Wednesday, October 7, 2015

Technology Integration

ACOT Stages of Technology Integration

www.slideshare.net


www.slideshare.net






























*At the entry stage, teachers learn to master the new tools
themselves and begin to plan how to use them in their class rooms.

*At the adoption stage, teachers begin to blend technology into
their classroom practices, without making any significant changes to those practices.

*At the adaptation stage, the new technology becomes thoroughly
integrated into traditional classroom practices and teachers begin to see some real benefits in student learning and engagement.

* At the appropriation stage, the teachers understand technology,
uses it effortlessly in their own work and in the classroom, and
have difficulty imagining how they would function without it.

*At the invention stage, teachers experiment with new instructional
patterns and ways of relating to students and to other teachers
enabled by the technology, resulting in significant changes in their classroom practices and professional lives.        (http://www.appleton.u69.k12.me.us/2003-04/i)

I remember when we bought our first home computer, the whole family gathered as we set it up and plugged it in.  We all took turns trying to see what 'it does' and marveled at how fast we thought things happened on it.  My kids played "Oregon Trail" and "Amazon Trail" and I must admit, I enjoyed sneaking on and playing the games myself. It was all so new and exciting!!

When I started working as an art teacher in our district, I did not have a computer. Our district had not entered the 'technology age' yet.  Then one year, it ALL changed, we were getting laptops and suddenly we were going to be connected!!! We enjoyed computer classes in the summer, learning and then becoming teachers to the next groups passing on all that we had learned.  Tech had arrived and tech was fun! Our tech team was small yet helpful, patient and ALWAYS available. I still remember Sunday morning house calls and midnight questions being answered on IM by our friend and tech expert Terri.

Ten years ago when technology came to our district, we were all beginners at the entry stage. Technology wasn't coming into all of our classrooms yet, but we were starting to learn new things and experiment. I think as a district we went into the adoption stage together because at that point, things were moving at a manageable pace. Soon all classrooms were equipped with SmartBoards.  I was not entirely happy with this addition to my classroom! What was I going to do with a SmartBoard....that big thing that took up a third of my display space!!! I have to admit, I did not use it much at first and even though I have found ways to incorporate it into my lessons, it's not something I use everyday. I'm not sure I'm fully at the adaptation stage but I do see benefits of technology to student learning.  In the art room, because I'm a VERY hands on teacher, I don't use laptops or iPads with my students.  I do, however, use the Smart Board to enhance my lesson.  I feel that the children use these technology tools all day in their classrooms and I firmly believe that the few hands on activities they have are extremely important to their development. I'm not sure I will ever get to the appropriation stage in my classroom. I think the "inventive" stage can also be a beginner stage. From the very first day a computer or Smart Board or iPad was introduced into the classroom it resulted in significant changes in classroom practices. 



At the elementary level  I believe an art room can function without technology. I think the middle school and high school art room is where art and technology can really take off.  That said, I do believe that STEM should be STEAM because imagination and creativity are essential for innovation in all fields.....but that's a topic for another blog!


Image from Internet

Tuesday, September 15, 2015

Posting for the first time!

Art work by M. Kozbur


Art Bug's first blog!

My name is Marta Kozbur and this is my first blog!

I grew up on the West side of Chicago in what is now known as Ukrainian Village.  It was a childhood filled with close family and friends, a very tight knit community and the freedom to roam and play without today’s worries. Church bells ringing signaled dinner time when all the neighborhood kids went running home to a delicious meal. Summer time evenings were often spent on the back porch with a transistor radio tuned in to the Cubs game, ice cold lemonade and all the neighbors doing the same thing!

Travel was something my family enjoyed doing very much. Short trips to Michigan and Canada during the year, and our annual trip to the Catskills in the summer. Of course, all trips were for visiting family. Being first generation born in the United States, the language spoken at home was always Ukrainian. With our family being scattered all over the US and Canada after emigrating from Europe following WWII, seeing each other as often as possible was a priority.  Summers in the Catskills was a place we all gathered.  The Catskills was where my grandmother, a painter, helped me make my first brush strokes. It was where I learned to love and respect nature, where I realized that art and teaching would always be a part of my life.

I met my husband of 35 years on a trip to what was then still the Soviet Union. After we married, we lived in LA for a number of years. Chicago never left my heart and so in 1990, with three small children, we moved back to the area. When my oldest started school, I became an art volunteer, or the “picture lady” as we were called. Before children, I was a graphic designer/Art Historian, now I was ready to become an Art Educator and I haven’t stopped since! 

I am passionate about my work. I share my students joy in experiencing every step of every project we work on. I also love to share in the learning….they learn from me, and I learn from them.

Student work - City of Chicago