- Clay Shirky, Here Comes Everybody, p. 160
I feel like I’ve been having this conversation a lot lately; technology isn’t really a strategy or a pedagogy or an instructional behavior, it’s a tool. It’s a powerful tool that allows us to potentially change the way we teach, but just putting it into a classroom is unlikely to make any difference at all. For years we’ve talked about technology integration into the curriculum, but I think I’m about done with that phrase. We don’t talk about pencil integration, or textbook integration, or whiteboard integration… why technology?
To paraphrase my favorite educator, if there’s one thing that will blow the doors off of the whole mindset of technology as something separate from the curriculum, it’s the Common Core. Common Core State Standards cannot be accomplished without integrated technology use. The projects, activities, and expectations for students are riddled with outcomes that are best accomplished with technology tools.
Janet Moeller-Abercrombie suggests that we should be asking students, “What are you trying to learn?” or “What are you trying to communicate?” to shift the focus off of the technology and onto the learning. I think Common Core is a game-changer by putting the emphasis on content and higher order thinking skills. Our role as teachers must transform to helping students find the best information, facilitating communication, and coaching students to deeper thought and more meaningful conversations.
At some point in the not-too-distant future, I hope that individual student use of internet-connected tools for research, publishing, and collaboration is seen as the only reasonable vision of education. That’s the point at which the phrase “technology integration” will truly be obsolete.
