Establishing Classroom Technology Routines

In today’s episode, we'll explore four questions to address when establishing technology routines for your K-12 classroom. Visit AVID Open Access to learn more.

Transcript

Paul Beckermann 0:01 Welcome to Tech Talk for Teachers. I'm your host, Paul Beckermann.

Transition Music with Rena's Children 0:05 Check it out. Check it out. Check it out. Check it out. What's in the toolkit? Check it out.

Paul Beckermann 0:16 The topic of today's episode is establishing classroom technology routines. Teachers know toolkit? Check it out.

Paul Beckermann 0:16 The topic of today's episode is establishing classroom technology routines. Teachers know the value of routines and procedures. They help with classroom management and create efficiency in the classroom, especially during transitions from one space or activity to another. They also give students structure and predictability, which can help them feel safer and more confident in your classroom space.

As we approach the start of another school year, teachers are undoubtedly planning to outline and practice routines in the first weeks of the year. As we do this, it's important not to forget about technology and the routines that accompany tech use and management, because more and more classrooms feature one-to-one programs where every student has their own dedicated device. Tech has become almost ubiquitous. It's used almost constantly for learning, materials, management, and communication.

As you prepare for the start of another school year, consider addressing these four key questions when establishing and implementing your classroom technology routines.

Transition Music with Rena's Children 1:16 Here is your list of tips. Here is your list. Here is your here is your here is your list of tips.

Paul Beckermann 1:23 Number one: when and what technology is allowed. Students need to know when they're allowed to use their devices. They also need to know which digital tools are appropriate for which learning tasks. Because of this, there should be some type of clear signal as to when and how much students can use their device for completing their classroom work.

Here are a few ways you can set up a communication system with your students. One option is to use visual cues, such as a color-coded stoplight chart at the front of the room. This might be hung up as an anchor chart, or it might be placed on a bulletin board in front of the room. A green light can signal that tech is okay to use. A yellow light might indicate that students should have their tech ready for use when the teacher asks them to use it. A red light might indicate that tech should be turned off and put away.

The system sets clear expectations and communicates those expectations in a consistent manner. To help guide students, both in class and when they're working on homework, you might consider including a tech expectations section with the directions for each assignment. The more consistent this is, the better. Maybe it's the exact same bulleted list on every assignment with check marks in front of different options that are allowed for that particular assignment.

In addition to an "if tech can be used" part of this checklist, you might also include which specific digital tools can be used to assist with completing that work. When it comes to the use of AI, the Laguna Beach Unified School District has developed a helpful Google Docs add-on for this purpose called AI Trust You. With this option, the teacher completes a checklist indicating what is allowed on the assignment, and then pastes that into the assignment or document or directions. The student completes the same checklist when they're ready to turn in their work, and they paste it into their submitted assignment. Not only does this foster clear expectations, but it also promotes trust and honesty in regards to AI use. If you're looking for a process that's already been developed, consider checking out AI Trust You.

In addition to visual cues, you might consider verbal signals as well. If you go this route, you want to establish clear and consistent expressions that you'll use with the class. For example, you might say "screens at 45 degrees" when you want students to pause their use of a computer and give you their attention. You can also incorporate a call and response approach to get students actively engaged in the communication, such as "lids down, eyes up". In this case, you would say "lids down," and the students would respond with "eyes up". That would be their clue to look up at you. Call and response routines can be very effective.

Paul Beckermann 6:01 Number two: how will students access and submit digital assignments? Consistency is key here as well. How will you distribute and collect student work? If it's paper and pencil, you likely already have a process for passing out and collecting that work that you've used before, and you may have your class practice that routine each time they have a paper and pencil activity. The same should apply for assignments and learning tasks that require technology.

Where will students find documents and links that they will need to complete the work, and how will they turn them in when they're finished? You want to establish a clear and consistent location and process for this. Usually, this will involve posting to a learning management system. Within that system, it's important that you also have consistency. Use a common folder structure. Maybe it's chronological, so students can search by date. Maybe it's by unit or assignment type, whatever you choose; be consistent, so students don't need to waste time searching for materials. If they can't find it, they can't complete it.

If students are submitting their work digitally, make sure that the due dates are clearly posted and that the type of submission is clear as well. If there's an integrated calendar option in your LMS, this can be an intuitive way for students to see what is due on a particular day. In fact, if you can, it's a good idea to have multiple pathways to required materials and links. For instance, you might develop a routine of posting assignments in an upcoming events announcement that gets emailed to students, while also adding a link to the class calendar and having it posted to a color-coded assignment folder in your LMS. The biggest key is consistency. Make sure that your students know your method and then stick to it.

Paul Beckermann 8:09 Number three: what if something goes wrong or doesn't work? Tech routines fall apart quickly if devices aren't working, or if students are stuck on small issues and don't know how to solve them. Therefore, it's essential to proactively build troubleshooting into your routines, just like you would with any classroom management strategy.

Here are a few approaches you might consider: start by teaching basic fixes. Every student should know. This includes things like how to refresh your browser, how to check Wi-Fi connection, how to restart a frozen app or device, and what to do if audio or video isn't working. Teach students how to do this troubleshooting and practice if possible. You might want to reinforce this by posting a "what to do if" troubleshooting guide or flowchart in your classroom or in your LMS for students to reference.

Another good troubleshooting tip is to create a troubleshooting protocol like "ask three before me". A spin-off of this is "ask three before T," with T meaning the teacher. The three primary checkpoints might include referencing a tech checklist, asking a buddy, and Googling for the answer. If these efforts don't work, then students can ask the teacher.

If you don't want students interrupting you, you could develop some sort of nonverbal help signal, like putting a color-coded card at the edge of a desk. I've also seen students keep a stack of three colors of plastic cups at their desk. When the cup on top is green, they're good. When they display the red cup, they need help immediately. Yellow might mean that they need help, but it's not urgent.

A third troubleshooting option is to designate certain students as the tech experts in your classroom. For some students, this is their area of expertise and a source of personal pride. Giving them a position of importance in your classroom can build up their confidence and esteem while taking pressure off of you.

Paul Beckermann 10:22 Number four: how can I set my students up for success? Certain routines might seem obvious to the teacher, but students might not see it the same way. If procedures and routines are not clearly understood by the students, they won't work. So it's important to be very clear in explaining an expectation or routine.

At the same time, we need to realize that simply explaining something is not enough. For many students, they won't internalize what we've told them until they apply it and do it themselves. This is where practice comes in. Have students practice their tech routines before there are high stakes involved, like project due dates and late work penalties. For instance, if you're teaching how to access and submit an assignment, you might want to do this with a fun puzzle-type activity or a "get to know you" survey, something that's fun, engaging, and not academically high pressure.

In fact, you might build some sort of digital mixer into the first several days of classes to cement these procedures and build community at the same time. Connecting the routines to a fun activity can also associate these tasks with positive connotations and good feelings going forward. That's a plus.

In addition to practice, make sure students know that having trouble with technology is normal. Mistakes happen. Bugs occur in computer systems. Sometimes the internet goes down. Help them see tech issues as normal and something they can overcome by following your classroom procedures and by helping each other out.

Oh, and here's a bonus tip. Ask yourself: how can I give students a voice in creating classroom routines? Ownership goes a long way toward gaining more student buy-in. If the routines belong to the students, they're more apt to see their value and follow them. Plus, it helps to build classroom community and trust. By involving students, you are signaling that you respect and trust them.

So as you prepare for the new school year, be sure to include technology procedures in your classroom startup process. The four questions I mentioned are good places to start, but you know your classroom best. What are your needs? And how can you make sure that those needs are met by consistent routines that students both understand and own?

To learn more about today's topic and explore other free resources, visit avidopenaccess.org. Specifically, I encourage you to check out "Back to School Teacher Technology Checklist", and of course, be sure to join Rena, Winston, and me every Wednesday for our full-length podcast, Unpacking Education, where we're joined by exceptional guests and explore education topics that are important to you. Thanks for listening. Take care, and thanks for all you do. You make a difference.