What Educators in Jewish Settings are Saying… About the Challenges of Integrating Technology into Our Work
More from a recent, unscientific solicitation of feedback from educators in Jewish settings… educators identified challenges they encounter in integrating technology into their work:
- Professional development, particularly for Judaic studies teachers
- The technology, especially computers, don’t always do what you want when you want Teachers and learners need support to help them to use technology effectively
- Cultural issues regarding the use of technology in Judaic studies
- Realistic budgeting goals and fundraising to maintain and upgrade technology
- Lack of technical support; no IT person; often the technology coordinator plays that role which takes him/her away from educational work
- Time issues
- Disjointedness of projects that rely on time in labs, rather than integrating the resources more smoothly
- Critical evaluation of online resources
- Lack of access by teachers and/or learners to equipment and resources
- Computer access for teachers during their work time
- Widening gap between those who have access to technology and those who don’t
- Helping administrators make good technological choices for their schools
- Lack of systemic integration of technology into educational professions, including pre-service and inservice models
- Tendency to do the same thing with new tools, rather than use the new tools to promote deeper learning
- Creating a culture in which technology helps to extend learning hours beyond typical learning settings
- It’s complex
- Although there may be buy-in, it doesn’t always fit into the culture and structures of the learning environment; often it is not a seamless fit, and requires changes in the infrastructures and expectations of the learning institutions
What are other challenges do you encounter and how do you address them?