The Teacher is Important...

Technology is just a tool. In terms of getting the kids working together and motivating them, the teacher is most important.” – Bill Gates

 

 

Recently, I was given the quote by Bill Ferriter, "Popular classroom tools...don't excite kids," and I was supposed to tell if I thought it was accurate.  I thought about it for a long time before I was able to make my decision. Of course, kids get used to something & it becomes common, but is it not our job as educators to keep introducing new tools and new ideas so things don't seem so dull?
 

I feel like it is more about the teacher & making sure our lessons are not mediocre so our students remain engaged and excited about what they are learning and doing in class.  I am sure some technology will become “boring” to our students, but luckily (as we’ve learned and are learning) technology is always changing. There are always new apps to add to our learning library, new tools to add more excitement.  My opinion is that educators need to be life-long learners so we can provide what our students need, and so we don’t have students who lose their excitement about learning.

 

When I started thinking more about the quote by Ferriter, I looked for a quote to show my thoughts, and I absolutely loved the quote by Bill Gates.  We always need to remember that technology is only a tool.  We are the motivators.  We are the ones who teach the kids how to work together.  We are the ones responsible for making the content interesting!