Here at LapCabby, the ISTE blog is an ongoing source of inspiration from its posts on leading research, to information and resources for the education technology community. In the run up to this year’s event in Denver in June– our friends at ISTE have compiled a set of 14 Essential Conditions. These ‘critical elements’ are a great research-backed framework to “guide implementation of the ISTE Standards, tech planning and system wide change.”
Achieving success with technologies in the classroom encompasses much more than just choosing the current devices and apps to enhance the curriculum, it is a long-term strategic move that must be future proofed.
we’ve chosen some key points, so here’s a quick lowdown:
Implementation planning – listing this as the top point seems a logical choice, as it is imperative it comes first – and is a thorough process. Which must assess the long-term requirements, ensuring current and future objectives are considered when dividing budget and resource. Yes we all want the best devices but do we also have sufficient storage and online security measures in place – not to mention the software and apps to correlate learning.
In order for technology to work, it must be maintained, controlled and supported, and thus good Technical Support is critical to accelerate digital teaching and learning. As ISTE nicely put it, “Technology opens new doors for learning, but students can’t walk through them if the technology is unusable or disruptive to the learning and teaching process.”
‘Equitable access’ is paramount to an effective digital classroom, which refers to bridging the ‘socioeconomic’ gap and ensure all students have the same digital learning opportunities. This accessibility is listed in the conditions because of the planning aspect which must consider the entire student body in order to achieve ‘learning and teaching goals’. This is something that Anthony Coxon, co-founder of GCSEPod reported on the BETT blog, where he highlights the time-saving aspect of technology for teachers, and why this can be enhanced where the specific needs of each student has been determined.
In order to successfully leverage technology by adopting these conditions, your school or district must be able to deliver lesson-ready devices, as and when they are required – and this is only set to become more frequently. Find out how LapCabby facilitates mobile device deployment in the classroom here.
Read the full 14 ISTE Classroom essentials on their blog.
