Who's Using Technology In Your Classroom?

In your classroom, who spends the most time using technology? You or your students? Do you use the interactive whiteboard or tablet while students watch, or do your students use it to teach each other? Do you use the document camera to share information, or do your students use it to share their work? Do you use the Flip camera or digital camera to capture classroom activities, or do students use them to create multimedia projects? If the technology tools in your classroom are in your hands more than your students', then you are limiting the impact technology can have on student engagement with content and ultimately student learning. Create opportunities throughout the day to get students activitely using technology to interact with content, with each other, or with others around the world. When you put technology into the hands of your students, you increase their ownership of and motivation for learning. I have witnessed this over and over in classrooms,  particularly this year in our iPad pilot classrooms. Students will not reap the benefits of technology use until you let them use the tools instead of you. Look for ways to hand over the equipment and get students interacting with content through technology.