COETAIL--Standards--With or Without You
Some of us teach in situations where we are not advised to follow particular standards, or the standards are vague. Sometimes even when we ask for standards or guidelines we learn that they don't seem to exist. In such cases, there are still guiding global standards that we can follow and apply in our teaching endeavors. So whether the standards are set out for us or not, we can strive to become better teachers for our students living in a digital world.
The International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) provides standards for students, teachers, coaches, administrators and more. In the near future, I believe that in many academic environments the ISTE standards for teachers will be expected of all teachers, and will play a role in the the hiring and promotion of teachers.
ISTE also provides a list of Essential Conditions to "effectively leverage technology for learning." Reading through these, my heart sinks. Oh, to teach in an institution with these conditions! Yet I wonder if there are any universities in Japan that can offer these conditions. I suspect that these dream-like conditions are not met in most higher education institutions in Japan. Higher education in Japan has struggled with a declining birth rate and loss of foreign students following the 2011 earthquake which has contributed to university closures, limited funding for universities, and--my personal belief--restraint in innovation at universities. Japan has the technology. Japan has innovators. Japan has tremendous potential to create these conditions. But how long will it take? And what will be the consequences for the students in Japan if universities cannot offer these conditions?
The Japan Association of Language Teachers (JALT) has a Computer Assisted Language Learning (CALL) SIG, with a conference upcoming in May in Nagano. Through JALT CALL conference sessions years ago, I first gained confidence in using technology in my university classes. My particular teaching situation did not quite match that of other attendees, but I was able to gain new understandings and was exposed to new approaches, and I began creating internet-based projects and assignments. It has been several years since I've attended a JALT CALL conference. It would be interesting to know if the ISTE standards are familiar to language teachers in Japan and if so, how they are being implemented.
So, with or without standards presented to me, with or without the ideal conditions, I'll be aiming to follow the ISTE teacher standards in my teaching. COETAIL is helping me find my way.
The International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) provides standards for students, teachers, coaches, administrators and more. In the near future, I believe that in many academic environments the ISTE standards for teachers will be expected of all teachers, and will play a role in the the hiring and promotion of teachers.
ISTE also provides a list of Essential Conditions to "effectively leverage technology for learning." Reading through these, my heart sinks. Oh, to teach in an institution with these conditions! Yet I wonder if there are any universities in Japan that can offer these conditions. I suspect that these dream-like conditions are not met in most higher education institutions in Japan. Higher education in Japan has struggled with a declining birth rate and loss of foreign students following the 2011 earthquake which has contributed to university closures, limited funding for universities, and--my personal belief--restraint in innovation at universities. Japan has the technology. Japan has innovators. Japan has tremendous potential to create these conditions. But how long will it take? And what will be the consequences for the students in Japan if universities cannot offer these conditions?
The Japan Association of Language Teachers (JALT) has a Computer Assisted Language Learning (CALL) SIG, with a conference upcoming in May in Nagano. Through JALT CALL conference sessions years ago, I first gained confidence in using technology in my university classes. My particular teaching situation did not quite match that of other attendees, but I was able to gain new understandings and was exposed to new approaches, and I began creating internet-based projects and assignments. It has been several years since I've attended a JALT CALL conference. It would be interesting to know if the ISTE standards are familiar to language teachers in Japan and if so, how they are being implemented.
So, with or without standards presented to me, with or without the ideal conditions, I'll be aiming to follow the ISTE teacher standards in my teaching. COETAIL is helping me find my way.
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