November 2005 — Features

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Warming Up To Wireless

Maine’s technology leaders have been only part of the solution. Over the last two years in particular, the state has become a veritable wireless teacher-training academy, using federal and state funds to bankroll dozens of face-to-face and school-site workshops every week, somewhere in the state. The development blitz includes regional classes, where, say, math teachers from 20 area schools can come together for lessons in how to incorporate wireless into their mathematics curriculum. Interestingly, MLTI recruits kids from a student technology organization called the iTeam to offer feedback and suggestions, as well as to volunteer their time to help instruct teachers on interactive alternatives that spike student interest, such as using a DVD instead of a textbook in a lesson about animals, or substituting a podcast for a standard chalkboard lecture.

Beyond this, the state also supports the presence of leadership teams in each school. The teams are composed of building principals, teacher leaders, technology integrators, technology coordinators, and librarians who provide support via in-person, online, and virtual interactions, all designed to make sure teachers are familiar with best practices in the area of wireless education. Specifically, the intent is to educate teachers about how to build curricula in collaboration with the Maine Digital Content Group, a state-funded content organization that pulls together original material from the Maine Public Broadcasting Network, regional museums, the Maine Historical Society, Northeast Historic Film, and local science centers. The resource material is offered along with the Maine Virtual Library (http://libraries.maine.edu/mainedatabases).

“People think that you can just put technology in a school, give a few days of training, and everything will be fine,” says Manchester. “What we’ve learned is that exactly the opposite is true, and that the only way you can ensure people will adopt the technology the way you hope they will is to give them more resources than they could possibly imagine, to embed [wireless] in everything they do.”

Small District, Big Changes
Large entities such as the state of Maine and Irving ISD aren’t alone in tackling the issue of teaching teachers about wireless; an emphasis on professional development has also become a priority in smaller districts like Brimley. Light, who coordinates the district’s wireless efforts, says that perhaps the biggest problem for her district has been getting teachers to carve out time for detailed training sessions. Because many of Brimley’s teachers already are overcommitted, with tight schedules at work and busy lives at home, Light says that educator time is at a premium, making timely and in-depth training difficult. She says that widespread administrative support for training sessions before and after school, combined with a growing number of teachers who actively work to share best practices and help colleagues integrate the technology, has helped smooth the way.