Using Information and Communication Technology

“Using information and communication technology (ICT), such as Web conferencing and wikis, to connect students to their peers in other countries and cultures is one way to engage our students. But it’s not just about technology. Global collaborative learning is about connecting students in communities of learners around the world so they can work together on projects that make a difference locally and globally. It is about building relationships and achieving authentic, meaningful learning. And it lends purpose to lessons and drives just-in-time learning for teachers as well as students as they become co-learners.” (Bickley, pg. 20)

Literacy in the 21st century is the ability to find, evaluate, utilize, and apply information and resources.  Technology is evolving at such a quick pace that teaching students about current technology systems is not the limit to the training they must receive.  We must provide our students with opportunities to collaborate, be independent, problem solve, invent solutions, all within a focus of collaboration.  By providing students with opportunities to practice these skills we are providing them with the skills they need to evolve and be literate throughout the 21st century.  Many schools and classrooms struggle to obtain new and relevant technology equipment and software.  Teachers must focus on the educational experience rather than the technology experience.  The tools we use today will quickly become obsolete.  For students to be successful, it is more important that they understand how to train themselves in the use of new hardware and software.  The final activity in my technology class requires students to choose their own programs in an effort to meet a class goal.  At the beginning of the assignment I explain that I will not be teaching them a new program but I will help them find resources to train themselves.  I encourage them to use their peers and the Internet as a resource.  Contemporary information literacy is the ability to accomplish this task.  Students do struggle but at the end of the assignment they are drastically more confident in using technology and their own abilities.

Bickley, M., & Carleton, J. (2009). Students Without Borders. Learning & Leading With Technology, 37(3), 20-23.