Encouraging+fellow+travelers+to+embark+upon+the+1to1+journey

Attitudes to 1:1 vary in my school, as I'm sure they do in yours.

I'm computer coordinator and teacher of HSIE, LOTE and IT at a Central (K-12) school in the NSW Southern Tablelands. As computer coordinator, I am many things in my school: I run our network, I fix hardware and software problems, I make IT purchases... but most importantly (imho), I promote the use of ICT in classrooms - across all faculties and from K-12. I strongly believe that 1:1 can greatly enhance teaching and learning in our classrooms (and when kids are outside of class, too!).

Not everyone at my school agrees with me, though, and many who do aren't exactly sure //how// to approach 1:1 teaching and learning.

Because we're regional, our staff don't have easy access to TPL (which is why PLANE is such an exciting prospect to me). Although Information and Communication Technologies are seen as a priority by our school executive, the reality in our busy school is that there is very little opportunity to provide TPL in ICT at staff development days or during staff meetings. I know that in some other school, ICT-sessions are held at lunchtime or after-school, but that doesn't work at my school due to playground duties, other lunchtime programs, long drives home (some of over 80km), and teachers driving bus runs.

So how do I, as computer coordinator and resident geek, support and encourage my colleagues along their 1:1 journeys? I use a combination of incidental learning and pester power. I send emails, I mention ICT "stuff" in passing and in staff briefings, I encourage my students to use webtools in their other classes (and to show them to their teachers)... But the most effective strategy I've found makes use of our common staffroom, particularly our common staff PC lab. It is the simple phrase, "//Have you seen this?//" I accompany it with a walkthrough of webtool that's ready loaded on my PC and suggest ways that tool could work in my (poor, ambused) colleague's class.

And so, if you wander past my Showcase on Tuesday, be prepared, not only to hear me ask "Have you seen this?", but also to offer some suggestions as to how to use that tool in your classroom, and to introduce me to a new tool that I can take back to my school to pass on.

My 1to1 blog (which we'll be building upon today)

Symbaloo for 1to1 webtools

about.me