Daily Archive

Today’s Question:  What am I aware of?

I am aware that there are a lot of educators out there that are ready, willing, and certainly able to integrate technology into their classrooms.  However, they haven’t had the necessary professional development to even get started and are overwhelmed by terminology, website links, etc.  Add to that a big ol’ lack of time and it’s the perfect storm for confusion.

I am aware that a good SIMPLE source of information is needed.  Nothing flashy or complicated as it needs to work for those educators just jumping onto the web 2.0 bandwagon.  I think wikis are too complicated for this audience to jump right into.  Even blogs can be intimidating.  What is needed is a very simple method to bring data to these educators that WANT to get started but are truly on their own in doing so.  Maybe a “step up” type of site that brings them further into the complexity of the tools and ideas as they move along.

I am aware that this would take some thought, but can be done.  I would love to try this on a small scale at my own school and perhaps broaden it to involve other schools in the area etc.  Educators in this category just need a jump-start and they will be up and running in no time!

Initial thoughts (I’m sure there are more and would LOVE to hear what YOU think!):

• A good source of definitions for web terms and jargon (not just hardware/software, but the web 2.0 stuff too)
• A good source for PD links – webinars etc.  Free is better if possible
• Simple graphics explaining complex processes (how it works type of stuff for email, blogs, wikis)
• Somewhere for teachers to post success stories on how they integrated tech into their classroom
• A good resource for how-to documents and step-by-step directions on using tools
• what would you put next?