ED609 ought to challenge the teacher in me to adopt and embrace technology in my classroom. Will I? Can I? Should I? I absolutely should, and if I could, I would. But the truth of the matter is that, historically, I have been unable to access the internet at Southern High School. Moreover, what hardware that has existed, such as smart boards, have been diminished because of the humidity encouraged by years of non-existent air conditioning. Still, the Guam Department of Education explicitly sets forth technology use in the current curriculum plan. (Ayuyu, et al, 2010). Technology is just part of the job.
Mechanical and managerial issues aside, I believe that GDOE needed and needs to reconcile what it believes “technology” is before it can address system wide implementations for hardware, services and actual technology content. Studies have found that unless organizations achieve a shared understanding of what exactly “technology” is, a full and meaningful exploration and exploitation of it seems nearly impossible. (Roberts, 2005). Indeed, in my GDOE experience, technology means an internet connection to one administrator, while it means cell phones to another. It has to mean something bigger, something that carries positive potential, in order for it to be adopted successfully in the Guam public education system.
Just my opinion. Thanks for visiting.
References
Ayuyu, R, Cepeda, E., Gutierrez, M., et al. 2010. Guam Department of Education, K-12 Standards and Performance Indicators. Guam Department of Education. Retrieved June 15, 2014, from https://sites.google.com/a/gdoe.net/curriculum-and-instruction/home/content-standards-1/content-standards
Roberts, G.R. 2005. Technology and Learning Expectations of the Net Generation. Educating The Net Generation, 2005. Educause e-book. Retrieved June 13, 2014, from http://www.educause.edu/research-and-publications/books/educating-net-generation