Teacher as Facilitator
“Education either functions as an instrument which is used to facilitate integration of the younger generation into the logic of the present system and bring about conformity or it becomes the practice of freedom, the means by which men and women deal critically and creatively with reality and discover how to participate in the transformation of their world.”
~ Paulo Freire
Educators facilitate learning with technology to support student achievement of the ISTE Standards for Students. Educators:
6a: Foster a culture where students take ownership of their learning goals and outcomes in both independent and group settings.
6b: Manage the use of technology and student learning strategies in digital platforms, virtual environments, hands-on makerspaces or in the field.
6c: Create learning opportunities that challenge students to use a design process and computational thinking to innovate and solve problems.
6d: Model and nurture creativity and creative expression to communicate ideas, knowledge or connections.
6A: Foster a Culture of Student Ownership
Goal setting is not just something teachers should do--we should also encourage our students to set short and long term goals. Technology can assist in facilitating and tracking these goals. As this blog demonstrates, tools like the Google Suite and Flipgrid that we use in other ways can also help students visualize and track their goals. And, Alice Keeler explains how Google Classroom can be used to help students demonstrate their progress toward short-term goals.
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Design and computational thinking provide frameworks for thinking in new ways, ways that can help students face problems they will face outside of the classroom and develop viable, interesting solutions. While we won't dig deeply into these processes in this class (sign up for TCH 430 if you want to go in depth into the design process), the following videos and texts provide you with an overview of what is meant by design and computational thinking and give you some ideas to consider as you think about designing learning experiences for students. Start by watching this video:
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Next, read more of John Spencer's work on design thinking and examine Genius Hour as one way to integrate design thinking into your classroom. Once you've finished exploring John Spencer's work, take a few minutes to consider how to take design thinking to a larger scale by exploring the Co-Designing Schools website.
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To learn more about computational thinking, start by watching this video, which breaks down its four elements.
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6C: Create Learning Opportunities for Design and Computational Thinking
"Four Examples of Computational Thinking in the Classroom" shares concrete ways to implement both computational and design thinking into learning experiences, as well as links to further examples. Check it out and see if it offers you inspiration for your own teaching. ​
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6D: Model and Nurture Creativity
Just as ISTE has standards to guide educators' development when working with technology, it also provides standards to guide student instruction. The ISTE Standards for Students highlight the experiences we should be regularly designing for students as we integrate technology. Rather than simply replacing paper worksheets with digital worksheets, the standards highlight seven identities students can adopt when they work with technology in meaningful ways. Explore each of the standards. As you are exploring, consider which you could see yourself implementing immediately next fall with your students. Spend time watching the short videos. In person or on social media share at least one idea that you have. Consider linking or sharing a blog post, article, or image. Use #TCH401 and #ISTEStandards.