Managing Technology in the Classroom

Managing Technology in the Classroom

Whether you have a class set of iPads, clickers, laptops, or even students with their own personal devices; the most important thing a teacher must consider and make a plan for is how to manage students and those items.

Organization

As hard as it is to be organized...trust me, I know!...maintaining organization with devices that are worth hundreds of dollars should be a priority in any classroom. The students in my class have a number (which I'm sure many teachers already do). Having the students numbered is a convenient way to class-manage. I have an iPad cart in my classroom so everyone's iPad is located under their number.

This also lends itself for you to easily assign a "Tech" job for a student. (ummm hello? Distinguished for VSET!) I trained a student to receive the iPads from students and to check to see if they need charging and to plug them in.

I also organize my Clickers by student numbers; so each child is responsible for that clicker. Also, I have baskets valcroed to their desks and they are to keep their clickers in the baskets when they are not in use.

This is useful for when I need to move on to another activity, the clickers are in a safe place and out of their hands.

Behavior Management with Technology

As much as I like to think that my students won't do anything inappropriate on their iPads, it happens. So what are my options for consequences to a technology infraction. Well, to begin with I have a place on their weekly report under behavior where I can check off if there was a technology infraction and write in what occurred. My immediate response though, is to take the iPad away. Now, what if there isn't an alternative to this assignment. Then I have my desktops and 2 lap tops that I can have that student work on. This way, they are still able to complete the practice or assignment, but now I am able to see what is on their screen at all times. 

Classroom management takes time and trail and error. What works for some teachers may not work for others. But I believe with planning and strict consequences, any teacher can be successful.