Today’s generation of students is more technologically advanced than any previous generations. For teachers, acquiring classroom technology can be a challenge. Different school districts and schools have different ideas about the types of technology students should have in their classrooms.
Depending on the economy, there might not be an emphasis on technology in some districts, because they are more worried about closing their budget gaps than spending money they don’t have on technology that is constantly evolving. This can cause a huge difference in the type of education students receive, depending on how much technology their district can purchase.
Second, some teachers feel that technology needs to be integrated into every lesson, every school day. They may feel that unless they present a lesson complete with a PowerPoint presentation and other technological media, the students will not be interested in what information the teacher has to impart to them. What some teachers don’t realize is that students can get bogged down from all of the electronic information they come across in a typical day.
Third, in order for students to be successful with technology in the classroom, they need a set of rules to guide them through the process in a safe way. Some of these rules include:
1. Use only safe surf search engines posted on the bulletin board;
2. Access only teacher-bookmarked files;
3. Do not install any programs without the teacher’s permission;
4. Hands off the keyboard and mouse until you know what the class will be doing.
Such things as technology education, choosing interesting multimedia presentations, and providing students with a list of rules can benefit both the teacher as well as the student in the long run.
Hanuri Learning is located at 27674 Newhall Ranch Road, Suite 10 in Valencia. For more information, please call 844-READ-SCV(732-3728).