Hello everyone and welcome to my technology blog!
Today I'll be discussing the many roles of the Technology Integration Specialist. Not every school district has a technology integration specialist (TIS) but every district should! A TIS is a very important person in the school district: they are responsible for helping all the administrators, teachers and students effectively use technology in the classroom setting. One of the hardest jobs of the TIS is that some schools do not have enough technology for every classroom for every student, some schools have teachers who are not trained in using technology in the classroom and some teachers are refusing to learn the new technology because the old methods still work (Okojie, Olinzock, Okojie-Boulder, 2015). All of these issues could be either solved or aided by having professional development about technology integration. Bringing publicity and attention to the school's lack of resources could be discussed during professional development time. If the school is able to show what all the classes could do if they had technology, they might find someone to aid in buying the technology. Professional development time is a perfect time to train teachers in the new technology they could be using in their classroom! Some teachers may know more than others and the teachers could help each other discover the possibilities technology brings. Having all the teachers in one place could promote discussion about technology that would show the more reluctant teachers what an amazing tool it could be. Having professional development time dedicated to technology integration will bring out the amazing tools some teachers are using every day. A technology integration specialist works with nearly everyone in a school district to make sure the experience with technology is meaningful.
Pedagogy and technology integration go hand in hand in the classroom. It is the role of the teacher to help the student become technologically savvy and safe in the technological world. It is also the role of the teacher to use the technology he/she comes across to enhance the students understanding and to give the students the tools they need to access more learning. "Effective integration of technology is achieved when students are able to select technology tools to help them obtain information in a timely manner, analyze and synthesize the information, and present it professionally. The technology should become an integral part of how the classroom functions -- as accessible as all other classroom tools" according to the National Educational Technology Standards for Students (Edutopia, 2007). The teacher plays a large role in making sure the students have effective tools to help the students do their best.
That's all for today but don't go too far away! More to come soon!
References
Edutopia. (2007). What is successful technology integration? Retrieved from http://www.edutopia.org/technology-integration-guide-description
Okojie, M.; Olinzock, A.; & Okojie-Boulder, T. (2015). The pedagogy of technology integration. Retrieved from http://scholar.lib.vt.edu/ejournals/JOTS/v32/v32n2/okojie.html
