By: Neelormy Roy
Technology integration in classrooms today provides educators and learners with a variety of advantages to enhance teaching and learning. However, along with the long list of advantages attached to the effective integration of technology in the classroom, there also comes a set of barriers and disadvantages. Using technology as an effective tool for teaching and learning has many benefits for both educators and learners, but the barriers to integration can make technology feel like a drag (Baba, 2014).
One of the greatest challenges in integrating technology in the classroom is the fact that it is very time-consuming for educators. Between planning lessons, doing assessments, and facilitating their classrooms, educators are bound to many different duties and responsibilities that often extend beyond their formal work hours. Many educators admit that there are not enough hours in the day to accomplish all the tasks they intend to complete within that day (Bedford, 2018). Educators are usually overwhelmed with their teaching duties in and outside of school, and the last thing they want to do is learn new technology, which consumes more time (Baba, 2014). Educators also do not want to waste class time troubleshooting technical issues, in case the technology integration backfires (Bedford, 2018). An important factor that educators need to realize is that once their desired classroom technology is set up properly, it can work to be a time saver and not be time-consuming (Baba, 2014).
Since learning new technology can be complicated and time-consuming for many educators, they need to begin by using simple and easy tools that can be incorporated into their classroom routines (Bedford, 2018). Educators can look for digital tools and solutions that target some of their most challenging duties and tasks and can help them take away some stress from designing lessons and tasks, and grading (Bedford, 2018). With the appropriate training and professional development workshops, educators can set up technology for their classroom that can reduce their workload with daily routine tasks and use that time productively on teacher-student collaborations (Lin, 2017).
Here are ways Google Classroom can prove to be time-saving instead of time-consuming for educators:
(Image retrieved from: https://www.empoweringells.com/google-classroom/)
One of the greatest challenges in integrating technology in the classroom is the fact that it is very time-consuming for educators. Between planning lessons, doing assessments, and facilitating their classrooms, educators are bound to many different duties and responsibilities that often extend beyond their formal work hours. Many educators admit that there are not enough hours in the day to accomplish all the tasks they intend to complete within that day (Bedford, 2018). Educators are usually overwhelmed with their teaching duties in and outside of school, and the last thing they want to do is learn new technology, which consumes more time (Baba, 2014). Educators also do not want to waste class time troubleshooting technical issues, in case the technology integration backfires (Bedford, 2018). An important factor that educators need to realize is that once their desired classroom technology is set up properly, it can work to be a time saver and not be time-consuming (Baba, 2014).
Since learning new technology can be complicated and time-consuming for many educators, they need to begin by using simple and easy tools that can be incorporated into their classroom routines (Bedford, 2018). Educators can look for digital tools and solutions that target some of their most challenging duties and tasks and can help them take away some stress from designing lessons and tasks, and grading (Bedford, 2018). With the appropriate training and professional development workshops, educators can set up technology for their classroom that can reduce their workload with daily routine tasks and use that time productively on teacher-student collaborations (Lin, 2017).
An example of a useful technology application, which has proven to
be a time-saver instead of time-consuming, is Google Classroom. Setting up
Google Classroom can give educators more time to work with students and plan
meaningful lessons (Huynh, 2018). Although educators cannot eliminate the time
it takes to find or make educational resources for student access, applications
like Google Classroom can help save time in distributing the resources and
retrieving them from students (Huynh, 2018).
(Image retrieved from: https://www.empoweringells.com/google-classroom/)
References
Baba, P. A. (2014). Technology in
the Classroom: A tool or a drag. Technology, 5(27), 75-78.
Bedford, J. (2018, January 22). We
Asked Teachers What They Want From Edtech. Here’s What They Said. [Blog post]
Retrieved from https://www.edsurge.com/news/2018-01-22-we-asked-teachers-what-they-want-from-edtech-here-s-what-they-said
Huynh, T. (2018, January 18). Beating
the Clock: Saving time with Google Classroom. [Blog post] Retrieved from https://www.empoweringells.com/google-classroom/
Lin, N. (2017, November 18). 3 Ways to Reduce
Teacher Workload Using Technology. [Blog post] Retrieved from https://elearningindustry.com/reduce-teacher-workload-using-technology-3-ways
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