One-to-one has been a big topic in
education for a few years now. When I
worked in a Title 1 school, I always longed for more technology in my
classroom. We had two classroom computers in the room and I got to be one of
the few teachers with five kindles for classroom use. This was huge! Now, I am
at a school that is one-to-one. So, it should be a dream right?!
I have found that at my current
school a common theme is lots of resources with little resources. Yes, we have
one-to-one technology but we have had no training on how to use that
effectively in the classroom.
On my own time, I have been looking
into the best ways to have a one-to-one classroom and best practices to use in
the room.
I definitely see the advantages of
being one-to-one. It allows for more differentiation in the classroom. I am
able to really customize each of my students’ learning. The technology allows
me to be more of a facilitator role in the classroom. I also love that I am
able to teach my students about online language and having online interactions.
Because this is going to be the venue in which students communicate more often,
I love that we can talk about the ethics behind speaking with respect to our
classmates.
While there are many advantages,
there are also evident disadvantages. Honestly, I think elementary students are
too young to have laptops of their own for school use. They are not mature
enough to understand the boundaries of using it only for school. It is very
difficult to monitor 24 student computers at one time. While I want to believe
that every single student uses their computer for their schoolwork 100% of
their school day, I am also realistic and know this is not reality.
My experience this year has lead me
to believe that technology can most definitely be a helping resource while
given the proper training and boundaries.
Do any of you work at a one-to-one
school? What are your thoughts?
Some helpful articles on one-to-one classrooms:
Hi Olivia,
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed reading your blog, because I also have been longing for a one-to-one classroom. Your feedback however provides a new perspective that I had not thought about. In my school every class has two laptops and the entire school has 4 laptop carts (8 laptops in each) as well as 3 computer labs. There have been many times that I have planned for technology lessons and either the laptop carts have been checked out or labs are booked. This can be very frustrating as our school is pushing for more technology use. One advantage is that we are a BYOD school (bring your device to school). Since I use technology often, my students have gotten use to bringing their devices in everyday. Furthermore, I will say our school has developed a differentiated professional development on technology which has been extremely helpful. I do believe that if you are trying to implement one-to-one classrooms there has to be a protocol for its use and proper training to allow teachers to see its advantages and enhancement to instruction. In my opinion, when student use online platforms, it is a great way to collect data and get feedback to them quicker.
Hello Olivia,
ReplyDeleteI am also concerned with younger students having so much time in front of a screen. I just read an article that speaks to the limited time that younger kids should have in front of a screen. Although they are do something that stimulates their brain, how much is too much. I am really curious as to what the research is saying in this area.
http://www.cnn.com/2016/10/21/health/screen-time-media-rules-children-aap/