21st Century Educator

After reading the most recent Promethean newsletter to teachers here in Australia (I read it in a moment of boredom or procrastination), I was amazed to see such outrageous claims that demonstrate nothing more than a second rate marketing team trying to spin a popular message to educators. The article claimed that using IWB’s would reduce teacher stress and give us more time to spend with our families!! At first I chuckled and dismissed it as another attempt to market to dumb teachers, but then after further consideration I was quite offended by such a suggestion. Someone claiming that technology would reduce my stress and make my job easier is insulting my intelligence and dedication as a professional.

Folk who read this blog know my personal and professional opinions on IWB’s and if you follow me on Twitter you may have noticed my new # tag – #IWBcircus…. Must we be inendated by insulting and pathetic attempts from technology companies. Anyone who tries to tell me that I should use technology to make my job “easier” is assuming that I am in this profession for myself. You certainly don’t enter teaching for the money and you most certainly do not decide that teaching is a menial task that should be “simplified” by some device. It completely disregards the years of study and constant up-skilling by professional teachers to make sure they are engaging their students and making a difference in their lives.

Besides the second rate marketing attempt at dumb teachers – I was amazed that this company has found people who are now declaring that technology like “Student response” systems are making a difference in student learning outcomes. Are we really trying to convince folk that turning the classroom into the set of “Who wants to be a millionare” will really engage and benefit students? I do not understand how well educated colleauges will fall for this rubbish!!

I have quoted much of the work done over at “Educational Insanity” – in particular the critique of a recent research project funded by Promethean. This morning I sent it to some of my staff who have been keen on IWB’s in their area of teaching as a way of starting a good conversation as to how we would use these devices if they were ever purchased. Much of the response I got back was along the lines of it just being another tool and how it must be good as “so many teachers” are using them and love them!! This also started a great conversation on if we could not have the same arguments for any peice of technology, and if we should just ditch the lot of it and go back to the “good ol’ days.” Surely there are credible critiques on all educational technology research?!?!?!

Thought I would post part of my email responses to these folk…

My argument is simple – just because someone likes teaching with it doesn’t mean it is educationally beneficial. Number 1 argument is putting the technology in the hands of the learner – not only the teacher. Their world is these skills…. An IWB is a replacement for chalk and talk – if someone uses it in another way that is engaging and demonstrating educational value for the $$ spent then that is great…. But I am yet to see it – I have visited the schools that promethium say are their schools of “excellence” (in fact I worked at one!!) and their excellence is judged on how many $$ the school spent with the company!! (I make this judgment purely on observations on how it changed teaching and learning outcomes).

A critique of the methodology is actually a critique and questioning of the educational levels and benefits. The research methodology is called into question – hence indicating that any claim of educational benefit must be questioned and further investigated.

As for the bring back the “good ol’ days,” No one can successfully argue that post chalk n talk fails to improve education levels or outcomes. The research is there and quite convincing – 1 to 1 laptop programs have stood the test of time and are making a change in student engagement…. Are they giving our kids a better shot at the standardised test system? No – probably not – in fact it could be argued we are disadvantaging them. If you want that type of education find a school that will teach you the test and you will get a good result at the end of school. You maybe completely illiterate in the commercial reality of a connected world but you would have got a good school exit mark!!

IF someone wants to send me research on 1 to 1 or a critique of the research I would love to see it!! IWB research fails when it tries to justify test results improving due to the implementation. Teachers will love IWB’s because it ticks the box for them that says they must use ICT’s – It Keeps the bosses happy, but at the end of the day they are still teaching chalk and talk!! No one jumped up and down and told us that changing all the chalk boards in the school to whiteboards back in the 80’s and 90’s was going to improve test results!! Maybe someone should have done some research? Because whiteboards were so much nicer and fancier than those smelly old chalk boards!!

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