Once upon a time, my school decided to move its
communication system utilizing the Google platform. When the staff was informed
about the changes, mixed reactions took place. Some responded with excitement
and some with great concern.
The direction the school was going was to not only utilize
the e-mail system to communicate with each other, but also take advantage of
the collaboration tools available to create documents simultaneously.
A knowledgeable professional was invited to come for a
two-day training after school. Printed handouts were given out that included
print-screened images that showed sequential steps.
In the beginning of the training we could hear those
reluctant teachers complain that they could not find what they were looking for
and constantly expressed their frustration. Because of this, the presenter
decided to pair everyone up in such a way that those struggling individuals
could be next to a more knowledgeable one. As the training progressed less and
less complaints were expressed and we could see a change in people’s faces, as
they realized that it was not that difficult after all.
As a final task, the trainer created a document that was
shared with everyone present and gave us 10 minutes to develop it together.
Quickly we assigned each other with a different section of the document and in
no time everyone was typing from their own computer the same document.
The teachers that continue working at the school are still
using the same platform and now they are leading out and utilizing new
technologies in their everyday instruction.
As presented by Keller (2006), for this group of teachers fear
was a negative element that was hindering their attention of adapting to the
demands of the 21st century in regards to technology. Once the
stress levels were diminished, the teachers were able to follow directions and
focus their attention increasing their motivation to learn. As the training
progressed, the instruction demonstrated how many of the tools could be used in
the classroom, as well as the school in general.
As mentioned earlier, with reluctant attitudes the teachers
began interacting with the platform and realized that it was not as difficult
as they thought. After a while, their confidence level increased allowing them
to function independently from any external help offering the satisfaction for
their accomplishment.
References
Keller, J. (2006). ARCS Design Process. ARCS Model.
Retrieved from http://arcsmodel.com/Mot%20dsgn%20A%20prcss.htm
Blogs that I have responded:
http://pnesrsta.wordpress.com
http://kwagoner7105.blogspot.com
http://castanosblogs.blogspot.com
http://georgeoneal62.edublogs.org
Blogs that I have responded:
http://pnesrsta.wordpress.com
http://kwagoner7105.blogspot.com
http://castanosblogs.blogspot.com
http://georgeoneal62.edublogs.org
Hello Gus,
ReplyDeleteHow people manage their relationship to change and their ability to cope with their fears, really has an impact on the adoption and comfort level with technology. Making technology less 'scary' helps and creating an learning environment without fear is important.
~CeCelia
Gus,
ReplyDeleteThe response of your teachers seems typical. There are teachers who are comfortable with technology and use whatever they can get their hands on. Others are uncomfortable because of a lack of comfort or time. Your program sounds more successful than most. At my school, there always seem to be some teachers who are stubborn and refuse to participate in technology programs. After the training, what follow up support did the teachers receive, if any? This platform seems to be useful for email and group planning between teachers. You mentioned that the teachers are using these new technologies in their everyday instruction. How is group planning and email used in everyday instruction?
CeCelia,
ReplyDeleteThank you for your comment. You are absolutely right about our job of making technology less scary for people who are not really involved in it and are afraid of breaking or deleting something.
Best regards,
Gus
Patricia,
ReplyDeleteIn regards to your question about follow up support, we created teams among teachers where the more knowledgeable ones were divided among the less knowledgeable.
In terms of incorporating this communication tool into instruction, as teachers, we collaborated in creating lesson plans and “working documents” using Google Docs in which everyone was involved. In the classroom, we utilized Gaggle.net, an email system for classrooms, where students could interact only with the teachers and the students of the class. In it, the students were submitting most of their assignments online through a “Dropbox”, sharing documents with each other, chatting in teacher created “rooms” and creating blogs, all within a safe environment.
As you can see, this all started small and following with baby steps.
Thank you for your post!
Gus
Gus,
ReplyDeleteI think that with doing training with step by step directions with teacher participation and having a final project to show in the end, helps to motivate teachers to utilize new technologies that they might be scared to try. I like that their is support after the training also.
Lori