Integrative Technology

 How do we effectively integrate technology into the classroom? The Covid-19 pandemic pushed us into doing just that, rapidly.  Teachers continue to find new ways to engage their students through the use of technology, when right now that is the only way to engage them. I am currently working at a charter elementary school in South Los Angeles that utilizes Google Workspace in a way I have never seen done before. We literally use everything that Google has to offer. Gmail for our emails and Google Calendar for our calendars. We use Google Hangouts to talk to each other quickly, since we can't do it in person.  But it is their use of Google Docs and Sheets that has me mind blown.  They are using them in ways I did not even know they could be used.  Documents are shared among team members to allow for real-time updates. Documents and Sheets have clickable links that take you to other Docs and Sheets, as well as forms and websites. Everything you need to access the...

If you thought information was readily available online before you are sadly mistaken. The global Covid-19 pandemic has led to a HUGE shift in information moving to be even more accessible online, if you can believe that.  On Friday, March 13, 2020 all schools closed their doors in hopes to stop the spread of the deadly virus and moved all learning virtual, or distance learning. When schools closed down we were told that we would be closed for a minimum of 14 days and maybe a maximum of 30 days. Well, here we are almost a full year later and still distance learning.  Distance learning invited everyone into each others homes and personal lives. As educators we now have a firsthand look into the reality of our student's home lives. Students were given laptops and wifi hotspots in order to grant them access to their lessons and teachers. Teachers had to scramble to make all of their lessons digital and administration had to scramble to make everything accessible to everyone. We w...