According to there own website the ISTE is "engaged in improving learning and teaching through the effective use of technology". After looking over their website two things become quite apparent; 1. They are making every effort to help with an issue there is very important in education today; the ue of technology. 2. They seem to be experts on the subject. All the research and data I could find concerning this organization showed me that they are clearly the authroity in this area of education. In fact no other organization really seems to compare in knowledge and professional presentation. The website for the ISTE include many very useful links including the background and development of the program as well as links for professional development and other helpful publications regarding the topic of techology in education.
A simple yet major ethical dilemma facing educators today is the sharing of software. In most cases the sharing of software programs that have been purchased from a retailor is illegal and often enough such sharing is blocked through product identification. However there are man cases in whcih sharing is possible. The question then becomes is this stealing? No teacher would want to be knowingly committing a crime to better their classroom would they? The answer may seem obvious to most, of course not. Teahcers and schools should be examples of ethical uprightness to parents and kids alike. However I ask the question, what is a teacher to do if the school simply can't afford another copy of the software? Are they to decrease the oppurtunities for students using technology? Again the ethical answer maybe obvious but I would venture to say that temptation is always there, when copies of programs are avaliable. To me there is no easy answer, a teacher always wants the best for students, but at what cost?
Finally I would like to address some of the "Educator Resources" that ISTE provides. First of 
coures is a great variety of books and electronic resources that help teachers integrate technology. Along with these are numerous peridoicals that schools and eductors can subsribe to. Another usefule product that the ISTE can provide is what they call an "Advocacy Tool Kit". This kit provides educators with a step by step process of how to bring technology into schools are extremely lacking. Along with their many print resoures ISTE provides pod casts, article archives, and many more online tools for research and development. Finally ISTE include a calendar of technology events, to encourage teachers to continue their learning in person at various sites around the country.
coures is a great variety of books and electronic resources that help teachers integrate technology. Along with these are numerous peridoicals that schools and eductors can subsribe to. Another usefule product that the ISTE can provide is what they call an "Advocacy Tool Kit". This kit provides educators with a step by step process of how to bring technology into schools are extremely lacking. Along with their many print resoures ISTE provides pod casts, article archives, and many more online tools for research and development. Finally ISTE include a calendar of technology events, to encourage teachers to continue their learning in person at various sites around the country.
I would agree that the temptation is always there and there will always be those that give into that temptation. We are humans and fallible.
ReplyDeleteI would argue that the Machiavellian mind set that the ends justifies the means is not a good opinion to hold. The main reason I would argue this is that we (teachers, administrators, adults) are suppose to be role models for the students. If we are breaking the law and using software in an illegal fashion then we are setting poor examples for our students.
We are telling them that lying is okay and doing whatever you have to in order to obtain a certain goals is alright.
Good points - I wonder if the development of free Open Source software provides an answer as well - can't afford Microsoft Office? use OpenOffice...
ReplyDelete