Although technology can positively enhance a classroom learning environment, there are several obstacles that I face when incorporating technology in my classroom. I hope that through continued collaboration and education, I can overcome these obstacles and effectively use technology to positively enhance student learning and engagement.
The first obstacle is struggling to find marketing specific technology resources. As much as I try to incorporate general technology into my classroom, it would be nice to have more specific technologies, simulations, etc. that relate to my content area. A solution to this is that I am currently in a Business Educators Facebook group that allows me to collaborate with other business educators so I can learn about marketing specific technology resources. I can also stay active on social media, participating in Twitter chats, Webinars, etc. or attend business specific conferences to learn more about available resources. A second obstacle that I face is something that I have mentioned in a few other blog posts. Although this generation of students is known to be "tech savvy," many lack basic computer technology and problem solving skills when it comes to using new technology. It is never safe to assume that all students know how to complete simple technology tasks. While this can be an annoyance and does take time to introduce new technologies, it is important to do so and will save a headache in the future. A solution to this is to show a demo and have step by step instructions for students to follow when using new technologies. In addition, more advanced technology students can help out their peers. It is also important for students to realize that it is perfectly okay to learn through trial and error. Many times I see students become frustrated and give up right away when they can't figure something out. I think this also has to do with laziness and shutting down when anything seems to be a challenge. By encouraging students to work through the challenges, they will gain technological skills that will help them later in life. A final obstacle that I face when incorporating technology in the classroom is a term known as cyberslacking. This refers to distraction while using technology, such as being on social media or playing games instead of using phones or computers for their intended educational use (Starkman, 2015). I commonly have students use our classroom laptops to work on assignments or I let them use their phones for quick technology uses. I feel that I am constantly running around trying to police students and make sure that they are on task. I have yet to find a good solution for this, but a classmate wrote about the idea of having students take ownership for their technology use and setting high expectations for what acceptable use does and does not look like. I plan to do this at the beginning of the next school year and remind this year's students of this. As great as technology can be in the classroom, there are always going to be obstacles. The best thing that we can do is use it as a tool to enhance learning and have high expectations for student use. I hope that I will continue to discover new and engaging ways to incorporate technology in my classroom and that students realize the benefits that it provides, while not taking advantage of the privilege they are given and how lucky they are to have such technologies readily available. References: Starkman, R. (2015). Cyberslacking in shanghi: what my students taught me. The Huffington Post. Retrieved from http://www.huffingtonpost.com/ruth-starkman/cyberslacking-in-shanghai_1_b_7820796.html
2 Comments
Erika Damasco
4/9/2017 08:58:15 pm
Well said, I think you laid out well your points. I agree with you when you explain that the obstacles are going to be there, if there weren't teaching would be so simple and that would be so rare! But I agree when you say that we have to use these obstacles as teaching points to help them learn specific topics. I use to think that showing them a resource could be a waste of time, I quickly learned that students appreciate learning new things to do with technology and learn super fast since they are engaged.
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Kelci Bleasdale
4/9/2017 09:39:17 pm
Hi Ally,
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AuthorReflection blog for Master's in Educational Technology course EdTech 541 at Boise State University. Archives
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