A Step in to the Future

Imagine an elementary classroom where students are discovering strategies to solve problems, managing their time and work, and developing internal motivation skills to enhance their education and become more successful. Is it possible? It seems like an awful lot to ask of students at this age, but when thinking about the tasks and future positions that these students will be fulfilling this type of learning environment is necessary to help them gain the types of tools that will boost their chances of flourishing at the next level.

So how successful are our kids going to be once they’ve graduated high school? Are we currently preparing them enough and giving them the correct tools to be able to compete in the real world? Our district has done a fine job of supplying a variety of different devices for our students to use in kindergarten through 12^th grade, but just supplying these devices isn’t enough. We can do much better as a district to create generations of leaders. As educators we need to use the tools around us to help prepare our students for their future. According to the SouthEast Education Network, “Education’s purpose is to empower students to find their own paths to their own dreams; to create life-long learners who are prepared for both the modern world and the future; and to empower individuals to make a positive impact in the world” (Excell, 2010). In order to empower students, the district needs to take a more complete look at the way we deliver technology to our students. To create more successful students we need to step up to the plate and hire an educational technologist that will assist in helping our students and teachers learn about multiple types of technology that will benefit the future of our students.

Currently students in our district in grades K-1 are receiving no technology instruction throughout the week. They have access to devices, but are only using them to complete simple tasks. Students in grades 2-4 are receiving technology instruction one or two times per week for 35 minutes each day. All the instruction these students are receiving pertains strictly to working on a PC. Also, there are only two classrooms who have incorporated technology like a learning management system into their everyday instruction. If we want to create knowledgeable, resourceful, and innovative students our district needs to consider hiring a full time technology teacher as well as an educational technologist who can work side-by-side with students and teachers to create a program where students are taking control of their learning and getting more hands on time to work with a variety of devices like iPads, Chromebooks, and PC’s. Having these types of resources on staff will help to form the educational building blocks that are necessary and will greatly benefit our district. By incorporating these devices and tools it will provide more opportunities to differentiate student learning and help students become more self-motivated with their education through the use of things like online learning. These necessary changes are the first critical steps in helping our students discover their future dreams.

I am encouraging our district to take a closer look at the bigger picture and the types of jobs that these students will be applying for. It is becoming apparent that our direction as a district needs to be geared toward creating more knowledgeable tech savvy individuals. Educating our teachers and helping them establish a classroom that is driven through the use of technology is going to be key to helping our students become more successful and internally motivated. If we are teaching students how to become more independent in their learning they are going to have an advantage over other students who rely on someone to guide them through tasks. We can accomplish this by hiring someone who can help teachers transform how their class operates and uses technology.   

Works Cited:

Excell, Tamra. "Preparing Students for the Future Creating Personalized Education Opportunities." SouthEast Education Network(2010). Web. 12 Apr. 2015. <http://www.seenmagazine.us/articles/article-detail/articleid/569/preparing-students-for-the-future.aspx>.

The Right Learning Management Systems

To begin with, there are multiple ways we can incorporate a new kind of teaching and learning that will help our students become more self-sufficient in their education. Finding and choosing a learning management system (LMS) that fits our district’s needs is crucial to establishing more student led learning. One of the key components that Katie Ash pointed out in her article on learning management systems is that whatever system is chosen, it should be done based on the content and curriculum that the school currently uses. As mentioned in Ash’s article, “you really need to be having a discussion about your overall program goals.” It is hard enough to manage current systems within the school let alone incorporate new ones. If our district were to hire an educational technologist it would give us the opportunity to research and test out different systems and save individual teachers valuable time that they can’t afford to lose.

There are a variety of different LMS to choose from including Schoology, Edmodo, Google Classroom, and Blackboard. What these management systems provide are opportunities for students to apply themselves in a safe online community where they can complete assignments, interact with other students and teachers, and gather feedback from their peers or instructors to make proper changes in their assignments.

After spending some time investigating and testing out these LMS I feel that the best one that would fit our district’s needs and goals would be Edmodo. One of the greatest features of Edmodo is that it creates an opportunity for there to be social presence. Social presence is crucial when it comes to establishing a learning management system because students still need to feel connected with their peers and instructors. According to an article written by Kia Bentley she states, “social presence has been both conceptually and empirically linked to the quality of the online learning, including levels of student participation, satisfaction, and student engagement.” An LMS that provides great social presence is important because students feel more encouraged and learn more when there is a direct connection with their instructor and their peers. When students have the opportunity to be more engaged with their peers and instructors the more enriched their education becomes. The way Edmodo is set up is very similar to the social networking site Facebook, so it provides many chances for students to be engaged in a safe and secure educational community. Students can get feedback on assignments from their peers and instructors in a timely manner and generate discussions which could produce new ideas. This type of social presence allows for students to get the feeling that their instructor and peers are real, known, and connected through mediated communication.

Another reason Edmodo is a great resource for our district is because it provides a variety of different features that instructors can choose from depending on how they want to organize their classroom. There are different options for teachers to use such as creating assignments, polls, quizzes, and establishing groups for group work. Teachers can also link videos to assignments or even microlectures that engage students in their learning. Edmodo also provides opportunity for students to receive feedback from their instructors as well as their peers. This helps to establish a sense of community within the online learning platform.

Finally, a general concern when it comes to students and the use of technology and the internet is safety. Edmodo is secure and safe for students to use because they are a part of a group that is run by the instructor and members can only join with an invite from that person. Take a look at Edmodo’s Privacy Policy to confirm that this platform is a secure environment for our students. 

Works Cited:

Bentley, Kia. "The Centrality of Social Presence in Online Teaching and Learning." . Web. 28 Apr. 2015. <http://wp.vcu.edu/online-learning-summit/files/2012/05/Bentley.pdf>.

Ash, K. (2013). How to Choose the right Learning Management System. Retrieved on March 18, 2015 from http://www.edweek.org/dd/articles/2013/06/12/03lms-evaluation.h06.html