Campus Wizardry

I am a geek, which means I crave, lust after, jones for all things technological. I am also a teacher which means I am an overworked, underpaid glutton for punishment serving a client base of 5-12 year olds. When working with teachers who are primarily, for the most part, non-geek it is easy to become jaded after 14 years of solving technological mysteries of unplugged printers, re-starting computers, audio-visual connections and wireless passwords. It is rare that a teacher presents new information or shares some marveled new device but more common for them to present new ways that they have broken something. When I share new gadgets or information it is simply touted as "fancy" and for the most part ignored. When I show the students how I can control the computer with a wii remote they are amazed and beg for the chance to use it. When I give a demonstration of midi controllers using an ewi 4000s they can't wait to go home and ask their mothers for one. The staff refers to this midi wind device as an electric clarinet. When interacting with and observing students and teachers appreciation for and use of technology it is clear that most teachers would be graded on a sharp learning curve while students who marvel at technology are limited in their access and use of digital tools. After compiling data from a recent tech survey I was surprised to find out how many teachers wanted to integrate audio and visual components into their lessons and wanted training with powerpoint. Our campus does not yet provide consistent training for incorporating technology in the classroom and it is done on a personal level by myself and others with higher level abilities. When reviewing my own shortcomings I have forgotten how to manually manipulate spreadsheets because I have become so dependent on templates.(Which are a great time saver) However when looking at the level of technology integration on our campus I believe that my biggest weakness has been not being more influential in helping teachers become more tech savvy. Although I am capable of functioning in the digital domain with few shortcomings I have neglected my duties as a good teacher who motivates and excites the students preparing them to seek out learning on their own. Geeks love to brandish their technological wands of wizardry as tools of power and amazement while good teachers love to watch students discover their own wands of amazement through the power of learning. If we are to lead others into the digital domain there should be a roadmap for students and teachers to follow with honest assessments of where everyone is and how to move us to where we want to be. My part in this transformation is to relinquish my wand, come from behind the curtain and empower teachers with their own brand of "magic".