Landscapes Menu The "A's" Seeking Help from Technology Adapting to Change Changing the Landscape Return to Eduscapes Adapting to Change   As you explore the new landscapes of teaching and learning with technology, consider ways that you can adapt to the changing environment. Ask yourself. What resources meet the needs of your students? What fits your teaching style and the learning styles of your students?   This section will examine five ways that you can begin adapting to the changing learning environment including:   Learning Environments Outcomes-Based Global Understanding Local Action Virtual Classrooms Learning Environments For technology to become a transparent part of the curriculum rather than an "add-on," "supplement," or "extra," we need to make some fundamental changes in the way technology is viewed. In many cases, we still refer to technology as something special rather than a tool we use all the time like a book or a pencil. Let's stop using phrases such as "computer class," "doing computers," "tech time," and "tech integration." We don't say that we're going to have pencil time or marker activities, why do we say we're going to have computer time or technology activities? By focusing so much on the technology itself, we lose site of the learning environment. Let's take the example of a class web page. Many teachers create one because they take a summer workshop or their principal directs every teacher to make one. A successful web classroom website needs a mission that goes beyond just posting links. Explore Mrs. Vilenski's website as an example of one that is an integral part of a science classroom. She even has a web page to explain how the project was created and is being used.   Outcomes-Based Use technology to help students practice key concepts. Focus on a particular standard and brainstorm ways that technology can help students learn. Let's say you want students to be able to "categorize living organisms into groups based upon molecular structure and anatomical similarities". A teacher developed a wonderful online activity that provides students with photos of organisms that can be copied and pasted into Inspiration software. Students can then use the software to organize the organisms.   Global Understanding As you explore good uses of technology in the learning environment, think globally including new topics, new perspectives, new partners, new activities, and new thinking. As I explored a student project on the topic of The War of 1812, I found it interesting that many perspectives were represented. This is a time in history that is often overlooked by schools in the United States and I wondered about the developers. They were students from Canada, the Netherlands, and the United States. A great way to start thinking more globally is to look at the standards of other nations. Check out the Ontario Canada Social Studies requirement.   Local Action In 1968, I remember writing a report on water pollution. I remember reading books in the library and examining graphic pictures of dead fish in the rivers next to heavy industry. I wrote the paper, but never did anything about the problem. Today, the landscape of learning is changing. Students are becoming more involved with "real-world' problems. They seek out practical projects. For example, the project called YouthCan gets students involved with addressing real-world pollution problems.   Virtual Classrooms You can change your landscape without ever leaving your classroom by taking your students on virtual field trips. The JASON project may be the most famous and long running project. Throughout the year they take children on real-world adventures from the Hawaiian Volcanoes to the icy Arctic. Students ask questions and examine real-world data and problems.     Landscapes Menu The "A's" Seeking Help from Technology Adapting to Change Changing the Landscape Return to Eduscapes Created by Annette Lamb, 02/01.