Comments on: Top ten skills needed to succeed as a teacher (and technology) http://ryancollins.org/2009/12/15/top-ten-skills-needed-to-succeed-as-a-teacher-and-technology/ Educational Technology Thu, 12 Apr 2012 19:16:00 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.2 By: Ryan Malany http://ryancollins.org/2009/12/15/top-ten-skills-needed-to-succeed-as-a-teacher-and-technology/comment-page-1/#comment-26792 Ryan Malany Thu, 31 Dec 2009 00:49:18 +0000 http://ryancollins.org/wp/?p=471#comment-26792 Good thoughts. A few reflections: #3: Amen. I think educators all too often use their self-proclaimed "digital immigrant" status (great title!) as a crutch to avoid having to raise their teaching/knowledge to meet 21st century technology skills/tools. We're way beyond, "Oh Johnny, will you help me put this tape in the VCR?" and teachers should be accountable for that. #7: I think educators need to click on Google's "Advanced Search" every now and then. That's the step between naive, natural language searches and knowing shortcuts/syntax. Just looking at the "Advance Search" page would show them that they have the ABILITY to control the search. My additions: (Perhaps unique to middle school teaching as I haven't taught anything else...yet) Students of successful teachers need to know what to expect. Always. How the teacher will respond to her/his joke. How the teacher will react to a sincere question. How the teacher will act towards unfocused students. What they will accomplish each day. The list goes on. Successful teachers' actions are predictable. Successful teachers are intentional. Intentional about where they stand, how they move, the volume and tone of their voice, what they acknowledge with their words, what they acknowledge with their facial expressions, and sometimes more importantly, what they ignore and teach over. Good thoughts. A few reflections:

#3: Amen. I think educators all too often use their self-proclaimed “digital immigrant” status (great title!) as a crutch to avoid having to raise their teaching/knowledge to meet 21st century technology skills/tools. We’re way beyond, “Oh Johnny, will you help me put this tape in the VCR?” and teachers should be accountable for that.

#7: I think educators need to click on Google’s “Advanced Search” every now and then. That’s the step between naive, natural language searches and knowing shortcuts/syntax. Just looking at the “Advance Search” page would show them that they have the ABILITY to control the search.

My additions:

(Perhaps unique to middle school teaching as I haven’t taught anything else…yet) Students of successful teachers need to know what to expect. Always. How the teacher will respond to her/his joke. How the teacher will react to a sincere question. How the teacher will act towards unfocused students. What they will accomplish each day. The list goes on. Successful teachers’ actions are predictable.

Successful teachers are intentional. Intentional about where they stand, how they move, the volume and tone of their voice, what they acknowledge with their words, what they acknowledge with their facial expressions, and sometimes more importantly, what they ignore and teach over.

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