It's Not About the Tool...

It's Not About the Tool...

Happy Fall! I hope your school year is off to a great start. For me, it seemed like the 'first week' of school lasted all of September (thus, why my first post is in October). There is a lot to be excited about at the beginning of the year, and I have seen teachers doing great things with technology already. I encourage everyone to take a chance and try something new this year (tech-related or not). There are so many resources out there, dive in and take a risk. If you try something and it doesn't go well, it might be reaffirming that what you are doing is effective! 

In the past, I have shared many technology tools with you that can help you achieve things in your classroom that would be near impossible to do without those tools. However, I am writing this post to tell you that those tools are not what is important. What is important, is the OUTCOME. That is, teachers should plan with the end in mind, and find the tool that gets them there after the fact. 

This sounds like a no-brainer because we do it all the time in our lives. When our sink breaks, we don't call a plumber and ask for him to bring a wrench. We ask him to fix our sink. He decides on the tool to achieve the outcome. If a plumber decided that he was only going to bring a wrench with him today, but the best tool to achieve the outcome is a plunger, he might leave that outcome and go find one he can fix with a wrench. 

This is too often how we plan for tech integration. We start with the tool in mind, but not the outcome. When we start with the tool (Powerschool Learning, iPads, Chromebooks, etc.), we don't give enough consideration to the WHY (increase engagement, increase communication, efficient collaboration, etc.). 

Many of us are setting goals (PPG's, SLO's) at the beginning of the year. Please make sure to reflect on what the outcome of those goals should look like. If you are reading a book, the book study is not an outcome. Why are you reading the book? To increase knowledge in ________? That could be your outcome. These are some outcomes of successful technology integration:

- Increase student engagement and motivation

- Gather and display data

- Collect formative feedback (Opportunities to Respond)

- Enhance classroom communication

- Provide individualized learning experiences

- Provide access to broader or deeper curricula

- Do things more efficiently

- Provide authentic experiences

- Allow for student creation/self-expression/creativity

I think this conversation leads to a review of the SAMR model of meaningful technology integration, because technology can be the medium to accomplish things we know are important (having students create, evaluate, analyze, etc.). I wrote more in-depth about SAMR in this post, but here is a useful graphic that bridges the SAMR model and Bloom's Taxonomy:

Looking back, I got pretty deep for the first post of the year, but I feel it is important to encourage growth in addition to providing support with tools. I will be referring back to this throughout the year, but I also want you to know I am available to help you integrate MEANINGFUL technology into your classroom. Just give me a call or book a time for us to talk about what outcomes you want to see in your classroom, and I will help get you there. 

As always, thanks for reading and I look forward to working with you all this school year!