ISTE Standard 1

ISTE Standard 1

Creativity and Innovation

“The ISTE Standards describe the skills and knowledge they [students] need to learn effectively and live productively in an increasingly global and digital society. (ISTE).” Standard 1 focuses on student’s creativity and innovation. This standard sets forth that students will: 1.) Apply existing knowledge to generate new ideas, products, or processes, 2.) Create original works as a means of personal or group expression, 3.) Use models and simulations to explore complex systems and issues (i.e. equitable access to technology), and 4.) Identify trends and forecast possibilities. From a teacher standpoint, this means incorporating technology with pedagogy and subject knowledge to facilitate learning experiences where students can explore and collaborate on topics or questions using their own creative and innovative thinking. This results in learning through the process of discovery with technology as a tool. An example of this type of learning is digital storytelling. "Digital storytelling allows computer users [students] to become creative storytellers through the traditional process of selecting a topic, conducting some research, writing a script, and developing an interesting story. This material is then combined with various types of multimedia , including computer-based graphics, recorded audio... so that it can played on a computer, uploaded to a web site or burned on a DVD. (Robin)". 

This idea would be great in a perfect learning environment but as many teachers know technology is not always available. This dilemma leads to my trigger question, “Are students hindered by having limited access to technology?” The answer to this is much debated and has created a need for a need new framework to accurately measure the effectiveness technology has in learning. Therefore, the search for answers lead me not so much to a definitive answer but to more of an understanding of factors. Implementing and providing technology within a school district is met by many obstacles. First there is the always present budget concern, combined with what type of technology devices to use, developing a strategic plan to implement technology, educating the teachers for the use of and teaching with the technology, and the continued maintenance needed for the technology. Several of the articles on my mind map discuss these obstacles.

One article I found not only addressed my question but served as an example for how students are hindered and how the school district went about meeting their technology needs. In this article, “InMississippi schools, access to technology lacking, uneven”, the school district explained how their students were hindered as to the skills and knowledge they needed to succeed in the digital age. They found graduated students were struggling to find jobs and continue education. The lack of access to the Internet and technology was seen as a major obstacle in students accessing “scholarship information, job applications, and educational resources like study guides and practice tests.” (Mader), as well as, having the skills and experience of using technology. 21st century skills, as these are commonly referred to, are a part of preparing students for the real world.  Through much planning this example school district was able to implement a successful technology program, the results of which extended beyond just learning. The school district reported many positive changes like increased enrollment and a drop in suspensions and referrals, all seen as brought about by the addition of technology. A key point from this article was that technology was not a replacement for teaching but a tool that made learning more exciting and engaging for the students.

In reflection, “Are students hindered by having limited access to technology?” My discovered answer would be yes, but not in the sense of subject specific knowledge. After all teachers, have been teaching students to read, write, and add for many years without today’s technology. But in regards to students being prepared for life after graduation, technology skills are a necessity and school is not only the logical place for this learning but in some cases the only place students have the access. As to how limited access relates to Standard 1, creativity often comes when we have a problem. Then we use resources that are familiar to us to solve the problem. Today’s society is technology based so, it is only logical for students to use technology in some fashion to help solve a problem; in this way students obtain and explore new ideas, products and processes. For that to happen students need access to technology.

References

ISTE Standards. (n.d.). Retrieved January 14, 2017, from http://www.iste.org/standards/standards/iste-standards

Mader, J. (2014, September 15). In Mississippi schools, access to technology lacking, uneven. Retrieved January 08, 2017, from http://hechingerreport.org/mississippi-schools-access-technology-lacking-uneven/

Robin, B. (n.d.). Digital Storytelling: A Powerful Technology Tool for the ... Retrieved January 14, 2017, from http://www.bing.com/cr?IG=675F7CBFA56F4DF7A91BACCB3DE927D9&CID=2157CD6420B565733B64C76E21846499&rd=1&h=8OxdwPMR5s9lJ2qNurwaYEWL7tg8BkVrFWVy0RAE2e4&v=1&r=http%3a%2f%2fdigitalstorytellingclass.pbworks.com%2ff%2fDigital%2bStorytelling%2bA%2bPowerful.pdf&p=DevEx,5084.1