Welcome
This website is designed to guide educators to determine how and when to effectively use technology in the classroom to enhance student learning. When technology is implemented in the classroom following guidlines in equitable and ethical use, and social responsibility, students can experience learning at a whole new level. Technology enhances lessons and brings new elements and possibiities into the learning process that is otherwise not available.
Tech for Learning
Tech Samples
Assistive Tech
Our Philosophy
Using technology requires responsibility and ethical use. It is meant to enhance and enrich the learning objectives. There are three aspects to carefully consider when using technology in the classroom.
Equitable Use: Equity in schools should be a focus of school administrations, and this includes the equal access to learning materials to all students, including technology. When using technology, students can access information more readily both inside and outside the school. That breaks down barriers to learning and allows all students to achieve. Technology also allows for adaptation ind differentiation to occur more easily, and students have the ability to work at their own level and pace. Connecting students to these resources allows schools to better support their students with their learning.
Ethical Use: There are many benefit to using technology, and yet with the increased access to information, ethics become a topic that needs to be address. Teachers need to make sure to use and educate students on using reliable and ligitimate sources. Privacy must be protected, and student safety must be a priority. Schools must have internet safety policies in place that protects student security, allows access to appropriate content only, and ensures the online experience is content appropriate and safe. Teachers need to make sure that students are utilizing honest and ethical academic practices when researching and using applications online. Teachers need to educate students on respecting intellectual property and plagerism (copying another's work without proper citation).
Social Responsibility: Online behavior goes beyond chats and social media. Students must adhere to responsible dialog and engage in proper social behavior. With the ever growing accessibility of digital connectedness, educators (parents and teachers alike), need to teach students about digital law and etiquette. Just as there are behavioral responsibilities when interacting with individuals in person, the same principles apply when online. The standards apply aqually in the "real world" and the "digital world." Students must understand that property applies to digital items, not just tangible ones, and must not engage in pirating, hacking, copying ideas or art, or other illegal activities online. Additionally, behavior online must follow etiquette principles and a code of conduct when on social platforms so they do not partake in cyberbullying. The ability to reach people from all over the world, the expectations of social responsibility extends to the world community, refered to as Digital Citizenship.
Digital Citizenship is how to use technology to make your community better (ISTE, 2018). Students need to be able to respectfully engage in conversations with others who have different beliefs and customs, and to be able to recognize the validity of sources of information online. “Our ability to recognize truth from fiction is essential to our survival as a society” (Richard Cullatta, ISTE, 2018). In classrooms where digital citizenship is valued and practiced, students conduct themselves online eithically and resposibly in the ever expanding realm of the world wide web.
References
Children's Internet Protection Act (CIPA). (2017). Retrieved from https://www.fcc.gov/consumers/guides/childrens-internet-protection-act
ISTE. (2018, October 11). Rethinking digital citizenship [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iwKTYHBG5kk
Ribble, M. (2015, 10-21). Digital citizenship in schools: Nine elements all students should know. International Society for Technology in Education. Retrieved from https://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/westerngovernors-ebooks/reader.action?docID=4395774&ppg=34