Dr. Soloway (Laureate Education, Inc., 2009) presents the differing views on the definition of emerging technology. He states that “A technology can be called “emergent” if it is new to your community or practice.” and that, on the other hand, the opposing view is that technology has emerged once it has become know in any part of the world.” When I first began analyzing these definitions, my first impulse was to agree on the first but I am now convinced the second is more accurate. In our previous courses with the Walden Master’s program, I have had the input from my colleagues of new technology that I had not heard. I do not know when we will have the opportunity to work with these resources; however, this does not mean it is not emerging technology.
Dr. Soloway (Laureate Education, Inc., 2009) also mentions that “If you view something as an emerging technology, your approach to sharing it with other will be very different if you perceive it as a mature technology.” This has also been true for me throughout the Walden experience. I now feel comfortable sharing information related to implementing technology in the classroom. I am now confident in sharing ideas on how we can continue developing lesson plans integrating technological resources.
Christensen and Horn (2008) explain that “The way to implement an innovation so that it will transform an organization is to implement it disruptively—not by using it to compete against the existing paradigm and serve existing customers, but to let it compete against “non-consumption,” where the alternative is nothing at all.” The new applications in technology provide English language learners unique opportunities for practice of their speaking and listening skills.
Exposing students to authentic, natural English receptively and productively is a vital component for building understanding of the target language. For a foreign language to be learned, students require ample practice. Skype and podcasting can be considered disruptive technologies since they provide new and different ways for performing traditional tasks and provides opportunities for practice outside the academic setting. Skype has also launched a multilingual chat service called Moka. This language translation technology gives Skype users options to change in English, Spanish or Chinese. Students type in their native language and the user on the other end receives it in theirs.
In leadership roles, we will have opportunities to apply a combination of the leadership styles described by Fullen (2001). In my experience, I into mostly into the coaching style where people are trained and developed for the future. As of August, 2009 I was named project leader to implement the use of interactive whiteboards at our school, along with Touchstone software and online workbooks. I was given the assignment to explore our roles and responsibilities to assure that this project would work effectively in a real classroom setting. Through this project I am, as explained by Dr. Barth (2010) making happen what I believe in and I am also putting all of my effort forward to and hopefully be able to “… systematically and intentionally work for a positive influence on the culture and organization of the school”. I have coordinated the efforts of EFL teachers and students which involved 10 teachers and 200 students last semester and 15 teachers and 400 students this semester. The project was structured through teams responsible for advising on the training on the use of the hardware since many of our teachers did not have experience in using technology for the teaching of languages. We have also held workshops to demonstrate the use of the Mimio software, the Touchstone applications and our online workbook platform.
At my school we are just beginning in the implementation of technology in EFL classrooms. If we are to successfully continue on this path and incorporate new and emerging technologies, we must follow the recommendations enlisted by Barth (2010) to encourage shared decisionón making, model leadership, reward leadership, and allow teachers to take risks. Our language department has the support of school administrators, and we will continue integrating technology as a valuable part of learning ESL/EFL. Through our interdisciplinary efforts, we have demonstrated that current and emerging technology can not only assist in the acquisition of a foreign language but can also help students in the mastering of the curriculum content.
Throughout my course work at Walden University I have gained valuable information about how students learn and what instructional strategies are most effective. Jean Piaget, one of the earliest theorists, believed that “children construct mental maps as they encounter information” (Lever-Duffy & McDonald, 2008). This constructivist perspective views learning as a process that is unique to each individual who receives information. Brain research supports the power of learning using a combination of text and images (Lemke & Coughlin, 2009). Research also suggests that activating students’ prior knowledge is a highly effective teaching strategy. As I work with early elementary students, I have seen first-hand the advantages to using these proven instructional strategies with students. When presenting new information, it is very important for me to tap into my student’s prior knowledge on the subject in order to create unique connections within each student. When a connection is made, students will retain the information.
In order to reach our students, educators need to embrace technology and integrate new and emerging technologies into our classrooms. Although the internet has already emerged and is used widespread throughout the world, there are many classrooms in the United States that do not utilize this valuable resource. Knowing what we know about the brain and how students learn, it is so important that we provide students with images, simulations, videos, etc. provided on the internet. Schools need to provide teachers with the proper tools in order to achieve this researched based instructional strategy. In my opinion, all teachers should have a computer, projector, smart board/mimio, and a wireless smart board/mimio pad. When equipped with the proper tools, teachers can create a learning environment that has been proven to be effective for learning.
When technology becomes an integral part of the learning environment within the classroom and it is not difficult to envision collaborative environments to facilitate new strategies to improve students writing skills.
Miriam
Fullan, M. (2001). Leading in a Culture of Change. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2009). New and Emerging Technologies. Baltimore: Author.
Lemke, C. &Coughlin, E. (2009, September). The change agents. Educational Leadership, 67(1), 54-59.
Lever-Duffy, J. & McDonald, J. (2008). Theoretical Foundations (Laureate Education, Inc., Custom Ed.). Boston, MA: Pearson Education, Inc.
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