Too often I’ve noticed reluctance and pushback by teachers from using technology whether student based or not in their classrooms because of fear of the unknown. I tend to call them dinosaurs if its a generational issue, or just plain stubborn if its a newer teacher. What I wish to do is give advice and help either of these kinds of people use some of the many many technological tools for education at their disposal by overcoming their hesitations.
First, computer applications were not made to make ordinary people look dumb, they are put together to make things either quicker or easier. This goes with education as well. For example what are the basic things all teachers are responsible for? Students learning curriculum, submitting grades, and obtaining professional development. There exists multitudes of technology and programs that make those things easier and less time consuming. You can use Pearson software and applications to teach remediate lower learners and challenge stronger learners, there is interactive programs with any many sites, these things allow students different and effective ways to learn, which improves proficiency and makes the teachers life easier, because traditional stand and deliver method is tiring and archaic. For grading, there exists programs that different districts use to make inputting grades and tracking students progress much simpler and less time consuming than a booklet and pencil. For professional development, not every teacher wants to sit through hours and hours of training, when they can use interactive programs to gain the material much quicker, basically just like a collegiate student does with online classes.
So, that’s it teachers, this isn’t just the future of education is the NOW. Get with it or you will fall behind fast.