As an ELA teacher, a few of
the challenges I face in integrating technology in the teaching of ELA/Literacy
is that availability of technical assistance, and the time to incorporate
technology into teaching. Working in private school our capital and human
resources can be limited at times. As a school, we don’t have a technician
available on site throughout the year to help solve technical issues. This
often takes away from using technology in the classroom. Another issue is the
time it takes to incorporate technology into the lesson. Often times my
preparation periods are used for other school events. That doesn’t leave much
time for me to gather my materials and set up everything for class instruction.
It’s also time consuming to look for the appropriate materials I want to use in
my lessons. These are the two biggest challenges I face among others.
These were the same challenges that my ELA teacher discussed. It takes some time to create new lessons that integrate technology...but she feels that it is far more beneficial to take the time to create new lessons that integrate technology than not to. Students become more interested and engaged throughout the lesson.
ReplyDeleteHi Fatima! I definitely agree with you in these two areas. It's very difficult to use technology if your tech guy is not always available! I remember from courses that I took, where technology was used, sometimes the technology failed. It was extremely annoying if there was no tech support available!
ReplyDeleteIt can also be extremely time-consuming. The truth is that preparing for teaching in general is very time-consuming! I think that after you do it for a year, you can reuse many of the tools and lesson plans that you used before. The first year is always the hardest! Once you get used to integrating technology, and you know what's out there, the preparation time is less.
That is why the call to address the new literacies (new forms of literacy made possible by the new technologies) in the teacher preparation.
ReplyDeleteTo become fully literate in today's world, students must become proficient in the new literacies of 21st-century technologies. The International Reading Association believes that literacy educators and ELA teachers have a responsibility to integrate information and communication technologies (ICTs) into the curriculum, to prepare students for the futures they deserve. Teachers need to be prepared to use ICTs skillfully for teaching and learning. The CCSS in ELA also stresses the role of technology in literacy learning.
They use technology and digital media strategically and capably.
"Students employ technology thoughtfully to enhance their reading, writing, speaking, listening, and language use. They tailor their searches online to acquire useful information efficiently, and they integrate what they learn using technology with what they learn offline. They are familiar with the strengths and limitations of various technological tools and mediums and can select and use those best suited to their communication goals.