The Digital Age – New Technology Updates Audio/Video Tools of Yesteryear

DiBiasi

When I was in high school in the ’60s, I was a proud member of the Audio Visual Club. We used to have a contest to see who could load the 16-mm film projector and who could splice a tape for the reel-to-reel tape recorders the fastest. I held the school record for replacing an overhead bulb in the projector.

None of our group ever imagined the technology that is available to students now: clickers, smart boards, Second Life, podcasting, video conferencing, the Internet and several other technologies that schools use every day.

The common thread in comparing old and new technology is a vision for creating positive change. Several new technologies are changing the shape of classrooms:

• Smart Board: A large white board, with images from a projector, that is touch-sensitive to allow interaction with students and teachers. It can be used to display computer and video images. The board is similar to a touch screen and you can cut, copy, paste or move images or type on it.

• LCD Projector: A projection device that can be connected to a video camera, TV output or computer to allow images to be projected on a large screen of up to 10 feet x 10 feet.

• Clicker: Students can use the handheld device and click on a small keyboard to answers questions in the classroom. It allows the instructor to receive instant feedback and display the results on a computer.

• Interactive Video Conference: A camera and TV allows connections around the world to bring outside experts, such as museum or zoo officials, into the classroom. Content providers can supply information using an IP video connection on the Internet.

• Document Camera: A stationary camera mounted on a stand that allows the instructor to display documents, specimens, samples and any small object on a large screen. A zoom lens on the camera can magnify the object from 10 percent to 1,000 percent.

• Podcast Recorder: Podcasts are recorded by students about educational projects in the classroom, including book reports, digital stories, debates, class discussion and performances. It is a small electronic recorder that fits in the palm of your hand and records up to three hours of content on a small media card. The card is removed and inserted into a computer and recordings are then edited to be placed on the Internet for educational listening.

• Virtual Reality: Virtual reality allows a user to interact with a computer-simulated environment. Most of the current virtual reality environments are primarily a visual experience with displays on a computer screen or through special stereo-vision goggles.

Districts that make new technology work invest in staff development and train teachers with new tools such as blogs, wikis, podcasts and visual literacy.

They provide access to new equipment including clickers, smart boards and computers for every student. They also invest in technicians and a chief information officer to keep systems operating correctly.

Digital natives — young people who have spent their entire lives in the digital world — need new tools to expand their reach into the world to acquire and remember information. School districts should not be afraid of new technology that challenges old paradigms.

In most of our schools today, students have very little input in the structure and substance of their education. Teachers still do the proverbial classroom lecture every day. Research is beginning to tell us that kids are bored, especially when they are using YouTube and media-saturated, tech-driven products and applications outside of the classroom environment.

I wonder what would happen if we were to seek input from our students. We might learn that they prefer questions rather than answers. Maybe they would share their opinions, devise a project for the classroom, communicate on real-world issues, and tell us how they can take ownership of school projects.

Talk to your students — they have great ideas on how to integrate technology into the classroom. Lead by listening. Ask students: What experiences in school really engaged you? How do you use technology in school as opposed to outside of school? What would you do to make school more fun?

Howie DiBlasi is an IT consultant who speaks regularly about 21st century schools and teaching techniques throughout the United States. Send questions, comments and ideas to school@emlenpub.com