school Many officials and parents in communities are aware of the seemingly endless problems that are present in our educational system in the United States. Unfortunately, many of these individuals are misinformed or simply do not fully understand the impacts of changes that are made to the system. Currently, a large percentage of the nation's teachers are nearing the end of their careers. In an effort to eliminate or at least minimize the upcoming shortage of teachers, there are a number of people who desire to quickly fill any open teaching position without regard to teaching ability. Many states have changed their requirements to allow a large number of college graduates to become public school teachers. Unfortunately, having knowledge of a subject does not empower an individual with the skills necessary to effectively manage a classroom- much less impart the knowledge they possess to students. In reviewing the websites provided, the "No Child Left Behind" program defines "highly qualified" teachers as those who have met the minimum requirements in content knowledge as well as in teaching skills. By the 2005-2006 school year all school districts must only employ "highly qualified" teachers. States must be willing to incorporate a program that prepares educators for the situations in classroom settings. No matter how qualified a person may seem judging by a record; that does not compare to hands on experience. Each state is able to designate a particular education program that ensures that each teacher meets the area in which s/he wishes to teach. They not only must have grades that exhibit criteria, they must also take various exams that verify this competency. Teachers are assessed on how knowledgeable they are in everything other than how to teach. A good teacher must not only know they subject; teachers must know how to relate the material to students as well. Educational technology state grants programs allow districts to spend a percentage of their budgets on high quality technology programs integrated into classrooms. Schools can spend money on high tech equipment on technology tools, but students need someone other than just the computer teacher to show them how to use these tools in the learning process. Most states specifically state core subject requirements. These usually include English, reading or language arts, foreign languages, art, economics, science, math, history and geography. Most of these lists do not include technology. There are certain things that every teacher who attempts to integrate technology into her classroom should know. Every teacher should know what resources are available to them. Teachers should be at least familiar with these resources. In addition, teachers should know the skill level of the students in the classroom. Students should be proficient enough that usage issues do not distract from the lesson(s). Teachers should be aware of inappropriate web activities such as unwanted web sites and plagiarism. Perhaps the most imperative universal is that teachers have a back-up plan in case of technology failures. There are many excellent uses of technology available to teachers. The following lesson is just one example: www.eduref.org lesson # AELP-WRH0008
Cultural Exchange Through Internet Keypals Submitted by: Amy Carrier Endorsed by: Dr. Sean Smith Overview: The lesson is introduced as a fourth grade social studies/world history lesson. Basically, two classrooms of students (consisting of two distinctly different cultures) learn about each others culture through internet correspondence and research. Students of each class research the other class's culture and then ask specific questions about that culture. The other class responds and asks questions of his/her own. Classrooms require internet access and teachers/students must be proficient at web research and communication. Websites such as: www.epals.com can be used to locate and select other classrooms to exchange information with. The benefits of technology make use of this type of lesson more realistic. Prior to educational use of the internet, classrooms would have used regular mail to communicate with the "other" culture. Depending on location, it would have been too costly and/or too slow to be an effective method of communication for use with this lesson. This is an excellent example of technology as lesson support. Day- trips on the internet and Webquests are useful when the actual execution of an activity is not realistic. For example, children in large cities may take a field trip to a zoo. In distant rural areas, the internet can be utilized to allow children with no access to a zoo to see, hear, and learn about the animals. Some of the technology resources we covered in class will not be available to all schools/classrooms; however, 2...