The Changing Face of Classroom Technology

Brad Barbee, Ed.D.

New developments in educational technology for classroom teachers

Our Classrooms USED to look like this:

• Students sitting at desks• No “real time learning”

occurring• Projects had no access to the

wealth of information in the world outside the library

• Pen and paper were the most used tools

But then came COMPUTERS, and it was good:

• Student access to world wide wealth of information

• Word processing and ability to “type” and print documents that look professional

• Allowed for more collaboration between students.

• Gave students the opportunity to stay connected and interested in their education

New Developments have given teachers and students access to information that was

unheard of just ten years ago:

• Wireless hot spots make for accessibility almost anywhere.

Things such as Wiki sites, classroom blogs, Skype, Facebook pages, Google Docs, and other sites have allowed students and teachers to collaborate at a

distance as well as in the classroom

These sites have also allowed immediate feedback even during the work process,

allowing for changes to be made on the fly

Teachers must learn to use these new tools—they allow our jobs to be easier, make for more interesting lessons, and can help us to

be more effective