Briefly describes my philosophy of technology integration in the classroom and the roles of the teacher and students. It also provides information for what effective and ineffective technology integration looks like in the classroom.

1. Technology in
Education
Cressandra Layne
ED 505 – Curriculum Development
Averett University
July 26, 2017

2. My Philosophy of Technology Integration in
the Classroom
• In today’s global, technological society I believe it is imperative to integrate
technology into the classroom as much as possible to prepare students to be
competitive in the global workforce after school.
• Technology integration in the classroom allows me to create lessons that are more
individualized and relevant to my students’ lives providing them with the necessary
21st century skills they will need after school.
• The use of technology in the classroom engages students in meaningful learning
leading to higher rates of retention of information.
• As an educator, I will continue to keep up with the latest technological advances to
provide my students with the most successful learning environment possible.

3. The Teacher’s Role
• The role of the teacher has changed tremendously in today’s classroom because of the use of technology.
Technology is continuously evolving and it is imperative that as a teacher I continuously participate in
professional development opportunities and learn from others to improve student learning outcomes in the
classroom.
• The teacher is no longer the provider of information as students sit at their desk and passively learn what the
teacher says. Instead, the teacher acts as a facilitator where they use technology to connect students with real-
world issues to help them develop the essential 21st century skills they will need to be competitive in today’s
world. Technology allows teachers to teach students how to critically think, problem solve, and collaborate
with others which are all essential for lifelong learning and the global workforce.
• Teachers design curriculum that differentiates instruction based on the individual needs of learners and
analyze data to drive instruction and improve student achievement.
• Teachers collaborate with each other and with their students to solve problems and share ideas and resources
to promote a successful learning environment.

4. The Student’s Role
• The use of technology empowers students to become more independent
learners than ever before.
• Technology allows students to take an active role in their own learning when
they are given the opportunity to choose appropriate digital resources to
construct their own knowledge and solve complex real-world problems.
• Students are able to collaborate with each other outside of the classroom and
others around the world creating a richer, more meaningful learning
experience for all involved.

5. Monitoring Appropriate Use of Technology
• In order for the use of technology to be effective in the classroom teachers need to monitor how their
students are using the technology.
• In my division we have a firewall that blocks students from searching certain words or phrases to prevent our
students from obtaining inappropriate information.
• Students are taught at the beginning of the year about safe internet sites that they can use to help them find
pertinent information on their assignment.
• Before students are allowed to download or print any information they must ask for teacher approval.
• I continuously move around the room as students work with the technology to answer questions and verify
that they are actually working on their assignment and not on social media. I ask questions to guide their
learning when they are struggling.
• I ask questions as they learn to make sure that they are staying on task and not working on something that
they should not be.

6. Improving Instruction with Technology
• When students are given access to appropriate technology in the classroom it
can close gaps in achievement and improve student learning outcomes.
• Student achievement is best reached when teachers are knowledgeable of the
technology and model how to use it appropriately.
• Technology needs to be aligned to the content area standards that they teach
for successful integration in the classroom.
• Teachers need to analyze the data to drive instruction to maximize student
learning.

7. Distractions from Instruction
• Ultimately, technology is a useful and needed tool in education today; however, if it
is not integrated appropriately into the curriculum and proper use of it is not
modeled by the teacher it can take away from instruction.
• Students use technology to communicate socially each and every day. With that
being said, students need to be taught when it is appropriate to use technology and
how to use it in the classroom at the beginning of the year.
• If the teacher just tells their students to take out their phone, tablet, or get on the
computer to complete an assignment without teaching technology rules beforehand
it is likely that they will use the technology inappropriately which in turn will distract
them from their learning and decrease student achievement in the classroom.

8. What Does Effective Technology Integration in
the Classroom Look Like?
• Technology integration is effective when it is readily available and students are using it effortlessly every day
in the classroom to collect, record, and analyze information.
• Students are critically thinking and asking questions to create projects, explore, and research online to solve
problems that are relevant to their lives.
• Students are working independently or collaborating with each other and the teacher in the classroom,
outside the classroom, and around the world to answer questions about the world around them.
• Assessments are authentic and meaningful to each individual student.
• Objectives and learning outcomes are clearly defined for the student and assessments are aligned to the
standards
• Examples of these include podcasts, videocasts, using Google Docs or Wikis for collaboration, problem-
based learning and research, and many more (Edutopia, 2007).

9. What Does Ineffective Technology Integration
Look Like in the Classroom?
• Technology can be ineffective in the classroom when the following is not included in the
integration process and curriculum development:
• The objectives, learning outcomes, and assessments are not clearly defined or determined before
students complete an assignment.
• There is no predetermined strategy for how students should complete the assignment or they do
not know how to use the technology appropriately to complete the assignment successfully.
• The technology in the classroom environment is not set up in a manner that is most effective for
student learning.
• We all know technology fails at times so when a teacher fails to have a back up plan in place in the
event of downtime it can disrupt the learning environment (Myers, 2014).
• Technology is not being used at all in the classroom or the teacher is using it and the students are
just sitting there watching the teacher use it and not interacting with it themselves.

10. References
Edutopia (2014). What is successful technology integration? Retrieved July 26,
2017, from https://www.edutopia.org/technology-integration-guide-
description
Myers, J. (2014). When technology integration isn’t effective in the classroom.
Retrieved July 27, 2017, from https://www.gaggle.net/speaks/when-
technology-integration-isnt-effective-in-the-classroom/