Instructional+time+needed

=How much time will instructors need to adapt to and integrate new technologies into lesson plans and teaching strategies?=

This is a great question to ask, but the answer is dependent on the level teacher support and commitment given towards the initiative.

Instructors need the following requirements to successfully integrate new technologies:
A. Professional development on new technologies B. Mentors to aid in integration of new technologies to lesson planning C. Adequate time to learn new technologies D. Desire to change teaching to allow use of new methods and technologies.

A. Professional development on new technologies Technologies can be better incorporated with a proper amount of instruction given to the instructors who will utilize the new technologies. It is critical that teachers are able to receive help from either the tech support specialists in the school district or the manufacturer of the product. It is imperative that quality instruction on the new technology be given to teachers.

B. Mentors to aid in integration of new technologies to lesson planning Jamie Efaw wrote in Educause Quarterly about the importance of pairing mentors with faculty new to the technology being implemented. Peer to peer training with modeling of successful techniques aids the learning process and increases the success rate of learning and utilizing the new technology. Instructor collaboration provides a forum that allows discussions and enhances reflections.

C. Adequate time to learn new technologies A supervisor cannot issue a demand to integrate new technologies without giving his or her's constituents training on the new technology and time to experiment with it. Mike Schmoker has a quote in "Results" that is applicable: "Schools don't pilot anything. They just send ideas and innovations off and wave at them from the pier, never to be seen again" (p. 37). Instructors cannot successfully implement new technologies without a pilot period to learn about the technology and how to incorporate it into one's teaching style.

D. Desire to change teaching to allow use of new methods and technologies. Although technology is designed to enhance and improve teaching, it does require one to change. It takes work to learn a new product and instructors need to buy into the idea of change before new technologies can successfully be implemented. Instructors will want to learn how to use new technologies if there is a specific purpose for them and if it will improve student achievement and increase efficiency in planning.

Resources:
[|Spencer Valley Elementary of San Diego County, California Technology Plan] [|Southern Kings Consolidated School (Canada) Technology Plan] [|Department of Ed timeline link] [|Conditions for teacher preparation.] [|Integration of technology paper.]

Efaw, Jamie. No Teacher Left Behind: How to Teach with Technology. Educause Quarterly, Number 4 (2005) McNamara, Elizabeth and Grant, Cathy Miles. Strategies for Teacher Collaboration: An Individualized Approach to help Teachers Bring Content and Technology Together. Hanau Model Schools Partnership Implementation Manual. (1998) Schmoker, Mike. Results: The Key to Continuous School Improvement. ASCD (1999).