I wonder if the uptake of technology into a teacher’s daily routine might have anything to do with whether you are a glass half full or a glass half empty kind of person? Let me explain further.
Last week I planned to introduce my class to glogster. I had done the preparation. I had signed up for glogster/edu. I had registered my year group. I had informed the ICT department that I would need glogster for a lesson and asked them to check that it was unblocked for my year group. I had brainstormed with my class how building from our learning from term one we all (me included) needed to set our learning goals for term 2. I had organised the laptops so every student would be able to use a computer.
Picture this, my lesson began with me explaining via my SMARTboard what glogster was and discussing with them how we were going to create posters which reflected on our successes from last term and set an achievable goal and action plan for this term. The class were pumped! They were ready to pimp those pages!
And then… glogster would not work, somehow despite my request it was still blocked. And not only that, two laptops refused to work, the students could not log on, their passwords appeared invalid. The calls rang out throughout the room.
It was at this point, that I knew why for some teachers it is all still too hard. Why, I still hear tales in the staffroom about how it is too difficult, too much trouble. Why waiting for an ICT lesson with a specialist teacher is much easier than truly integrating it themselves.
So what did I do? Well I swiftly switched to plan B. I consider myself an experienced teacher, I know that things can go wrong and not easily fazed when my lessons need to be adapted. After all I am a learner too. Luckily I had a plan B ready to go. I knew that the glogster logon and passwords were quite complicated. I had envisaged some tech issues. So plan B? Instead of using glogster I told them to use the notebook software instead. Notebook is the SMARTboard software. My students are already quite familiar with it, having used it last term to create group presentations. Having done this, most students were fine and those that were stuck were able to ask their peers.
The two students having logon issues were dealt with by switching one to a general password and switching the other to another computer. I knew what to do because I have taken the time to learn how to deal with these kind of tech problems which seem to happen regularly.
So what can I learn from this? What can I pass onto others? Well. to start with, if using computers regularly make sure you are familiar with the little tech details, the logon kind of problems. Do not give up before you have even begun. If you don’t know how to fix these simple things, find someone who can teach you.
And, always have a plan B! My students know we are in this together, they know life does not always run smoothly. Programs do not always work but that flexible learners get by. We now have a wonderful SMARTboard file we are very proud of. Learning goals have been set. Life will go on and as for glogster? Well there’s always next time!
After all, I am a glass half full kind of person.
10 Comments
Sometimes when I’m demonstrating a piece of software, web 2.0 tool, etc… and it doesn’t work, a teacher will reply, “See, that’s why I don’t use ICT in my class…” And, as you can imagine, my heart sinks.
The best teachers are the ones who see that “the glass is half full” and I’ve seen these people create amazing lessons, even when they have had all kinds of technical difficulties. I remember reading a student blog post that was entirely devoted to “What happened when Wordle didn’t work” – it was a delightful and clever post.
It’s so valuable to blog about the times when things don’t go smoothly as well as the success stories. Although, I read your blog post and feel that this is really another success story – even without Glogster!
Lucy
Being truly organized always requires a Plan B, and maybe even a Plan C for those days that are out to get us. Sometimes, it’s so much easier to say “But the IT guy should…: or “The government should…” than actually get in and learn how to do it ourselves. But I know you’re right = if we CAN do it ourselves, it will pay huge dividends, and add to our own vital organizational skills.
Hi
Thanks for a really interesting read! It’s great to know we aren’t alone when situations like this arise – I blogged about the need to go to plan F in a series of lessons earlier this year (http://janwebb21.primaryblogger.co.uk/2010/01/06/third-day-are-we-now-on-plan-a-b-or-f/) and have also experienced the comments Lucy has from colleagues! Being a glass half full person definitely helps. I believe that to be able to successfully integrate tech into our teaching – and hence into our pupils’ learning – needs that open-ness to new ideas, problem solving skills and flexibility of approach. This is creative teaching at its most creative.
Snap! I blogged about a very similar scenario last month – http://woojm.edublogs.org/2010/03/04/shoot-that-storybird/
I feel for you, it’s horrible to have that happen in front of a class. Good recovery though!Personally, I love smart notebook as there are no issues with online access.
I’m a glass half full kind of person too. You learn quickly when tech lets you down (or the tech department lets you down) how to quickly move on to plan B. I think many teachers are stumped when plan A doesn’t work, they have put all their time and energy into that. I also think it is a great reminder that the tool that is used isn’t what is important, the learning that is accomplished is always the focus. If teachers have this mind set, they don’t mind which plan (tool) accomplishes the learning as long as it gets taken care of.
Sadly those who get put off by technology problems are not reading this great blog post either! By the way I prefer the glass completely full!
I live in hope! probably a waste of time i know.
Just catching up on posts…:)
Yes, it is a familiar scene you describe here! Sounds like you handled it in a cool, calm manner. Lucy’s comment is familiar too.. the one where teachers don’t want to use tech at all because these sorts of situations put them off. I often don’t have a plan B i’m afraid, but at least I don’t get phased and try to dream one up on the spot. Sometimes they turn out better than plan A!
Having a plan B and being able to adapt when things go wrong is as much a lesson for the students as anything else. It’s not always easy to try new things and won’t always work but there’s still much value in it. Thanks for sharing this.
Unfortunately it’s a lament you will hear in just about every staff room. It happened to me recently in a teachers’ training session, which turned out to be a godsend as it made others realise that tech problems happen to everyone at some time, but it isn’t the end of the world (or even the end of the lesson!).