Teachers have been hearing for years about the importance of integrating technology into the classroom, but also about the threat that too much screen time poses to student development and mental health. If recent efforts by the Oklahoma State School Boards Association (OSSBA) are any indication, the key to reconciling this apparent Catch-22 is to ensure that technology becomes an outlet for creation, not just consumption. The purpose is to make sure that there is.
OSSBA digital government expert Dr. Ann Beck emphasized this idea Saturday at the National School Board Association Conference in New Orleans. The focus of her presentation was the Oklahoma Library of Digital Resources (OKLDR), which she co-developed in 2018 with Oklahoma teachers and her Apple, to help students from kindergarten through the available digital educational tools and how to best use them. It was offered as a free guide for teachers of her children up to 12 years of age.
“When you look at the research[on the negative effects of screen time]it's true. My kids are the same way. They're on YouTube, they're on TikTok, they're on Snapchat. It's not about creating; It’s about consumption,” she said. “Research shows that screen time warnings don’t apply when students are actually using technology to create, because instead of using paper and pencil, they can use devices to Because I am creating.”
Beck, an experienced teacher himself, said the old-fashioned approach of taking notes on a board and having students copy them worked fine. But at some point in the last decade or so, as apps became more popular, I realized that my students were getting bored and disengaged. She wasn't the only one to notice, though, many teachers were wary, even though she was aware that technology could excite a new generation.
Some schools did not have an IT director to consult with them about new technology. Some were intimidated by the idea of using technology that their students understood better than they did. Some were unable to wrap their heads around a completely new style of teaching, creating lesson plans that incorporated digital tools that didn't exist when they learned how to teach. Some did not have enough training to feel confident because they had been given emergency certification due to a national teacher shortage. They all needed guidance.
“Teachers know how to teach. They know their material. They don't know what students can do with this technology and it scares them,” Beck said. . “Technology can be scary, especially when (teachers) feel like their students know more than they do.”
Thus the initiative behind OKLDR was born. Beck said the OSSBA looked at all the standards for all major pre-K-12 subjects and, with support from Apple, insurance company American Fidelity, and technology services company K12itc, trained 15 to 20 students from different grades and subjects. He said he convened a group of teachers and conducted four lessons. For several weeks, he placed them in hotel rooms, paid them $500, and explained how his colleagues could do everything from video editing to podcasting to games that creatively involve students in history lessons. We created a guide to do so.
He said the effort, while not a data-sharing practice, includes scrutinizing apps and tools that are functional and age-appropriate. But school technology directors often have an opinion on that score, and most of OKLDR's free tools don't require a login and don't collect data on individual users, Beck said.
Since then, Beck has observed students who have become more engaged, in some cases improving their test scores, getting hooked on video editing assignments, and citing examples of students who have gone on to pursue careers in Hollywood. And for a teacher, if it turns out there's one class he hates teaching (which Beck says every teacher has), implementing new tools can improve the class. It might become more interesting.
“Our teachers started asking questions like: What apps, music, and videos can help students deepen their understanding?” Learning should be fun. Learning is something to own, but often we give them rote memorization and they don't retain it. When they create something related to the lesson themselves, they own it,” she said. “Once you start using[apps and videos]with kids, they start getting excited about learning. They start wanting to come to class at lunch, so you have to kick them out. No, they never do that with worksheets.”
