Article Seven - Getting Personal With Technology

Forest Lake Elementary School, in Columbia, South Carolina, has taken a step forward with technology integration.  Forest Lake Elementary doesn’t have the newest and shiniest technology, but they have a determined and dedicated staff that believes technology is needed in the classroom.  The teachers allow the students to use the technology to complete assignments and projects. This allows for the students to keep interest. For example, one student chose to create a comic strip for his writing assignment. This allowed for the student to complete the assignment using his strengths. Another teacher uses the technology to continually assess where her students are at with specific problems. The technology allows for the teacher to see which problems her students are missing. If the students are missing common denominators, then the next day she will focus the lesson on common denominators.

Many school districts make the comment that they cant integrate technology into the classrooms because they lack the funding. It’s not what technology you have, but its how you use the technology. In Forest Lake Elementary you see teachers using technology in various ways. While one teacher uses the technology to assess her students another is allowing the students to pick which gadget they want to complete a given assignment. Many times you see a classroom using technology in the wrong way. They may have a big fancy white board, but the only thing they do is take notes from it, you can do the same thing with a textbook. You have to use technology in a way that encourages learning and motivates the students.