Some Great Examples Of Assistive Technology Training For Teachers

In contrast to popular public opinion that the use of technology is quite common in U.S. schools, statistics indicate that only about half the nation's teachers use technology in their daily teaching. Evidence gathered from technology proponents indicates that much of this use is ineffective, but there's still not a lot of assistive technology training for teachers available. Many teachers are reluctant to use technology due to a lack of training and experience on how to best utilize technology in classrooms.

While the figures are probably accurate, they may be a bit deceiving. It might be true that on average half of America's teachers use technology to facilitate learning in the classroom, but the disparity among schools is wide. In some schools technology use is almost 100 percent while in others the use of technology is close to zero. Why is that? Well, many factors can enter into play, but the main reason is that some schools have institued strong incentives to use technology where others haven't. It's as simple as that.

One good example of assistive technology training for teachers is in Fort Knox, Kentucky, where teachers are encouraged to use technology in several ways. First of all, each staff member is assigned his or her own e-mail address. A daily bulletin is sent and all staff members are expected to read it every morning. Now most communication is conducted through e-mail, and the interruptions from using the intercom system have been virtually eliminated.

In addition, the school server has a folder for each class with individual folders for each student. Any work completed by students can be saved to their folder which makes it easy to access class information from several places in the school. Teachers also use Win School and e-Class to keep track of student information and to take attendance. Teachers do receive training on how to use all these programs which makes them feel more comfortable with them. And the more the teachers use the programs, the more they learn, the more comfortable they are using technology, and the less resistant they will be to using additional technology as it becomes available.

To further encourage the use of technology, a wide variety of training opportunities is made available. Technology specialists offer specialized teacher training to the staff, and several times each year a calendar of teacher training workshops is published and teachers are encouraged to attend the two hour training sessions by virtue of stipend payments made possible through grants.

Several schools require teachers to create websites with the assistance of technology specialists. Once they see how simple it is, some of the teachers go wild. A few teachers have created websites where they post everything from homework to field trip information. This makes it easy for parents to make sure homework is done.

These are just some examples of how certain schools have removed the barrier of some teachers' reluctance to use technology. With a little support, encouragement, and most importantly training, most teachers quickly get comfortable and proficient using technology more quickly than they thought possible.

Teachers Training