Ed Tech and Learning

Because I work in a computer lab, I am all too familiar with the teachers who are afraid of the computers. They utilize the lab in rudimentary ways and usually incorporate zero technology into their teaching. For these teachers we need more than traditional training. To begin, training is good, but if there is no requirement to continue in what was learned during training than much of the training is lost in disuse. How can this cycle be eradicated? To begin, training must teach in a way that shows the whys behind what is happening and not simply the method to get there. For example, anyone can learn to type a letter on Word, but if someone completely unfamiliar with Word is simply shown steps and asked to follow these steps, then that person is unprepared to jump into the program and explore themselves, and they have no idea why Word responds to certain commands as they do. So our training must begin at a point that explains how and why a computer works as it does, and hopefully dispel the fears behind the inability.

Secondly there must be reiteration – no one can learn once, go away and remember what they learned. Like learning math, computer skills must be practiced and built upon to become second nature. Therefore, there needs to be a follow up to training, even if it is a simple program mastered and emailed to a technology person on a monthly basis.

Handouts work well for follow ups, as well as the training itself. Unfortunately, they also allow the trainee to simply follow steps and do not encourage independent thought. Still, handouts of print screen shots can be extremelly useful for those who are attemting to learn something new. They must be easily written, like the book “Don’t Make Me Think”, by Steve Krug, and use terminology that is either explained or simple. I would think bright colors or different colors for different sections would help focus people onto what the important sections are – and would aid the instructor who could simply say “turn to the aqua section”, instead of “turn to the page with the picture of the computer”