org/standards/nets-for-teachers
The NETS are the National Educational Technology Standards from the International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE). There are different kind of NETS. There are NETS for students (NETS-S) and NETS for teachers (NETS-T.) NETS for teachers include categories such as Facilitate and Inspire Student Learning and Creativity, Model Digital Age Word and Learning, and Engage in Professional Growth and Leadership. NETS for students include categories like Research and Information Fluency, Communication and Collaboration, and Digital Citizenship.
Simpson, A. (2010). Integrating technology with literacy: Using teacher-guided collaborative online learning to encourage critical thinking. Research in Learning Technology, 18(2), 119-131.
Simpson reviews a study that was done in
Australia about technology use in elementary classrooms. She believes that education systems all over the
world face the challenge of designing activities that encourage collaborative
learning, and incorporate the use of technology successfully. In this study, students read books and then used email to
exchange thoughts with other learners. The results found that there was an
increase in critical thinking, but there was little student engagement
with technology. They found that the end result wasn’t really about emailing
because that just wasn’t practical in a school setting.
Standards for Students. (2009, August 26). Retrieved November 19, 2012, from Colorado Department of Education website: http://www.cde.state.co.us/edtech/StandardsForStudents.htm
This website is the Colorado Department
of Education’s Title II-D Education Technology. The CDE lists the standards, a
general description of the standard, and what specifically the students should
be able to do if they have mastered that standard. The categories of the
standards include Creativity and Innovation, Communication and Collaboration, Research and
Information Fluency, Critical Thinking, Problem-Solving & Decision-Making,
Digital Citizenship, and Technology Operations and Concepts.
This is a very reliable source of information being from the CDE, however,
there are no additional resources or lesson ideas. There is just a list of the
standards.
Zmuda, A. (2009). Leap of faith: Take the plunge into a 21st-century conception of learning. School Library Monthly, 26(3), 16-18.
Zmuda’s article explains that 21st-century skills are much more than just
adopting new skills and putting them into the curriculum or buying new
technologies and placing them in classrooms. It is a huge shift in thinking
from a teacher-centered learning environment to a student-centered one. She
believes we need to use questioning to guide our instruction, especially in the
library. We should be asking students “What are you here to learn?” and “How would you
prefer to learn it?” She goes
on to say that the questions we as educators should be asking ourselves are not, “When will the
future show up at
our school?”
or “How do I get permission to put 21st-century skills
into my classroom?” The
questions we should now be asking are “How do I embrace technology in my classroom?”
and “How do I work
with students to ensure that they share responsibility and owner- ship of their learning?”
