There are many external and internal obstacles that teachers and schools have to work to overcome when integrating technology in the classroom. Some possible external issues are funds for devices, no wifi access for students at home, inadequate or no training for teachers, and inadequate or no support from administration and/or colleagues. External obstacles are the hardest to overcome due to the fact that most external obstacles are out of a teachers’ hands. For my school district, we worked on going 1:1 for approximately 3 years before every student in our district had a device to take home. Grant money played a huge roll in that along with other things. We also have mifi boxes, which allows our students to access the internet from home if they do not have internet. If training is not provided by the school district, there are many other ways that teachers can train themselves starting with researching. There are so many videos that teachers can watch or articles that teachers can read to become familiar with integrating technology into the classroom.
Some internal obstacles that may occur are teachers’ attitudes and beliefs, lack of time, and lack of confidence and skills. The good thing about going 1:1 is that it allows all teachers to use technology in their classrooms. This can help change a teachers attitude due to the fact that their colleagues are doing it. Sometimes teachers are hesitant to change their teaching methods, but it helps seeing others willing to try new things. Lack of time is really just lack of planning. There is always time. You just have to decide what else to cut to make room for the technology. It can be done and is well worth it for the students. Lack of confidence comes with time. Teachers have to be willing to try new things even if it fails the first time or more than once. I have failed many of my teaching days, but I always make sure to come in the next class ready to fix my mistake and find a way to continue using technology even if something didn’t work. The main thing is realizing that you can’t push technology. In other words, don’t use it just because it’s there. Be intentional about it. Make sure to have a plan and stick to it.
Haley Oyervidez EDTECH 541 Blog 