Friday, February 13, 2015

Pew Survey Results: Teachers' Technology Use


Technology plays a huge role in students’ education nowadays. The Internet, mobile phones, social media, e-books, and more are included in classroom curriculums. I have a sister in high school, and I know that most of her classes require her to use the Internet, use e-books instead of textbooks, and she’s required to post work on a classroom blog. I am not surprised that younger teachers feel more confident in their abilities to use the Internet and digital tools in their classroom curriculum. I feel confident in my abilities to use the Internet and digital technology, and am usually asked by an older teacher to help figure out how to use different technologies. I agree with the teachers saying that the Internet has had a major impact on our ability to access content, resources, and teaching materials as well as a great way to share ideas with other teachers; their responses were mostly accurate. I know of a few websites that teachers share lesson plans and classroom activities to use in classrooms. Teachers also have blogs where they share their thoughts and ideas and experiences with other teachers and parents. “75% of teachers said that the Internet has set a higher demand for teachers to be more knowledgeable in their content area.” I feel that whether or not the Internet is used in or out of the classroom, teachers should be as knowledgeable and constantly learn as much as possible about content and skills in their content area. The Internet should make it easier for teachers to learn new information to better educate their students.

4 comments:

  1. I agree with your ideas. Technology should just be another tool that educators can use to assist their students learning. If the internet demands more knowledge from the teachers, then that is fantastic. We as educators can never know too much when it comes to our content areas! :)

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  2. To add to Owen's last comment, "We as educators can never know too much when it comes to our content areas!" I totally agree with that as well. Although it is hard to know everything in our content area, having technology accessible to us means that what we do not know, we can research at any moment. The answers are at out finger tips.

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  3. I would definitely agree that as a younger generation of teachers, we will be much more comfortable using technology because it is such a larger part of our daily lives. Connecting with other educators and sharing ideas is also an immeasurable tool.

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  4. Stephanie, As you begin your career, begin to consider "how" to use the technology in your classroom to enhance student learning. While technology is amazing and cool, and sometimes just so easy to slip into a lesson, being thoughtful about its use is key. Technology should always be thought of as a means to an end. Perhaps this is where the experience of older teachers can be put to good use! Learn about their pedagogical strategies and try to consider how new digital technologies could replace "old" teaching methods!

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