For
this interactivity, I interviewed a high school (grades 9-12) foreign language teacher in the
Wayne Public School District. Upon presenting the interview questions, I was
shocked that not only had the school not begun to implement these standards,
but that this particular instructor had not even heard of them at all. She was
a little confused when the interview started but after I presented her with a
copy of the standards she was able to tell me that she was not familiar with
them. However, she was also very eager to learn about them and asked where she
would be able to find a copy of these standards for herself so she could decide
if she could employ them into her classroom. This surprised me due to the fact
that I am a product of the Wayne school system and always felt as though I was
privileged to go to school in an area where technology was integrated into the
curriculum effectively. I was also surprised due to the fact this teacher is a Montclair
State graduate, and I had assumed that her course of study here would have
introduced her to the NETS.
Through the interview, the instructor made it
clear that not only did her school not implement the NETS standards, but the
district overall had not begun either. She also did not know if the state of
New Jersey had even started introducing the NETS standards at all. However, she
assured me that technology integration initiatives were taken to increase
student proficiency and media literacy. Wayne has adapted some of the
requirements of the ISTE by providing advanced technology in classrooms. Some
examples of the electronic equipment to better suit the needs of an advancing
society would be the Smart boards, ELMO, and LCD screens. In the foreign language classrooms, they have
updated some of the textbooks for a modern society and a more streamlined way
of learning. Some of the benefits to the
new textbooks are authentic conversations, real-life scenarios, references to
current events, online workbook capacity, and availability of music and film.
It is clear that the district has taken more initiative with technology since I
graduated in 2009 and I hope to see them implement the NETS standards in the
near future.
As
a future educator, I would speak to others in my school about the NETS
standards in order to assure that students are receiving the most out of their education.
I believe that during a job interview I would ask if the district has
implemented the use of the standards and if they have not I would raise
awareness of their existence. I feel by doing this, I would be able to show how
the standards should be incorporated into the curriculum and reach a broader
audience. Once in a district, I would provide a copy to each educator and
faculty member and explain the importance of the standards as well as provide
ways in which they can be introduced.
Sara, it was intresting reading your blog post because unlike me, you were able to interview a foreign language teacher. I was surprised to know that these standards were so new to your teacher. I feel that technology plays a big role in learning a new language. It it good to keep theses standards available for us to use in the future as foreign language teachers.
ReplyDeleteSara, I was just as surprised as you were! My teacher was an Italian teacher who was young enough I felt to be aware of these standards. We as new educators understand the important of technology and it may later fall on us to stress the need for the school or district to get on board with these important standards. I am positive when the time comes that we will be prepared.
ReplyDeleteSara, I was just as shocked as you were to learn that the teacher I interviewed had never heard of these standards before as well. It is surprising because the standards are very structured and would be very useful in the classroom so it is surprising to hear that many people haven't even heard of them let alone use them in their instruction. Like your teacher, mine too was also interested in learning more about them. They can really help students not only for the present time in the classroom but also when they get into college and eventually get a career, having had a strong background with technology and different ways it is utilized.
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