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Technological Literacy

No buts; get techy

Two recent tweets on Twitter prompted me to write this post.

The first tweet was from Tom Whitby (@TomWhitby), an ever-campaigning and always-sensible advocate of educational reform who wisely tells us we ignore technology at our peril:

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A powerful question and one that should rightly make a lot of educators a tad uncomfortable. We all need to understand that embracing technology is an important part of being a teacher. It’s easy.

Two questions sprang to mind upon reading Tom’s words:

  1. How literate / illiterate am I?
  2. How literate do we need to be?

How literate / illiterate am I?

I think I do OK. I blog, I have websites and I do techy stuff in the classroom. I make mp3 files and get my students to use Web 2.0 tools. For some reason, my colleagues think I’m techy. For a very understandable reason, I worry I’m nowhere near techy enough. I would imagine this is a feeling common to most educators, regardless of how techy they are or appear to be. I like looking at new online tools but I always feel daunted by how much stuff is out there. And it keeps on coming.

I still have that procrastinatory-because-this-will-be-time-consuming-and-frustrating feeling each time I try a new techy online tool. Not sure why because all of the techy stuff I like is incredibly intuitive to use. Software developers seem to be spoiling us in producing instruction-less tools that we can be pretty much competent with after the first time of using.

How literate do we need to be?

Before attempting to answer this question, a reminder. Most of us are already quite technologically literate. We are all dab hands at word processing tools, spreadsheets, e-mail applications, uploading and downloading stuff on YouTube, Flickr, Pirate Bay (for the naughty ones)… We have all embraced social networks. We can all make something and put it online.

Now to answer the question – As a minimum for ESL/EFL teachers, I think we need to be tech-literate enough to be able to use a few tools for each of the four skills. That’s not much to start with. Perhaps…

  • Audacity for making mp3 files and editing audio for listening and speaking
  • VoiceThead for speaking
  • Digital storytelling tools for writing  (my favourite is Carnegie Library’s MyStoryteller.)
  • Quizlet and Wallwisher for simple reading.

Ten “buts” that need to disappear

These have all entered my head over the past 16 years, since the time I didn’t know where the on button was on my school’s first Mac. They get in the way of my technological literacy, but shouldn’t. I’ve added just one piece of advice to each.

1.  But I don’t know where to start!
Here are two excellent lists of cool tools posted on Twitter this week. “Tools for the 21st Century Teacher” from Michael Zimmer (@MZimmer557 on Twitter) and “A New Educational Paradigm” from David Deubelbeiss (@ddeubel on Twitter).

2.  But my students won’t be able to understand.
The second tweet I liked from Twitter this week, from DB (@Nunavut_Teacher on Twitter) answers this:
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3.  But I can’t possibly keep up
Join Twitter. The greatest source of helpful and up-to-date professional development ever. You get cutting edge tools and developments  and wonderfully helpful people who will help you with them.

4.  But I’m not techy enough
If you can use e-mail, save a Word document and open a Facebook account, you can handle most Web 2.0 tools.

5.  But I don’t have time
Start with one tool – give yourself a month to be comfortable with it. That’s 12 tools in a year. Probably more than I know now.

6.  But I can’t use this in class
Check out the blogs – there are dozens of posts for each Web 2.0 tool giving excellent classroom ideas.

7.  But I teach English
And luckily, most of these tools cope with this language. And what’s more, require students to use it.

8.  But I can’t handle change
You handled e-mail, Word and Facebook.

9.  But I’m too busy
These tools will save you time. Make time to learn a few.

10.  But I’m too old
Mwahahahaha.

Get techy. No buts.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, June 1st, 2010 at 1:26 pm and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

17 Responses to “Technological Literacy”

  1. Tweets that mention Technological Literacy « Sean Banville's Blog -- Topsy.com says:
    June 1, 2010 at 1:55 pm

    [...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Shelly S Terrell, Kenny Christian, Cornélia Castro, Edna Sackson, Black Cat Publishing and others. Black Cat Publishing said: RT @ShellTerrell: Technological Literacy bit.ly/a7gtbz via @seanbanville [...]

  2. spacer David says:
    June 1, 2010 at 6:48 pm

    Sean,

    Great post and thanks for the mention. Got to make this quick but wanted to reply (I’m between sets of Federer and Soderling!).

    I just got through the last class of my Curriculum Dev. course. Amazing students and the last class was exactly this — the Future of Curriculum. We watched Siemen’s video on youtube and asked ourselves KWL questions (what I know, want to know , learned). But always, there was a kind of “I don’t know where to begin or I don’t have the time or I don’t know what to do” kind of look to all the “smart” students. They get it but they have been institutionalized (as Siemens would put it) into being a teacher and doing like so many did before them.

    Teachers will continue to become technically literate so long as they are caring and passionate about “students”. But unless the institutions start demanding it (and not treating it as a cosmetic add on) naught will change. It was the same years ago. I can count on my left hand the teachers throughout middle/high school who really taught “constructively”. The rest just went through the motions. We need administrators, the people with the hands on the oars so to speak, to be “instituting” this change. Until then, expect hit and miss….

    But yes, let’s keep preaching – especially as you are to “muck about” and try , try , try. Each year I get teachers to make “karaoke files’ . Always to start it is “too hard!”, “too complex” but when they succeed it is like a flame. that keeps me energized.

  3. spacer Sean says:
    June 1, 2010 at 7:21 pm

    Thanks David for your comment. My guess is all teachers in training today will be technologically literate – they have grown up with tech. A love looking at new tools but it still takes me time to get going. There is an element of inertia because of the thought of starting from the beginning, again. But then 20 minutes later, I wonder why I hadn’t got going with the tool much earlier.

    You are right about the need for admins to get involved. Unfortunately, many need to become technologically literate and be in the classroom to really understand the importance of technological literacy.

  4. spacer David Truss says:
    June 1, 2010 at 7:47 pm

    Great post Sean!
    David (above) pointed the way here after I linked to this edutopia article: www.edutopia.org/stw-differentiated-instruction-teacher-development-technology
    My favourite part:
    “Tell, Don’t Ask
    Forest Lake principal Kappy Cannon didn’t leave it up to teachers to decide whether they would join the digital revolution. As long as you provide adequate support, she reasons, you can demand that it be done.”

    I feel I’m very much like you, give me a new tool and I’ve got to spend an hour and a half to get 20 min. of work done. But when people ask, “Where do you find the time?” I simply respond that I don’t watch TV.

    Here is a recent post (Part 3 in a series that I did) that you may enjoy:
    Shifting Attitudes: pairadimes.davidtruss.com/shifting-attitudes/
    Your “buts” fit nicely into the ‘Fear and excuses’ categories that I mention… and yes, they need to disappear!
    ~Dave.

  5. spacer Mike says:
    June 1, 2010 at 9:22 pm

    Thank for the mention and sharing of my guidebook. Appreciate it. I really like these “Buts” They are some that I have heard in my new job, and some that I am battling with. You bring up some great points that many teachers should ask themselves. Thanks!

  6. spacer Marisa Pavan says:
    June 1, 2010 at 9:25 pm

    Sean,

    Great post! I’ve felt identified with many of your thoughts, especially as to being techy enough. My colleagues at the School of English where I work consider I’m a techy star but I feel I’ve got a lot to learn.
    Just this morning I had an exchange of opinions in Twitter with @ToughLoveforx, who was not sure as to the benefits of using technology in the classroom.
    For me the benefits are:
    - The use of tech in education is encouraging and creative.
    - It gives students the opportunity to rehearse the use of tools they’ll need in their future jobs and careers.
    - The novelty attracts students, specially teenagers, who are hard to motivate.
    Regards,
    Marisa

  7. spacer Sean says:
    June 1, 2010 at 10:02 pm

    Thanks Marisa,

    I think my feelings of not being techy enough come from not growing up with it. I was 30 before I turned on a computer. Still, I love looking at new tools, making things work, creating things, collaborating, getting students involved. It is all quite easier and getting easier. Ten years ago, you more or less needed html skills to make a website – now it’s all drag and drop and “put your title here” – Easy. Check out something like Voki and you know what to do the very first time you set eyes on the page.

    This is second nature to today’s kids. When their generation becomes teachers, they’ll be blogging about a new literacy we haven’t yet heard of that teachers aren’t embracing spacer

    Many teachers born before the ’80s (?) need to think more about what digital natives – that iPads, iPhones, netbooks, social networking tools are more important to them than pencils and pens were to me when I was a young’un.

  8. spacer Sean says:
    June 1, 2010 at 10:05 pm

    Thanks Mike. Your guidebook is great. I downloaded it for myself with the intention of getting more techie – It’s full of sites I really should have investigated a year ago. No buts this time spacer

  9. spacer Marisa Constantinides says:
    June 6, 2010 at 10:36 pm

    Thanks for nice, organised thinking, Sean, Am sharing this with my trainees if you don’t mind (as if you would…. spacer )

    The other Marisa

  10. spacer Sean says:
    June 8, 2010 at 6:49 pm

    Thanks Marisa – I hope your trainees liked it spacer

  11. spacer Chris Cattaneo says:
    June 11, 2010 at 9:26 am

    Yes, I agree with Marisa about your organised thinking, Sean. You have a talent there!

    I really do like your positive thinking and the way you go about giving constructive answers to the questions that have come to mind over the years, Sean. Your head reflects millions of other teaching heads so this makes it brilliantly useful advice!

    One thing that rang a bell when reading this is that we as teachers or trainers tend to be so focussed on breaking down our learners’ and trainees’ affective filters that we forget about our own, don’t we?

    I must admit, I’ve heard teachers (and non) using all of the ‘buts’ you list. It’s a list of problems that nobody seems to have a list of answers to (until now!!!) Is challenge such a bad thing? Stepping into the relatively unknown? The excitement always provokes a thumping heart, sweating, twitching, tension….

    So, are we teachers human or not? We know we are. That’s why we avoid feeling uncomfortable. But, do we always have to be (seem) calm and collected in front of others? spacer You know, students might sometimes (quite often actually) forget that we are really made of skin and bone with feelings just like them.

    You’re a wonderful, talented guy!

    Thanks for this!

  12. spacer Chris Cattaneo says:
    June 11, 2010 at 9:29 am

    Yes, I agree with Marisa about your organised thinking, Sean. You have a talent there!

    I really do like your positive thinking and the way you go about giving constructive answers to the questions that have come to mind over the years, Sean. Your head reflects millions of other teaching heads so this makes it brilliantly useful advice!

    One thing that rang a bell when reading this is that we as teachers or trainers tend to be so focussed on breaking down our learners’ and trainees’ affective filters that we forget about our own, don’t we?

    I must admit, I’ve heard teachers (and non) using all of the ‘buts’ you list. It’s a list of problems that nobody seems to have a list of answers to (until now!!!) Is challenge such a bad thing? Stepping into the relatively unknown? The excitement always provokes a thumping heart, sweating, twitching, tension….

    So, are we teachers human or not? We know we are. That’s why we avoid feeling uncomfortable. But, do we always have to be (seem) calm and collected in front of others? spacer You know, students might sometimes (quite often actually) forget that we are really made of skin and bone with feelings just like them. But that’s another story……

    You’re a wonderful, talented guy!

    Thanks for this!

  13. spacer Chris Cattaneo says:
    June 11, 2010 at 10:10 am

    A turtle makes progress when it sticks its neck out

  14. spacer Emma says:
    October 3, 2010 at 1:09 am

    Hi, I’m responding quite late to this post, I hope someone will read it.
    So I think I can do a lot of these “tech” things, but my question is, what to do with these skills when you work in an environment where you have no Internet access that’s worth talking about (or just none at all), and even access to actual computers is limited? I teach English in the French Navy, not a particularly poor institution, so I can imagine that other teachers may find themselves in equally tech-deprived situations. Any ideas? Thanks.

  15. spacer Sean says:
    October 3, 2010 at 7:27 pm

    Hi Emma, thanks for writing.

    Not sure on this one. I guess keep up with your tech skills at home so they’re there when you need them in the future. The more you know and can do, the more you have to suggest sites and resources to your students. Even if they don’t have computer access at college, they’re likely to at home. You could encoursge students to collaborate online as homework, or get them to check out sites at home and come to class prepared to give feedback / make presentations etc.

    Hope this helps?!?!?

  16. spacer Attorney says:
    March 18, 2011 at 3:17 pm

    Sean,

    You say “Get techy. No buts.” Your list of 10 “no buts” is fantastic. No matter where you are, no matter what you do for a career, that list is priceless. If anyone wants to succeed at what they are doing, apply that list!

    I’m printing that list for regular reference.

    Thanks.

    Jim

  17. spacer diana says:
    December 24, 2011 at 11:03 am

    Being computer literate is a requirement in today’s world. With all the technologies that are coming out, each person at least should have a basic knowledge of computer to incorporate each activity with today’s technology.

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