Welcome to my conversation on educational issues.
I teach at a residential treatment facility. Because this is such a non-traditional setting and there are laws that restrict the sharing of a student's personal information, my options of technology are limited. However, I have decided to tackle the problem of using more virtual environments to help educate the students. Can we as educators at a residential treatment facility use more technology to actively engage these students? I believe that we can.
I will need my group to help introduce me to technology software and programs that have worked in traditional schools. I know that my group can help me understand some of the obstacles that lay before me in getting the school district to accept new ideas. I have a lot of experience in Special Education, so I can lend a different perspective to my group when it comes to learning styles and behavioral concerns. Together, we can figure out the best way for me to approach this daunting task.
The greatest concern I have about completing my AR project is the bureaucracy that may exist in navigating a balance between school and facility. I am hoping that my crtitical friends can help me come up with good ideas and viable options that will enable me to use more technology in a restricted environment.
Gary how are you? You wanna know what I have learned in my short year of being an educator? I have learned that there are some people how are in administration that will support you and some that won't. There are more that will not. Trust me. Your best bet will be to branch out and do your own thing. Start your own company and make your own rules. You will appreciate it more in the long run. Once administration sees that you have all of these ideas and your coming up with other ways to help, I mean really help the students, then they tend to get a little envious because they couldn't think of the things that you did. Even though we are the teachers, and just that "teachers" this is all that they think we are capable of doing. "Huh?" They want to imprison us to the classroom and teach what "they" want us to teach. You know to keep us on the rat race. LOL!
ReplyDeleteHowever, I think your idea to implement more technology in the learning environment at the treatment facility is awesome. I feel that it is needed and great gesture however, like I said do not expect much help from the administration unless they really support your hard work. You can go into business for yourself and get paid a lot more.
Hey Gary!
ReplyDeleteI really appreciate that you are coming at learning this new technology from the perspective of a non-traditional learning environment. I too have to figure out how to apply this to my work situation and that is as a facilitator and administrator of religious education in congregational settings as well as trainer development programs.
We probably have a few issues in common like limited budgets and non very tech savvy constituents, and that is a real challenge to implementing technology.
I am looking forward to helping others with my experience in graphics and communications from my past career and being helped by the more experienced teachers in the group. I for one need that!
One of the great things I think about our non-traditional situations, is that it may allow us to be more creative and innovative in general since we don't have the standards to account for in the same ways as regular schools, at least I don't!
I look forward to our group project and working with you in the months to come!