Mrs. W's Smartboard

I just had the pleasure of having a wonderful conversation with a 4th/5^th grade teacher on the resourcefulness of her brand-new smartboard. Mrs. W has been a teacher for 19 years. She admits that she can navigate it well enough, but as an educator she feels that there is more she can do with the technology in her hands. She gave me the pleasure of using her smart board to show me what she can do. Limited is the only thing I can think of with such a vast resource at her fingertip’s. It had me thinking and the conversation led to some very interesting conclusions. First, is there is not enough educational technology support in her school to help her become successful using the software. There is no one at her school that they can say is knowledgeable enough to help and direct others. At this point she and many of her coworkers are limited to three programs. I was baffled. After spending quite some time navigating the smart board, we both still could not access many of the programs they boasted it processed. So, what is the solution? What can we do to enhance her experience, the experience of her students, and the experience of her coworkers? We asked ourselves many questions that day. One major common thread was the idea that most schools would benefit from a designated person/teacher/support staff, who is a natural digital native to become the liaison, learn the software, and offer professional development or one on one with the teachers, to support technical advancement in the classroom. Even though this is easier said than done, it is a reality in today’s education system and we need to find more ways to integrate the use of technology while provided the support for teachers to achieve success with the resources they are provided in order to enhance student development and achievements.