Technology, Digital Meadia, and Curriculum Integration

"Strategies for Integration Technology into Teaching"

The best plan for curriculum integration is to put the technology into the hands of trained teachers, make it easily accessible, and let teachers decide how best to use it at the point of instruction in their classrooms. The main thing is to provide a consistent application of technolgy tools to support instructional curriculum areas. Give each student the opportunity to work with computer and related technologies. Planning for itegration of computers in the classroom is essential, just as planning is important for effective instruction. Teachers must decide on the most appropriate technology to achieve the desired learner outcome. Teachers must plan how they will teach the curriculum, what areas they need to cover for content, and where they can use technolgy to meet curriculum standards and related learning objectives. Preparing the classroom environment is necessary, whether using one computer or many computers.

Technology, Digital Media, and Curriculum Integration

Why are Digital Media and Educational Software Applications Important for Education?

Extensive research has shown that when properly integrated, digital media and educational has the potential to affect education in many dramatic ways. Digital media applications are highly effective teaching tools. Studies indicated that students retain approximately 2o percent of what they see; 30 percent of what they hear';and 50 percent of what they see and hear. Surprisingly to me when a student has a chance to hear, see and interact with the learning environment, he can retain as much as 80 percent of the information. Students are motivated and engaged in their learning and it has been directly linked to an increase in student outcomes and reduce drop out rates.
Educational software applications enrich the learning process by providing individualize instruction and exploration; which allows students to examine their skills in a risk-free environment; and provide instant feedback, testing, and review. They are available in many different designs, forms and curriculum levels, and are correlated to state standards. The use of digital media and educational software can increase students motivation, comprehension and retention.