A learning technology teacher talks about the realm of middle school and the need for a focus and dedication to integrating technology into instruction.
By Dianna L. Italia
am proud to state that I teach in a middle school. In fact I am the learning technology teacher at New Brighton Middle School located in New Brighton, Pennsylvania. We are a grade six, seven, eight middle school with approximately 500 students. I am responsible for the computer lab and all instructional technology in our middle school. In addition to the lab, there is a minimum of two networked computers in each instructional area and 18 networked computers in the library. If it's an exceptionally good day, all computers might be working properly with no user errors! I am labeled the "learning technology teacher" and not the "computer teacher" because I instruct and work with students; I don't "teach computers." Personally I picture myself as a long, lean, rather British-sounding female version of C3PO, but in reality for those of you old enough to remember, I'm more like the rotund Robbie the Robot. In addition to being a member of the district technology team, I am a department head in my building. In fact I am the only member of my department! But then I am also a member of every instructional team and department in our middle school.
Dianna Italia's students.
've learned that it takes real guts and stamina to be a learning technology teacher in a middle school. Everyone assumes that I know in great detail the specifics of every piece of hardware and software known to man. Open house night is like the tech support line at computer central. Parents, who thought all you had to do to get a computer to work was to provide it with electricity, send me detailed notes. And middle school students, who thought no one could ever teach them anything, now find that on their home computer things that go haywire aren't always fixed by someone else and up and running by morning! Speaking of running, I do a lot of that too. Only the middle school mentality could evade classroom teachers long enough to rearrange keys on the keyboard, try to remove mouse balls, and insert foreign matter into disk drives. Tweezers are not only for getting out splinters! Imagine the teacher who one morning came to me saying her password to the teacher menu just wouldn't work. Since she was a "chicken plucker" at the keyboard instead of a touch typist, she didn't really know where the keys were supposed to be. So, when she saw only asterisks on the screen for her password, she didn't realize a student had removed and rearranged the keys to configure a new keyboard setup! Oh, the inventiveness of middle schoolers.
What we have to do
ow what does all this background of my daily trials and tribulations have to do with teaching with technology? In the realm of middle school, we, as teachers, have to harness and direct that middle school energy - and there's plenty of it! - and commit a focus and dedication to integrating technology into instruction. The teacher is, and will remain, the focus of the classroom, but today's teachers must be able to integrate creative uses of new technologies to enhance and complement the instructional process. We can energize our delivery of instruction and motivate students like we never could before by looking at technology not as an entity unto itself but as an overlay that adds dimension and enhancement to instruction and learning. To adequately prepare students for the 21st century and the world of work that awaits them, we must infuse the use of technology into the delivery of instruction and provide all students with the access and the opportunity to have multiple hands-on experiences with technology.
"Set parameters for students and let students know what you expect in the way of acceptable Internet use and behavior while they are online."
Cautions for educators
e are purveyors of education not "edutainment." What students choose to do at home on their personal computers while under the supervision of their parents is one thing, but what they do at school, in an educational setting, is, and should be, under your control at all times. Be in control of the educational setting, whether it be in your regular classroom using a single computer or in a computer lab setting. Set parameters for students and let students know what you expect in the way of acceptable Internet use and behavior while they are online. Software filtering programs are not of and by themselves able to "police" all traffic on the Internet. Teaching students to be responsible is the best way to avoid an intentional "visit" to an educationally unacceptable site on the Web.
Give technology integration a chance
s a learning technology teacher, I am an advocate of employing technology as an integral part of the school curriculum. Its use can instill a motivation to learn in the most unmotivated student. Integrating technology successfully into the existing curriculum is well within the capability of any teacher. Use the resources of the Internet and all aspects of educational technology to strengthen the curriculum and the instructional program. Expand the learning environment for your students. Trust me, your first success will breed the desire for more involvement with technology integration. What we as educators ask of our students - to be engaged and focused while learning - to keep at a task until they are successful - to experience the elation when the so-called light bulb finally "clicks on" - are all the characteristics that educators should exhibit as they "get a grip" on technology. Expand your own personal learning environment. The educational possibilities are limitless! Get excited. Go for it. That educational brass ring - the "hook" to a renewed enthusiasm for learning is well within the reach of every educator. As was said to Mikey in the classic Life Cereal commercial, "Try it! You'll like it!"
am proud to state that I teach in a middle school. In fact I am the learning technology teacher at New Brighton Middle School located in New Brighton, Pennsylvania. We are a grade six, seven, eight middle school with approximately 500 students. I am responsible for the computer lab and all instructional technology in our middle school. In addition to the lab, there is a minimum of two networked computers in each instructional area and 18 networked computers in the library. If it's an exceptionally good day, all computers might be working properly with no user errors! I am labeled the "learning technology teacher" and not the "computer teacher" because I instruct and work with students; I don't "teach computers." Personally I picture myself as a long, lean, rather British-sounding female version of C3PO, but in reality for those of you old enough to remember, I'm more like the rotund Robbie the Robot. In addition to being a member of the district technology team, I am a department head in my building. In fact I am the only member of my department! But then I am also a member of every instructional team and department in our middle school.
Dianna Italia's students.
've learned that it takes real guts and stamina to be a learning technology teacher in a middle school. Everyone assumes that I know in great detail the specifics of every piece of hardware and software known to man. Open house night is like the tech support line at computer central. Parents, who thought all you had to do to get a computer to work was to provide it with electricity, send me detailed notes. And middle school students, who thought no one could ever teach them anything, now find that on their home computer things that go haywire aren't always fixed by someone else and up and running by morning! Speaking of running, I do a lot of that too. Only the middle school mentality could evade classroom teachers long enough to rearrange keys on the keyboard, try to remove mouse balls, and insert foreign matter into disk drives. Tweezers are not only for getting out splinters! Imagine the teacher who one morning came to me saying her password to the teacher menu just wouldn't work. Since she was a "chicken plucker" at the keyboard instead of a touch typist, she didn't really know where the keys were supposed to be. So, when she saw only asterisks on the screen for her password, she didn't realize a student had removed and rearranged the keys to configure a new keyboard setup! Oh, the inventiveness of middle schoolers.
What we have to do
ow what does all this background of my daily trials and tribulations have to do with teaching with technology? In the realm of middle school, we, as teachers, have to harness and direct that middle school energy - and there's plenty of it! - and commit a focus and dedication to integrating technology into instruction. The teacher is, and will remain, the focus of the classroom, but today's teachers must be able to integrate creative uses of new technologies to enhance and complement the instructional process. We can energize our delivery of instruction and motivate students like we never could before by looking at technology not as an entity unto itself but as an overlay that adds dimension and enhancement to instruction and learning. To adequately prepare students for the 21st century and the world of work that awaits them, we must infuse the use of technology into the delivery of instruction and provide all students with the access and the opportunity to have multiple hands-on experiences with technology.
"Set parameters for students and let students know what you expect in the way of acceptable Internet use and behavior while they are online."
Cautions for educators
e are purveyors of education not "edutainment." What students choose to do at home on their personal computers while under the supervision of their parents is one thing, but what they do at school, in an educational setting, is, and should be, under your control at all times. Be in control of the educational setting, whether it be in your regular classroom using a single computer or in a computer lab setting. Set parameters for students and let students know what you expect in the way of acceptable Internet use and behavior while they are online. Software filtering programs are not of and by themselves able to "police" all traffic on the Internet. Teaching students to be responsible is the best way to avoid an intentional "visit" to an educationally unacceptable site on the Web.
Give technology integration a chance
s a learning technology teacher, I am an advocate of employing technology as an integral part of the school curriculum. Its use can instill a motivation to learn in the most unmotivated student. Integrating technology successfully into the existing curriculum is well within the capability of any teacher. Use the resources of the Internet and all aspects of educational technology to strengthen the curriculum and the instructional program. Expand the learning environment for your students. Trust me, your first success will breed the desire for more involvement with technology integration. What we as educators ask of our students - to be engaged and focused while learning - to keep at a task until they are successful - to experience the elation when the so-called light bulb finally "clicks on" - are all the characteristics that educators should exhibit as they "get a grip" on technology. Expand your own personal learning environment. The educational possibilities are limitless! Get excited. Go for it. That educational brass ring - the "hook" to a renewed enthusiasm for learning is well within the reach of every educator. As was said to Mikey in the classic Life Cereal commercial, "Try it! You'll like it!"
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