Technology Integration

For some reason, all of the teachers in my building say they "hate technology". It cracks me up because they all either have a Blackberry linked to their emails, an Android phone, or the iPhone. They all have Face Book accounts, which I know because I am their "friend". Some like to Twitter while others prefer to text or IM. All of the teachers "talk" to each other on email during the day for relevant or irrelevant questions about our teaching day. I walk around the school and see so called "haters of technology" using their tablets, projectors, and a few lucky girls are using the ELMO. Hmmmm, "hate" technology? I think not.

• One way that I have been able to inspire others in my building is with blogs. I have turned on my team to the amazing world of faithful bloggers who share lessons, pictures of their projects, and even give links for free printables. It's pretty neat because I have talked my colleagues into using Google Docs. so that they won't loose their information. We also use Google Docs for the presentation feature to show clips from You Tube without all of the comments, which are often inappropriate for students or a distraction.
• I am serving as a teacher leader simply by using the technology, showing my peers how to use different programs or websites, and talking about how much I love it and how much my students love it. In my actions and conversations are where I have influence.
• I chose to learn about Excel and I shared my results with my principal. She loved that I showed the students the real-world application of graphs. She actually spoke about it at a staff meeting and the 5th grade teacher spoke up how he loves to use Excel to show his class their results-anonymously to create a little competition. I happen to know that one of the third grade teachers tried it and found it easy after I gave him the websites that I used for the tutorials. As a newer teacher, it feels good to contribute to a seasoned staff of teachers and to be noticed by the principal.

So, all in all, the teachers are not haters-they just say they are because that is the common response. I believe that they would have a very rude awakening if they were told to not use technology at all for an entire day. Then we would see how much they "hate it".