Standard 4.1 Digital Equity
Candidates model and promote strategies for achieving equitable access to digital tools and resources and technology-related best practices for all students and teachers. (PSC 4.1/ISTE 5a)
Artifact: Equitable Access Blog
Reflection:
GaryMichel Reflection 4.1 Digital Equity
The artifact that best illustrates my ability to model and facilitate strategies for achieving equitable access to digital tools and resources is my Equitable Access blog that I wrote in ITEC 7430 Internet Tools. I wrote this reflective blog in reaction to readings and discussions we completed in this course on the topic of Equitable Access and the Digital Divide.
In the blog I discuss the finding of several articles that examine the changing state and current impact of digital equity. While many people in education seem to believe that the digital divide of the past has slowly dissipated, these articles and the circumstances at the school I work in prove that not to be the case. Digital equity is still present; it has only transformed itself from not having access to technology into not using technology to encourage educational growth. In my blog I speak to these differences and I write about Marietta High School and the various ways we work to provide digital equity for all of our students. Marietta High School is a Title I school and we still experience the effects of students not having access to digital tools. Also in my blog, I make suggestions for programs that can help provide digital tools and resources for students to use at home.
In the blog I write about Marietta High School’s eight computer labs and department computer laptop carts that are available for student use. Also MHS is a bring your own technology (BYOT) school, a program that was initiated two years ago, in order to provide access to technology for all students. These are two approaches that have helped to give students access to digital tools and resources for education. In my job as a media specialist I have worked closely to coach teachers and students on using these resources for instruction. I have also taught many workshops and classes about the use of personal technology in our school and how to implement and facilitate the BYOT program.
Another program at MHS that I write about in my blog is the MCS Kiwanis Laptop initative. This is a laptop initiative program that I have worked on for the last two years. This program is a scholarship opportunity to put personal laptops in the hands of needy students. I also work within this program to make sure the students that receive these laptops are trained to use them to meet the needs of their classes.
In completing this artifact and in participating in the MCS Kiwanis initiative, I have learned a great deal about digital equity and how it affects student learning and education. I learned that not having access to technology is only one aspect of closing the digital divide, there is a great deal of work left to do, in order to further close the divide that concerns education. In order to make this program stronger, I believe that technology training for the students that receive this scholarship should be mandatory. While several of the students that receive the computers used them effectively for learning and projects, I feel that many more could have benefited from more training.
The work that went into creating this artifact impacted faculty development and student learning. First, I used what I learned in my reading for this blog to update members of our faculty that have participated in the BYOT workshops. Second, student learning was impacted for the students who received the laptops.
GaryMichel Reflection 4.1 Digital Equity
The artifact that best illustrates my ability to model and facilitate strategies for achieving equitable access to digital tools and resources is my Equitable Access blog that I wrote in ITEC 7430 Internet Tools. I wrote this reflective blog in reaction to readings and discussions we completed in this course on the topic of Equitable Access and the Digital Divide.
In the blog I discuss the finding of several articles that examine the changing state and current impact of digital equity. While many people in education seem to believe that the digital divide of the past has slowly dissipated, these articles and the circumstances at the school I work in prove that not to be the case. Digital equity is still present; it has only transformed itself from not having access to technology into not using technology to encourage educational growth. In my blog I speak to these differences and I write about Marietta High School and the various ways we work to provide digital equity for all of our students. Marietta High School is a Title I school and we still experience the effects of students not having access to digital tools. Also in my blog, I make suggestions for programs that can help provide digital tools and resources for students to use at home.
In the blog I write about Marietta High School’s eight computer labs and department computer laptop carts that are available for student use. Also MHS is a bring your own technology (BYOT) school, a program that was initiated two years ago, in order to provide access to technology for all students. These are two approaches that have helped to give students access to digital tools and resources for education. In my job as a media specialist I have worked closely to coach teachers and students on using these resources for instruction. I have also taught many workshops and classes about the use of personal technology in our school and how to implement and facilitate the BYOT program.
Another program at MHS that I write about in my blog is the MCS Kiwanis Laptop initative. This is a laptop initiative program that I have worked on for the last two years. This program is a scholarship opportunity to put personal laptops in the hands of needy students. I also work within this program to make sure the students that receive these laptops are trained to use them to meet the needs of their classes.
In completing this artifact and in participating in the MCS Kiwanis initiative, I have learned a great deal about digital equity and how it affects student learning and education. I learned that not having access to technology is only one aspect of closing the digital divide, there is a great deal of work left to do, in order to further close the divide that concerns education. In order to make this program stronger, I believe that technology training for the students that receive this scholarship should be mandatory. While several of the students that receive the computers used them effectively for learning and projects, I feel that many more could have benefited from more training.
The work that went into creating this artifact impacted faculty development and student learning. First, I used what I learned in my reading for this blog to update members of our faculty that have participated in the BYOT workshops. Second, student learning was impacted for the students who received the laptops.