A Wrap Up: Where do we go from here?

One hour, twice a week, every other week.  That is the total amount of time our fifth grade students spend in the computer lab over the course of the year.  I’m reiterating this statement from the introduction so you can see if you have a different feeling reading it after all that has been discussed.  Is it enough?  Is it enough time to have students blog, to flip a classroom, to engage in challenge-based learning?  The list goes on, but the answer remains the same.  No, that is not enough time or exposure to technology for our students.

The benefits of flexibility and customization, the abundant resources, and higher parent involvement are all great reasons to implement more technology into the classroom.  With flipped classrooms, student blogs, challenge-based learning, microlectures, and online learning modules, the possibilities are endless.  Also, the online classroom is nothing to be afraid of.  Many teachers already employ the same strategies in a traditional classroom that can be carried into the virtual one.  With all of these great advantages of using technology in the classroom, what else can be said except, “Let’s get started!”