"...I think the most trenchant barrier to grand adoption of emerging technologies is time. Teachers quite simply don't have enough time to do anything other than survive during the working academic year. And then the holidays are spent recovering from the relentless onslaught of planning, teaching and assessment cycles. When the governments of this world stop testing and measuring everything to destruction and start seeing learning as a means to an end rather than as an outcome, then we may see some changes."
Go, read his post and watch the video... how many students in your school are using these technologies? How many of your colleagues even know these things are possible? What about your Board of Trustees?
Steve Wheeler will be in Auckland, NZ in September 2010, does anyone in Auckland want to organise an opportunity for him to speak/meet with interested educators?
originally posted at What Now? What Next? So What?
3 comments:
We won't get our governments do understand what learning is until we as a community can verbalize it. What does it mean to learn? How can it be measured? What needs to be learned. Unfortunately, we can't agree as a community to the answers to these questions yet.
TeacherNZ, you continue to expand my knowledge and stimulate my imagination in so many different ways. Thanks. I have now made the New Generation Learning site a requirement for my students. I think they should just take At The Teacher's Desk instead of my course. It's all here.
In addition... I am intrigued by Mr. Chamberlain's comment above. I will have to think about his comment. There is more to the issue. But I will have to think a bit about what I want to say.
Thanks, all of you, for this wonderful blog!
Hi there
I enjoy reading the different perspectives in this blog, particularly as they are cross cultural. I have watched the video you link to and I feel quite confident, in answer to your question, that the students at my school are using technologies for their learning - and they film and produce their videos themselves. eg http://pesroom18.blogspot.com My colleagues all participate in learning and teaching this way. And our board of trustees not only are aware of it but on occasion make videos themselves as part of their meetings.
From my own experience I am not convinced that time is the biggest barrier. I believe that school leadership is of far more significance. If the principal (and board of governors) are leading a drive for eLearning then the rest falls into place. Time becomes much less of an issue, as does access to equipment etc. And as for testing and assessment, that certainly is a means to an end - improved student learning outcomes. But that too depends on leadership in the school.
Look forward to hearing more of your thinking
Dorothy
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