Teacher Backgrounds
JB has been teaching mathematics from grades 6-9 for more than 25 years. TT has been teaching math and science for less than one year, but he was an engineer previously.
| Response | Analysis |
| Describe your comfort level with technologies in general. | |
| TT described his comfort level as high, "I am never too scared to even just go and look at something and see if I can put it to good use. " While he felt that all teachers faced the same initial difficulties with the inclusion of technology into the learning process he was significantly more comfortable solving problems and making adjustments. "Oh this didn’t work, but I’ll be able to figure it out at some point…it’s classic engineering [to] troubleshoot your problem." JB however, felt significantly less comfortable with technology. "I am not competent with it….I’d suggest that I’m like some of my students. I do have a bit of a defeatist attitude and therefore I am only comfortable when someone sits with me and actually takes me through it." She acknowledged that she had grown, but slowly. When asked about her willingness to learn new media the response was emphatically "Absolutely…this is where it’s going. I’d never disagree." | A relation exists between background experiences and exposure to technology and the comfort level of teachers with using and incorporating technology. However, most teachers are generally open to learning and incorporating media. How do we get all teachers to the point where they are comfortable trying a technology without worrying about it failing? Besides age and experience, are other factors impeding teachers from embracing technology and how can they be overcome? |
| How would you envision having support and development occur within our school? | |
| TT favored working with someone who had previous experience with the technology in a guide role, "that person would come in and watch or [I] could go and watch them." He also felt that encouragement to build and try from both teachers and the administration was important, but with flexible expectations. "Too many expectations restrict and if it’s not working why keep doing [something] especially if it’s not working for the students." JB echoed TT‘s idea of having Pro-Ds and mentoring, but wanted direct and explicit instruction. "I’d envision actually sitting down and helping them work through the process so they are competent with it. Not just, here’s the program and assume [we’ll learn it]." She believes it would work well to have the stronger teachers paired with weaker teachers. | Support and encouragement from management is key to building teacher capacity with technology. The guidance should foster teacher autonomy and be set-up to minimize an increased burden. Experienced staff can be utilized for mentoring, but they require training, guidelines, and appropriate pairings. How are appropriate pairings developed so that both members feel like development is occurring? What would a support framework, which promoted exploration, use, and development while minimizing increased workload and adverse constraints, look like? |
| Your first response to a students request to submit an assignment in podcast form would be? | |
| TT‘s and JB‘s responses were predictably different. "Sure" versus "what’s a podcast?" After a brief explanation JB‘s stipulation matched TT‘s that it had to be an appropriate form of submission in terms of content and demonstration of knowledge. However, TT viewed media as a complete tool, where as JB viewed it as a remediation tool. "As a supplementary [format] I’d say go for it, show me what it looks like. However, I’d require written work." | The use of technology and its perception of effective use vary depending upon the experiences and proficiencies of the teachers. It may also be limited by the particular goals of an assignment, whether it be to learn the media itself or a specific concept, and should include a plan for failure. How much time should be allotted to learning a technology in relation to learning a concept? What is an appropriate use of technology and is it subject specific or school specific? Would having mentors help teachers broaden their view of how media can be used and with the revision of a "failed" technology so that they don’t automatically discard the media? |
| What advantages and disadvantages do you see with the inclusion of technology in lessons? How do you decide whether or not to include technology in the learning process? | |
| Advantages included multiple options for communication, more engagement, and opportunities for differentiated instruction. Being proficient TT felt that technology offered advantages to the teacher in terms of organization and revision of resources, "I don’t have to go find that old piece of paper, it’s on file and [I] can give it to a student at anytime." JB " I don’t see its inclusion as a drawback because it’s a fact of life and it’s also a fact of life that kids today are comfortable on the machines, but it can only be a part of the instruction." | A technologically proficient teacher can see more advantages for both the educator and the learner. An effective use of technology can be used for differentiated curricula and provide extra support for students with learning difficulties and therefore "level the playing field." |
| Have you had to make significant changes to your assessment practices with the inclusion of technology in the learning process? | |
| TT "One of the things would be rubric writing and trying to make [them] a little broader…they end up being more general, which responds to the different media formats." JB "No because it’s still written work, [which] tells me exactly where they are at. I still record in my daybook and I still mark with a pen." | The use of media may lead to more holistic and formative assessment opportunities of the learning, but only if the teacher sees the value of assessment through technology. Can media be used effectively in mathematics to demonstrate a student’s mastery of the concepts? What are we looking for in assessments and how do we tailor our assessment tools accordingly? |