Skill Principals Need, By Arti Chopra

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    • Publish Date: May 26 2016 5:50PM
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    • Updated Date: Oct 29 2016 12:34PM
Skill Principals Need, By Arti Chopra
Arti Chopra, Principal, Amity International School, Sec-46, Gurgaon

As an educator, how would you re-envision the role of technology in classroom for the 21st century learner?

The learners in 21st century need to master wide-ranging body of knowledge and skills to have a competitive edge in a complex, technology driven economy and society. These include literacies and proficiencies that may enable them to communicate, collaborate, think creatively, problem solving, analysis & synthesis and leadership, to name a few.  Flipping the classrooms, participatory research, virtual field trips, project-based learning used in technology enabled classrooms today, help in lifelong learning, making it more authentic and meaningful. But at the same time more needs to be done in the direction of training the learner about not only responsible citizenship of the real world but also of the digital world. The schools and society at large need to spread awareness about the concepts such as privacy, cyber bullying, and copyright infringement and strict adherence to cyber regulations. Re-envisioning the classroom for 21st century learner, the schools shall be expected to accept alternative learning pathways including credits for internship, apprenticeship, or volunteer experience having practical job related skills. The educators have begun to provide every student direct access to technology on a daily basis for their performance to approximate their potential, that demand problem-solving, decision-making, teamwork, and innovation. The parents need to be continuously updated too and be the partners in new learning patters.
Technology will bring in a paradigm shift in the role of teacher from one of being dispenser of knowledge to a learning catalyst, orchestrating defining moments for students who would be the focal points of the classroom creating, as scientists, composing as artists and continuously designing change.

How do you empower teachers to craft digital learning?
Digital learning is a liberating shift. As teachers spend less time creating presentations and more time crafting powerful learning activities, comprising audio-visual or activity-based modules, leading to better retention and comprehension in students and saving time too in the long run. By using computers to support instruction, teachers are free to practice their craft in a way that connects them with students one-to-one or in small groups. Teachers can also leverage these learning tools to prepare the blended lesson plan and further customize lesson plans in order to cater to individual learning requirements of students. Digital learning tools are also effective in engaging students better be it a group discussion, activity-based lesson, hands-on learning or a group assignment.
During assessments, by utilizing the data and analysis that curricular systems generate, teachers are empowered with real-time feedback about student success as they can isolate specific deficiencies and find opportunities for acceleration. With the vision and plan in place, a handful of innovative educators pilot the use of new technology and methodology in their classrooms. Personal Learning Networks(PLN)are created by these digitally smart teachers through online communities. They are even encouraged to share and develop their skills and resources on social networking sites like Yammer or Twitter’s #EdChat discussions.
Sharing the learning experiences of these teacher educators on school websites or web portals encourage them to enhance their skills further, thus catapulting the teaching-learning process into a new level of excellence. 

Suggest some ways in which school heads can become effective tech-leading principals?
Facilitating and modeling behavior is the prime responsibility of the School Heads. As lead learners, they can participate as learners and work as ‘facilitators on the side’ in working with teachers to make instructional improvements. Collaboration is a cyclical reflective process and principals need to empower each other through shared leadership. For example, I don't think that one can teach responsible citizenship in the year 2016  by ignoring digital citizenship and the use of technology. If the Principals help in creating an atmosphere that inspires innovation, be open to new ideas, be a connected learner themselves, take risks and have a visionary focus, they would be able to spearhead technology driven revolution. Other than this, three leadership skills required to become effective tech-leading principals are:

• Know-ability: Knowledge and understanding of best practice, effective management of human resources and capacity building for collaboration
• Mobilize-ability: Ability to inspire and motivate others, effective communication skills, being involved in professional learning
• Sustain-ability: Building and sustaining strong relationships, creating positive nonthreatening environment of trust and encouragement
 
What do you think are the obstacles to true technology integration? 
The most cited barriers to technology integration are- 1. Poor administrative support 2. Problems with time, access, space, supervision, and operations 3. Poor software 4. Curriculum integration difficulties 5. Teacher’s attitudes and knowledge towards computers 6. Computer limitations and inadequate numbers of computers 7. Lack of technical support 8 Internet connectivity and bandwidth 9 Power shortage 10 Sustainability of implementations 
Even if all these barriers are removed at times due to lack of personal drive, focus or encouragement from school head, teachers are not inclined towards technology integration. Effective professional development is planned, intentional, systemic and an ongoing process. Encouraging teachers to take leadership roles and make decisions about interventions means that professional development is more likely to reflect the needs of teachers and students. The attitudes and actions of school leaders surrounding new technologies will encourage and support teachers as they engage in learning opportunities and explore new tools. Teacher-leaders also help to create a professional development model that is school-wide and long-lasting rather than the more typical one-shot workshops and piecemeal approaches.
 

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