Monday, April 06, 2009

Autonomy, Technology, and Trust

Katie is on to something today over at Digital Ed:
Perhaps a better strategy would be fostering an environment which allows teachers who are looking for new techniques and teaching tools to be able to easily put those to use in their classrooms. As I've heard over and over, having an administrator who is open to, and supportive of, new technologies, even if he or she is not personally familiar with them, can make all the difference.


A while back I posted about the recent rise of Finland as an international math and science education superpower. I concentrated in that post on the determination the Finns showed in getting their folks digitally up-to-speed. But there is something else in the reports that is equally as important: a promise to give teachers more autonomy in the classroom.

An inquisitive tech-smart teacher with the content chops, administrative support, and autonomy to explore and experiment with a variety of teaching strategies = better educated kids. Trust goes a long way -- brandished wisely it is the mark of a great administrator.

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