- In the state of Virginia, every school is required to have an ITRT. What are your opinions of this requirement?
- How can the ITRT program benefit our schools?
- What is your impression of or how would you summarize the responsibilities of an ITRT
- How do you see an ITRT helping you individually?
- What kind of plans might you have for using an ITRT as a resource?
- Is there anything you think an ITRT should do that Mike did not mention?
- Are there any remaining questions you have about ITRTs?
Monday, October 1, 2007
ITRT
Today in class Mike Grim gave you a brief glimpse into the roles and responsibilities of an ITRT. Taking into consideration the information he shared and experiences you may already have with ITRTs, post a response to this blog post to share your experiences and/or perspectives with others. Feel free to share your own thoughts or use the following prompts to help you.
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14 comments:
I really like the idea of ITRT and the use of their skills within my classroom. I think every teacher could utilize their abilities at some point in their career, especially one as knowledgeable as Mike Grim. He has worked wonders by getting my blocking mentor into the computer lab and pushing her to use more technology in her classroom. As a matter of fact, she is utilizing the Colonist website as a project for her students.
The fact that the Commonwealth of Virginia requires every school to have an ITRT is a glimpse into their educational priorities. Through this policy decision, it is apparent that Virginia is emphasizing the use of technology within the classroom by providing technological support for teachers. This support allows them to be more technologically creative in their classrooms.
I think this is a great way for teachers to be guided in the realm of molding students of the 21st century. Every student should leave public school knowing how to operate a computer. Having ITRT personnel in the schools allows teachers to take more chances with assignments that strengthen these skills. As a future teacher, I certainly do not mind having such support.
My comment is below...I forget (again) to put my name on it.
Elizabeth Webb
ITRT is a great addition to schools! So many teachers these days are technology challeneged with all of the advances, that having somebody in the school like Mike Grim would definately help! I think teachers should be required to take courses and complete workshops to improve their technology skills. Having these requirements shows the dedication that Virginia has toward education and the importance they feel it has. Many students do not have the access to a computer at home, and so it is even more important that they are given this opportunity while they are in school. There were so many helpful, creative ideas to help teachers follow the SOLS that Mike Grim had developed on the webpage.
Casey O'Toole
I think it's great that each county must have an ITRT - the more ITRT's a system has, the better things will be.
I think ITRT's would be a huge help to keep teachers current on what technology a county has and how it can be best used. Teachers have enough to do with basic instruction, without having to do make-up work with technology (although that would be fun, too).
ITRTs certainly seem busy. They keep up with the county's technology and do their best to keep both the students and the teachers on top of the tech game--which is no easy task. And then there comes the troubleshooting; from what Mike Grim said today, troubleshooting can range from connection problems to teachers who don't even understand what technology is.
I can't really think of any responsibilities that ITRT's should pick up; it seems to me that troubleshooting would take up the majority of their time. And really, troubleshooting can encompass such a wide variety of tasks that it really is a job unto itself.
Megan
I feel it is very important to have an ITRT in each school as resources for teachers as well as students. Students enjoy having access to the computer lab with activities to do. The website Mike Grim has developed is okay, not all of the programs are user friendly. I feel that once teachers learn to use the technology and start creating interactive lessons with the Smart Board, more programs will become available. It is difficult to use a great deal of technology in the classroom at DMS and PMS due to the old wiring which needs to be upgraded.
I feel Mike is doing a great job with trying to implement technology in the classrooms and giving teachers the resources they need. Having a support person at the schools is a piece of mind for most teachers who are a little apprehensive about using the equipment.
Virginia is headed in the right direction and is trying to keep the smaller tax based schools competitive with the larger ones by requiring all schools have an ITRT. I believe things will only improve.
I thought Mike's presention was very helpful in understanding his role in the schools.
Leigh Ann
Mike Jacobs
Mike Grim's presentation yesterday was pretty neat as far as giving us a small taste of the resources available to teachers in the school. I see myself using an ITRT at least once a week in the classroom. There is so much that you can integrate to fit both technology and SOL and an ITRT is the best source for that. His helpful site is a savior for a first year teacher through a twenty year veteran.
Pulaski County is awesome for having enough ITRT's for it's schools. Mike said something that was very important; that he is not just there to babysit a computer lab, he is there to instruct both students and teachers on technology.
I have seen Mike Grim around Pulaski Middle throughout this semester but have not really known his position. After his presentation I was very impressed and supportive of his duties to the two middle schools. I think an ITRT is a very useful resource for teachers, students, and administrators to use in the school system. As our technology is advancing exponentially, a ITRT seems almost mandatory in order to teach and keep the schools updated. I know that I personally would greatly benefit from an ITRT in my school to assist me with certain research projects, or science experipents that I may want to implement the latest technology with. I find that many times when I am first faced with the task of using something foreign to me dealing with technology I am very intimidated. However, with someone to help guide me at my school, I can grow more comfortable with it.
All the teachers at Pulaski seem to really value and respect Mr. Grim and all the help he provides when it comes to the computer lab, personal classroom computers, and the SMART board. It seems that without him to assist them, they may never venture out to try new things.
Laurie Morgan
I think having an ITRT is a great idea. I know that I have went to Mike on several occasions with help on things. He is a great help and knows a lot about what he is doing. I know that my teacher wants to use technology in the classroom but he does not use it alot. I think it is more of him not knowing how to instead of just not doing it. So, for him, having someone like Mike around to help you or maybe even teach a lesson using the technology so you can see how things work would be a great help.
I also love the idea that VA requires every school to have an ITRT in it. I think that it just gives the school that much more of a boost if they can have someone who is truly knowledgable about the technology and who's job is to keep up with the newest things available. I think that this can only help a school and its teachers when every one is aware of the resources that are out there and when they know how to use those resources.
Consuela
I am really glad Mike shared with us about his role as an ITRT. I had no idea what he did, nor did I realize VA had this requirement. I think having an ITRT in each school is a great way of keeping teachers and students connected and familiar with the newest technologies.
I thought Mike had a wonderful attitude about being the catch all guy for technology issues. He has found a way to use fix-it jobs as opportunities to get into the classroom. His website is phenomenal and full of great resources that would benefit teachers.
I really hope people utilize his expertise and not babysitting skills. ITRTs are wonderful resources for the schools.
-Ani Ingle
I didn’t realize there was such a thing as an ITRT. I can remember being in school and there was always a person to help the teachers when the film strip projectors would eat up the film. It is cool that the middle schools have this resource. I am already trying to push my teacher now to use some form of technology besides the overhead projector, but I could see a huge use with an ITRT in my student teaching time and when I get my own classroom. I was amazed by the web site he showed us that he had done. I think it is great that he has a background as a teacher, so he knows the workings of a classroom and what a teacher needs. I am blocking in math right now and I could see him helping me with the different ways to help kids with math using technology. He would have some creative ideas that I might not have thought of with the use of computers. As a teacher I believe it is important to have a lot of different resources to draw from, especially one that knows what technology the student is doing that I might not.
I think it is a great idea that every school is required to have an ITRT in the state of Virginia. Schools are going toward technology more and more in the classrooms. Students are very intelligent in technology and the future is advancing in this field.
Mike Grimm does a great job with the students and they respect him.
Individually, I am learning more and more about technology. I can see a ITRT as being very useful to me in the class room. My blocking mentor teacher uses Mike on occasion and he makes things look so simple. Having an ITRT is very comforting to me as I begin my teaching career. I'm sure that the support of an ITRT will be very useful in my classroom.
My opinion is that students and teachers should utilize computers in education and learning. A ITRT is a guide and mentor in this journey through technolgy. We just have to embrace it.
My comment is above. Sorry I forgot to put my name on it.
Joy Brown
I knew there were persons who were supposed to help with technology in the classrooms, but I never knew what their job title really was and what their responsibilities were. I think that it is very important to have an ITRT always available in schools. With so much technology that alot of teachers are not aware of or are even scared to use, having an ITRT would definitely ease some of that anxiety. I would love to have the ITRT instruct my class and even myself as often as possible. Having this asset available is a good way to explore many options of education as a whole. I really enjoyed Mike Grim's presentation. It was very informative, especially to me, because I was unaware that there was a such thing and I'm glad I now know because an ITRT is a resource I would love to incorporate in my class.
Teresa
Although I am not a big proponent of depending so heavily on technology I do believe that the ITRT can be an essential part of the school and my classroom. I understand there responsibilities to be to assist those who are not all that familiar with the different technologies. they are the people who hold the knowledge about things that should and need to be done in the technology field and they can help out all of those people who do not know. They are helpful to teachers who are not that familiar with the different devices in their classroom to become more aware of those things and assist with training personnel on those devices so the information is simply one sided.
An ITRT person can be helpful in finding fun and exciting things for students to do on the computer, so that students are not aimlessly searching the web. The ITRT can give them websites that they can use in order to do research and activities to do while they are there. Being that most teachers do not have the time to do a lot of the searching for themselves. I think it would also be useful for the ITRT person to do training for parents and community members who are not that familiar with computers or its capabilities
Nzingha Tingling-Clemmons
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