Technology Integrations?

I do not understand education's love affair with "integrations." The endless mandates that tell teachers what to integrate in their lessons often are frustrating, confusing, and not very beneficial. Technology-based tools, interactive activities, and real-world applications that should and would naturally appear in any good teacher's lessons and interactions with students are often hailed as something above the ordinary. Many teachers are already doing these things but simply do not recognize them because administrators in every sector cover these ordinary tasks in so much "techno-speak, educational-jargon, and legal-ese" (depending on the administrators area of concern).



For instance, I was asked to tell you how many integrations I have completed in the past year. I , like most teachers, use some sort of technology almost daily (and usually several times a day) either to prepare lessons, perform daily or routine tasks, interact with the educational community, assess student progress, and student activities. So tell me how do count this? Even teachers who may not use a computer use other technologies such as cell phones, DVD and CD players and recorders, televisions, special viewers or boards, etc.



Hopefully, my blog will allow teachers to share not just tried and tested uses of technology but new and maybe uncharted areas. Remember that new technologies and improvements on old technologies are being release almost continually. I want teachers to be able to say and ask whatever they like without worrying if their using the right words or accidentally misspelled something. Thus the name speakeazay (play on speakeasy) for the address and Release It! for the name of the blog.