“Classrooms of the Future”…hope instilled!
“As in past ages distinguished by a major economic shift, today’s educational system bears the responsibility of preparing a new generation for a changing workforce. Where the move was once from agricultural to industrial, and then from industrial to technological, the great transition now is from local technology to global information.”
We all know that technology was created to better our society. It is supposed to enhance our learning, our skills…make life easier somehow. It has entered our school systems with the intent to make us all that much brighter, and to connect us with the world around us. What I have discovered from reading different articles and blogs, however, is that technology does not always do that.
I read classmate David’s post about “Death by Powerpoint” and realized how true he was…in a lot of classrooms, the technology isn’t enhancing anything — Powerpoint has just become another version of taking notes off of a chalkboard in many classrooms. I have sat through many a lecture where me and my fellow classmates laid our heads down and took a nap because all that happened for an hour and a half was the droning of a teacher in front of yet another boring Powerpoint. I began, then, to scour my Google Reader in an attempt to find some kind of hope for technology…an example of where it is going (or is trying to go) the way it was intended. What I kept coming across were articles that were referring to a program called Classrooms of the Future.
What I discovered was that a program called Classrooms of the Future has been created by the Governor of Pennsylvania, a man named Edward G. Rendell, that is bringing $200 million to Pennsylvania high schools in order to get technology and proper education to the students. High schools across the state will now have:
“…a laptop on every high school core-subject classroom desk, as well as create hightech teacher stations in all public high schools and career and technical centers in Pennsylvania. In addition to the 1-to-1 rollout, each high school will receive a teacher laptop; a printer; a scanner; imaging software; a webcam; an electronic whiteboard; a projector; digital, still, and video cameras; productivity software; infrastructure; and tech support.”
So for every English, math, science, history, and social studies student their will be a laptop computer as well as accompanying classroom technology such as webcams and video cameras — plus, the teacher gets one too. Not a bad deal. I thought that all of this sounded pretty good and that Michigan (and every other state, btw) should jump on board as well. But, to great wonder, Gov. Rendell was not yet finished. Classrooms of the Future also provides all teachers with “guidance instructors” to teach them the best way to incorporate this technology into their classroom…so they don’t just have it, but they know how to use it too!
“What’s key is establishing an environment in schools that supports student-centered, inquiry-based, data-informed, personalized teaching and learning. To accelerate that transformation, we are providing stipends to Keystone teachers to mentor their peers and act as Classrooms for the Future coaches. They will guide teachers and administrators in technical needs assessments and strategic recommendations, identifying appropriate instructional and administrative technologies and delivering hands-on professional development. A robust program of online and on-site professional development will prepare high school teachers and administrators to integrate these and other technologies into their instructional practices. By building partnerships with higher education institutions and local community and business groups, collaborating with regional education service agencies, and using students as mentors and assistants, the whole enterprise will benefit.
So after my bout of fear that technology is going to lose the battle in creating smarter and more savvy students, this initiative boosted my spirits and hopes once more. I wonder if this program and all its goals can and will be met. I realize that this awe-inspiring article about creating new hope for our future students was in fact written by Michael Golden, who is Gov. Rendell’s deputy secretary of the Office of Information and Educational Technology for the Pennsylvania Department of Education. In other words, it’s meant to have an ultra-positive sound and spin, but my hopes are instilled nonetheless. As the program progresses, I would like to see what comes of Pennsylvania classrooms and whether or not this initiative was as effective as Gov. Rendell intended it to be. If it is, then my next hope would be that the rest of our nation follows suit so that all students will have this opportunity to move away from endlessly long and boring Powerpoints…and that teachers (myself included) will not stray towards them because we do not know what else to do or do not care to try.
“Pennsylvania: Creating Classrooms of the Future” by Michael Golden Full Article
