Online+Learning+Presentation

Sarah Bernhofer Pottle- Edmodo
The overall impression from the debriefing sessions was positive: the teachers were already throwing around several ideas of how they could use it in their science and foreign language classes. My administrator, with whom I had to meet separately, also stated that it seemed like a really positive, 21st-century technique to improve student learning and engagement in the classroom. During both debriefing sessions ideas to capitalize on strengths and improve weaknesses were created to see how Edmodo could fit best at our school.

The improvements that could be made to the classroom were noted. The teachers were both thrilled to see that students could post written assignments or slideshows to the assignments page, and that they could actually grade the assignments and post the grades right then and there. One teacher brought up how flawless the system is to see when a student submits an assignment, that no assignments are ever lost or damaged, and that students can receive feedback immediately and do not have to wait for their paper to be passed back. Additionally, the teachers liked the online quizzes, the calendar, and the library where teachers can post information, and students can bookmark any information they need. The conversation then turned to how students could organize themselves if ALL of their teachers were on Edmodo, and they would only have to click from class to class, all on one platform, in order to gain information. If all the teachers used it, students would also become more familiar with it, and it could become a regular after-school resource for them as opposed to something they might forget about because only one teacher is using it. It was also stated that most teachers already have classroom websites, so to switch to Edmodo would simply be a switch of platforms, not adding a new step. As soon as this was mentioned, the brakes started to twitch a little bit, and we hit a wall that we sometimes hit.

There are some teachers on our team who would voice, loudly, that they do not want to be a part of any sort of pilot program that will make their job any more time-consuming than it already is. This group makes up almost ¼ of our team. Though some might be persuaded privately, the attitude behind it would not be good. I brought this up when I later met with my assistant principal and asked her about possibly starting a pilot program. She said that we should start the pilot program on a smaller level, maybe with just English and Science, or just English and Social Studies, and possibly whoever wants to join, but that we don’t make it something that everyone has to be a part of. She stated that perhaps it would be a way to make them want to do it on their own, when they see that everyone is doing it. If it turns out to be a great success with a smaller pilot, then we can move on to the entire team. I thought that was a great solution! She did bring up one more possible barrier, though- equal access for all students. 95% of our students have access to a computer and the internet, but we would absolutely have to make sure that we have accommodated the 5% that do not. That might mean giving them extra time on the class computer during another assignment, giving extra time, in general, for an assignment to be due so the student can make arrangements, or maybe some other accommodation.

I have emailed the slideshow presentation to other teachers on our team and in our building and am going to hold an informational meeting at our Tech Tuesday optional after-school meeting in several weeks to see who might be interested in setting up an account and learning more for next year. From the positive feedback that I received from my three colleagues, it seems like an option that teachers would like to know about and even collaborate with. I am hopeful that this will be another step in the direction of preparing our students for the 21st century.

Rachel, you're right! We did get very similar feedback from our colleagues about our ideas! I love your idea of videotaping teachers and students using Edmodo to show them how easy it is. Seeing that you're facing the same buy-in hindrances, did you show any others your slideshow presentation? It might be something worth posting on your school server and then sending out an FYI email, just in case anyone is interested. Do you guys have any sort of technology club or STEM committee at your school? You might want to consider starting one if not. Our school just started one, and we are actually getting quite a lot accomplished! It's another way for teachers to see how serious it is that they implement technology in their daily lessons.

=Rachel Burkett - Learning Management Systems=

I was very very surprised by the response I received at my debriefing session with my principal and the two teachers I had invited. I had expected there to be a not so positive reaction, but the principal was impressed by the possibilities LMS presented for our school, especially if we used something like Moodle, which is free. We do not have all the extra funds that larger schools in our districts do. She and the other teachers saw the gaps that it could fill where staff members could not, and liked the ideas I had presented, such as modules on teaching specific technology tools or creating units to be completed during small group periods.

From here, we discussed what steps would need to be taken to implement such a system in our school. The principal wanted my honest opinion on which teachers would be on board. I named about half of our staff members and she agreed, which would be a downside to this. We knew we would need to get the technology department on board to take care of server installation. Another step was to get a small group together to put the program to the test. This group would in turn help to implement it throughout the rest of the school. This would be something that we could work on for next year.

Sarah, it seems you and I had similar ideas about piloting our programs. I think you're off to a good start with yours. Technology buy-in can be a hard bargain to drive, especially if teachers feel that it would make their jobs more difficult. A suggestion I can think of for your implementation of your program and convincing others would be to video tape teachers using it so that your other colleagues would have an idea how easily it could be to use once they learned the basics. Sometimes seeing a new piece of technology in action can be far more convincing than word of mouth. If you get a team of dedicated users, it might also be a form of peer pressure. If a teacher sees how well their colleagues like using the program, it may convince them as well. If you continue to make yourself available to help with technology and teaching, I'm sure that could play a big part as well.