Technology Management in Schools - Essay Example

Technology management in Schools Technology Management In Schools The field of education has been significantly impacted by technology which has also affected teaching, learning and research. Technology has the potential to not only innovate but also enhance and strengthen skills and also to motivate and distinctly engage students. This is because it enables students to link experiences in school with real life experience and to strengthen the process of teaching. However, schools are finding that they must work even harder to actively manage the needs of their students and teachers which means that they must put in place tools that ensure the safe management of technology. This paper examines technology in schools examining how schools manage this technology. In an increasing number of schools, the use of computing devices ranging from iPads to laptops and Chromebooks is becoming a critical part of teaching instruction. However, for many teachers who are incorporating digital tools the challenge is often how to clearly incorporate the technology characterized classroom (Shaw, 2009). They have to contend with the question of how to ensure that students who all of a suddenly find themselves with the internet at their hands focused on learning in the classroom and more importantly, teachers are considering how to effectively compete with students who are more technologically equipped than their teachers(Spires et al, 2008). Indeed active integration of technology within the classroom has brought with it a solution and a problem. A solution in the sense that it could facilitate learning and also to address a large number of education opportunities made more important by the fact that many schools often seek to provide positive education for all their students (Al-bataineh et al, 2008). In this regard the presence of technology within schools is a significant help in the process of learning that is centered on students (Liu & Szabo, 2009). On the other hand, it is a problem in the sense that the appearance of schools has significantly changed (Shaw, 2009). The environment of learning is no longer one that is characterized by the teacher stands in front of the classroom since the focus has changed to learning as opposed to teaching. Technology is now being used by teachers to provide students with a more meaningful way in which to learn (Al-bataineh et al, 2008). How Schools Manage their Technology In order to effectively deal with the move to the use of iPads and other mobile devices, many schools have made use of a mobile device management system. This enables the schools to constantly track both hardware as well as data and also remove the chance for the presence of applications that are either inappropriate or that could pose a security threat (Spires et al, 2008). Some schools such as the New Albany Consolidated School Corporation have set in place policies such as restricting the websites that can be used by students or ensuring that applications such as games are not downloaded (Shaw, 2009). Strategies such as the blocking of users who have managed to bypass school networks or those students who are seeking more freedom to browse on 3G and 4G networks have also been employed as a way to manage technology (Liu & Szabo, 2009). Central Unified School District located in Fresno, California has joined forces with communications company AT & T to monitor tablets on a daily basis not only within the school grounds but also outside. The school district has in place a number of security filters that help to control the amount of control that one can have to the school’s network and the content that users can have access to (Spires et al, 2008). Computers have for long been thought of as effective tools for education however they have been identified as major sources of distraction (Liu & Szabo, 2009). Software such as LanSchool have been used by schools to improve the learning that occurs either in the laboratory or one on one environment. Using this software, schools have been able to enable teachers to remove any type of distractions, to demonstrate skills and actively monitor as well as examine the progress of students (Spires et al, 2008). NetOp School on the other hand, provides teachers with the chance to significantly increase on the amount of time that their students spend on tasks by analyzing the activities that students are engaged in while on the computer (Liu & Szabo, 2009). In this way, teachers can be in a position to increase on engagement with their students. The large majority of classrooms often have between one and five computers which limit the amount of time that students can spend on their computers (Al-bataineh et al, 2008). In this regard, some schools have made use of whole class presentations as a way to bypass the limited presence of computers. Whole class presentations help to provide a number of dynamic tools that help to easily relay information to the class while at the same time motivate them to take learning as an interesting aspect. More importantly, the presentations bring the class together and encourage the students to focus on learning (Shaw, 2009). Whole class presentations enable the teachers to bookmark important sites in advance which mean that the lessons run without a problem. More importantly, teachers are in a position to ensure that there is no inappropriate material that is accidently presented to the students (Liu & Szabo, 2009). In order to ensure that content is available regardless of the presence of internet, whole class presentations enable teachers to save web sites to school hard drives which ensure that these pages are available (Al-bataineh et al, 2008). Many schools operate in a structured classroom where the teacher is in front of the students but this is a poor setup when students are making use of devices. When the screens face away from the students, it provides the chance for these students to be tempted and lose concentration on their tasks (Shaw, 2009). With this thought, schools have began encouraging their teachers to revise the entire physical set up of their classrooms. In this regard, teachers are being encouraged to create small groups or other creative spaces for learning which enables the teacher to keep a closer eye on the students (Al-bataineh et al, 2008). Dividing students into groups means that teachers are in a better position to create a learning environment that is centered on the student (Liu & Szabo, 2009). As opposed to simply lecturing at the front of the classroom, the teacher moves around the classroom while at the same time students get the chance to work together (Shaw, 2009). Cell phones and other mobile devices are increasingly becoming popular as a tool in today’s schools. However, they also provide the challenge for cheating in examinations. In order to manage these devices, teachers encourage students to ensure that the cell phone is used in front of the student and is face down except when they are being used (Al-bataineh et al, 2008). In this way students do not have the chance to give into the temptation to engage in text messaging and also ensures that the teacher is able to keep track of the actions of students and ensure that they remain concentrated (Spires et al, 2008). Gradebooks such as Engrade and Thinkwave help teachers to increase achievement by ensuring that educators to link the right student to the right learning resources (Shaw, 2009). Thinkwave on the other hand is an online gradebook and is also school management software that provides teachers with the tools to put up student grades online (Liu & Szabo, 2009). Some schools encourage teachers to post charts that provide students with tips on technology and placed near computers. This enables the teacher to set out at the beginning of the course the policies regarding the specific use of technology. This enables students to remain focused on their tasks and also enables teachers to prevent the occurrence of misuse of technological devices (Al-bataineh et al, 2008). In other schools, teachers are encouraged to carry out a survey of their students in an effort to learn the type of technological skills that they have. In having this knowledge, teachers can then be in a position to control the devices that students have access to (Spires et al, 2008). Some schools ensure that the sites that are to be accessed for learning are accessed before time not only to ensure that problems can be examined and dealt with but also to ensure that students are not exposed to any inappropriate content (Shaw, 2009). Some schools have also set out a number of guiding principles with regard to the use of emails including clearly explaining the time that it will take for the instructor to reply and outlining clear goals for any online discussion that might take place (Liu & Szabo, 2009). Conclusion The advancement of technology has touched on education turning classrooms which were traditionally teacher instructed more centered on the student. However, the use of technology in the classroom has also brought about a number of challenges that have made the management of technology far more important. Schools have integrated aspects such as guiding principles for the use of email to restructuring the set up of the classroom to analyzing the types of technological skills that students have to ensure that they do not access content that is not appropriate. References Al-bataineh, A., Anderson, S., Toledo, C. and Wellinski, S. (2008). A study of technology integration in the classroom. Int’l Journal of Instuctional Media, 35, 381-387. Liu, Y. and Szabo, Z. (2009). Teachers’ attitudes toward technology integration in schools: A fouryear study. Teachers and Teaching: Theory and Practice, 15, 5-23. Shaw, A. (2009). Education in the 21st Century. Journal of Social Education Victoria, 17, 11–17. Spires, H. A., Lee, J. K., Turner, K. A., & Johnson, J. (2008). Having our say: Middle school perspectives on school, technology, and academic engagement. Journal of Research on Technology in Education, 40, 497–515. Read More