EXPERT AND NOVICE TEACHERS TALKING TECHNOLOGY: PRECEPTS, CONCEPTS, AND MISCONCEPTS

Carla Meskill, Jonathan Mossop, Stephen DiAngelo, and Rosalie K. PasqualeUniversity at Albany, State University of New York

http://llt.msu.edu/vol6num3/meskill/


This article talks about a project led by four experts in education and English teaching around the world. They contrast and compare the experiences of expert and novice teachers. They point out the importance that the experience of experienced teachers and technology users have in using computers in their classrooms. According to the authors those experiences really can inform novice teachers how to use technology and how to deal with unexpected situations.

Through interviews with eight teachers - two expert teachers and technology users, five novice teachers of public schools but with limited experience in teaching and with computers and one called "transitional expert" an experienced teacher but with any experience in technology at all - the authors illustrate the differences between them in terms of appreciation of the potential of computers and how they apply technology in their classes.

The main differences between these three groups were: expert teachers see the computer as a tool. They are focus on learning and the relation between students and technology. They are able to work with and without computers. Expert teachers can shift their plan according to the students needs and behaviors. They do not see themselves as "the most important character in the class" they give support and can assume a new role easily.

Novice teachers, on the other hand, are centered in computer. Sometimes they do not feel confident about their capacity and knowledge about teaching. They are concerned about children behavior when they are in front of the computer. They see themselves as people who start with every activity in the class, they start the learning process.

The "transitional expert" move from a skeptical view of technology to a more open perception of the educational power of computers. Like novice, this teacher feels herself as the main figure of the class, but she relies in her capability and in her experience of how to manage a class.

In my personal opinion this article is pretty interesting because we can relate it to our experience as students. We as future teachers have been trained in some aspects of technology usage, especially Internet. I think that it is very important to have these experiences in mind when we teach in the future. We need to understand that achieve learning is the main goal of our work as teachers. We have all kind of materials and tools at hand and we must know how to use them.

What i liked the most about this article is the fact that we can relate it to the discussions that we have had in this workshop. We have talked about many topics that appear in the article such as student-centered teaching, the importance of planning activities and the belief that computers in classrooms are really useful and help to improve teaching and achieve learning.