Do you remember the scene in Santa Claus is Coming to Town where Burgermeister Meisterburger makes all of the children turn in their toys? This awful tyrant is forcing them to return the one thing that gives them the most joy, and devastation sets in. Well, I have felt like that awful tyrant this week because I am tasked with collecting student laptops as the school year comes to an end. However, the more I think about it, the more I like it.
When our district went 1:1 I was one of “those teachers” that saw more of the negatives than the positives. I did not think that our teachers would embrace the technology, and I did not think the students would be responsible enough to maintain the device. Other than that time in college where I thought I would look good with long hair, I do not think I have ever been more wrong about something in my entire life. After one week, I realized that it was the best thing to happen to my school in years. I enjoyed having them in my class so much that I joined the Ed Tech Department so that I could help teachers find new ways to use the devices the following year.
I enjoy watching students use their devices in class creating amazing products using many of the amazing tech tools we have introduced to them. However, what I enjoy most is seeing students use their device outside of the classroom. This week I have relished in hearing the students in line talk to each other about how they were going to survive without their laptop. One discussed how he enjoyed using Google Keep on his laptop much more than he does on his phone. He was not quite sure how he was going to adjust. Another said she finished creating a Mother’s Day card in Canva, but never did a Father’s Day one. Now she does not know what to do. Now, are these the most academic examples of how students use their district provided devices? Of course not (the Google Keep discussion actually had something to do with video games). However, this is what we have strived for, teaching the students why we use the technology we do so that they could find ways to use it in their own lives.
Our job is not to teach students how to take a quiz in Socrative or how to use Padlet to post an exit ticket. Our job is to show them how these tools are useful in their learning, and encourage them to find uses for them in their everyday life. When I find them using Aurasma on their “Vote for Me for Prom King” poster I realize that they understand we learned how to use that for their overall benefit, not just because I needed something to do in class that day. And when I find them putting together a budget or comparing college financial data in Excel, I understand that they truly found the benefit in what we were learning. My biggest fear is that students will think I am teaching them something just because I had to fill a day of instruction with something.
As a result of all this, I look back on the students’ disappointment for having to return their device and I have found that just this once, it is OK to take pleasure in your students’ misery. It means that you have been doing your job properly, and have taught them so well that they cannot live without the tools we have given them. It is also a good opportunity to tackle more problem solving issues like, “you don’t have a computer, so how can we accomplish this with your phone?” Adding versatility to their repertoire of technology skills is an important skill to have in the modern times.
So, if you are picking up devices this week and you feel like Burgermeister Meisterburger, be sure to remind the kids that this isn’t permanent. Come August, Santa Claus is coming to town, and he will be bringing their toys back with him.
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