Are Teachers Taught How to Manage Classes?

The National Council on Teacher Quality (NCTQ) report, “Training Our Future Teachers: Classroom Management,” says that teacher education isn’t doing its job when it comes to classroom management. Instead of tackling how to run a smooth and efficient classroom and create a good learning environment, teachers go through programs that emphasize instruction. While learning how to instruct is necessary, if a teacher can’t handle a class, he or she will never make it to the instruction. Notably missing from most teacher education programs were “strategies that impose consistent consequences for misbehavior, foster student engagement, and—most markedly—use praise and other means to reinforce positive behavior.” Other important techniques teachers should include in the management toolbox include: establishing rules, expectations, and routines.

With the addition of technology tools and resources into the curriculum, it seems even more necessary to help teachers learn about proven techniques in order to avoid disruptive behaviors in the classroom.

BYOD—Bring Your Own Disaster

Tech&Learning, together with Intel, offers the white paper, “Don’t Let BYOD Stand for ‘Bring Your Own Disaster’.”  To initiate a BYOD program, schools need to implement plans that include teacher training, student guidance, and an infrastructure that can handle a variety of devices. Although, it may sound good and may seem the reasonable and cost-effective path to allow students to bring their own devices, you’ll need to consider how teachers will handle the program in their classrooms. Are they prepared for BYOD? What content will they use? Is your network ready for BYOD? Are your tech people ready for BYOD? Will your administrators take the lead? What rules will you need? What professional development will be offered? The white paper covers all these issues and more.

Pay Attention to Teacher Learning Styles

We ask teachers to adjust their teaching to the needs of students, but often we don’t follow the same advice when helping teachers. Paul Sanfrancesco, School CIO Advisor, asks, “Which PD Models Work?” He writes about educators going to PD sessions where speakers drone on and on. You’ve surely encountered some of these as well as techies leading training sessions who go so fast that hardly anyone understands anything. —Or, how about those sessions where they throw everyone together—tech experts, tech users, and not-so-tech-oriented teachers—to learn? Some already know what is being taught and find it a waste of time, some benefit from it, some aren’t ready for it, and some will be sure it will never fit into the content they teach and/or their teaching style.

Sanfrancesco asks you to contribute to the blog by adding your comments about professional development. We know that a one-size-fits-all model doesn’t work well for tech professional development. But what does?

Webinar on Demand: Changing Role of Teachers

Tech & Learning, together with Edgenuity, offers the Webinar on Demand, The Power of Technology and the Changing Role of the Teacher. You can enjoy the webinar at your convenience. It features ways technology empowers teachers such as how digital devices can be used for routine tasks and how they can be used to allow teachers time to “mentor, coach, and build student relationships.” Also, covered in the webinar is how to use data to create personalized learning experiences for all students.

Keeping Up with Technology

Barry Saide, Inservice Guest Blogger, ASCD, likens learning about technology to training for a 5K race. Teachers and administrators worry that they don’t know what they need to know and, as advances in technology move forward, their worries escalate. According to Saide, getting attuned to technology you use in the classroom is like preparing for a marathon. Taking on the challenge of learning what you need to know can be divided into small steps. Keep in mind that you don’t need to learn everything at once, that the digital world doesn’t always work, and that you can ask for help. Saide suggests that you give in to becoming a student, learn from your mistakes, and be creative about how you take on your learning.

Digital Classrooms for Teachers

John Wiley & Sons publishers, together with the American Graphics Institute, offer an e-learning system that, at this time, includes more than 3000 videos, learning tutorials, and over 50 digital books. It’s a comprehensive online learning resource that offers a blended learning experience. The Classroom helps teachers, parents, and students learn about apps, operating systems, Web design, and graphic design techniques. For individuals, the cost is $20 a month or $10 a month with a year’s subscription. Group rates are available.

Video Capture in the Classroom

Video capture is a great way for teachers to observe the effectiveness of their teaching. For example, while watching a video of themselves and their students in action, they’ll think of ways they can improve their techniques and interact more effectively with students.

Teachscape, a company that provides solutions for professional learning and teacher evaluation, offers a variety of software and hardware tools to enhance professional development. Coming soon to Teachscape will be the Teachscape Pano Camera System—the latest in video capture technology. This camera can record over 8 hours of instruction, view classrooms at any angle, and with its omnidirectional microphone, can “hear” student voices no matter where they are in a room.  It’s also easy to set up and move among classrooms.

Change Mindsets to Change Schools

J. Robinson in the Tech & Learning Advisor Blog tells us that installing technologies in our classrooms isn’t the way to bring about change, since many teachers will continue as they have always done and as their predecessors did before.  What we need to do is to “stop automating the twentieth century ways of teaching and learning” to move forward.  If the mindset of teachers doesn’t change, teaching won’t change. —But, Robinson doesn’t tell us how to accomplish a change in mindset.

Of course, some teachers have already changed, and they are helping others to follow. Isn’t that what Apple’s Classrooms of Tomorrow research said many years ago—be patient, because you can’t force change? Perhaps, for all classrooms to change, those tech savvy kids of today will need to jump into tomorrow’s classrooms.

Adam Bellows Says Create, Not Just Consume

Adam Bellow, who gave the closing keynote, “Change the World” at ISTE 2013, says that we need a “start up culture” in our schools.  This culture would embrace individualization, not standardization, in “environments that ‘respect failure, embrace curiosity, and grow dreams.’” To bring about these changes, Bellow suggested that we use tools like MineKeeper, Minecraft, and Raspberry Pi, and that we share with each other through social media and personal interaction. Bellow is an inspiring speaker; his ISTE speech is available online. If you listen to it, you’ll get some excellent ideas for starting the 2013-2014 school year.

Teachscape Win Professional Development Award

The 2013 Golden Lamp Award for Professional Development, presented by the Association of Educational Publishers went to The Teachscape Effectiveness Platform. The online product helps schools and districts by providing observation and evaluation tools. Teachscape was honored for the Platform’s “teacher friendliness, wealth of information and streamlined time-saving approach . . . .”