Here is the link to a recent guest blog post I created for Iste Connects:

http://www.isteconnects.org/2010/08/23/keeping-students-engaged-using-cell-phones-and-other-tech-in-the-classroom/

Here is the text of the blog:

Student Engagement: Using Cell Phones and Other Tech in Classrooms

Last night I sat in the auditorium of my sons’ high school for orientation. The students had been dismissed to a scavenger hunt to learn their way around the building, and parents were left behind to visit with the principal. After a long day at work, my mind was beginning to wander, and every time I blinked my eyes, they opened a little more reluctantly. I was in one of those situations where folks asked questions that  you couldn’t hear, and the principal gave an answer that no one really cares about except the asker.

Then, I heard him say this, “Each class has a textbook, but if a teacher is only working from the text, she’s not doing it right. The text should be considered a resource, but the teacher is there to engage the students, use technology and even cell phones to teach the students.”

I sat up straight and considered the possibilities.

As educators, we are reluctant to change our ways. Honestly, if you’ve been teaching the same subject for 15 years, why would you rock the boat? But if we stop learning and trying new things, we become stagnant and obsolete. The children we teach today are fundamentally better at understanding technology than we are. They’ve been immersed in electronics every day of their lives. They eat it up. How can a textbook possibly compete with Youtube? And how can you and your chalkboard possibly compete with the text message buzzing wordlessly in their pocket?

We must embrace the technology that excites our students. The Tomorrow Group has recently conducted some research that may surprise you.

98% of high school students have a cell phone.
83% of middle school students have a cell phone
43% of 3rd through 5th graders have a cell phone
28% of K-2nd graders have a cell phone.

More than one-fourth of middle and high school students have mobile internet on their cell phones, but what can teachers DO with this technology in the classroom? Do your students have trouble with organization? They can begin to use a calendar to remind them of projects and assignments due, organize their school work, be reminded of school activities, communicate with the teacher, create and share documents, take notes, look up information on the internet, access classroom blogs, create their own blog about the work they are doing, work together with other students on projects, coordinate calendars with other students, share favorite web sites with you and other students and even take videos for class presentations.

Teachers can also use cell phone technology to better communicate with parents. There’s a really cool site called SendGM that lets you send out group messages to cell phones and email all at once. Teachers can sign up for a free account and include all your parents’ and students’ contact information…. there will be no escape from your reminders!

Aside from using cellphones, today’s teacher needs to be sure to integrate technology in their classrooms in other ways, as well. There is simply no excuse for today’s educator to not have a web cam and a free Skype account. There are professionals, like me, who visit classrooms AT NO CHARGE on a daily basis using Skype. How would your students benefit from asking questions of an expert or having an author teach them techniques for better creative writing? Skype with me and find out. There is no way I could possibly go into all the uses for web cams in the classroom. If you don’t have one, go to Walmart right now and shell out $20 to get one. You won’t regret it.
Another unusual technology for the classroom is the I-Pod. Most of your students study with music. It helps them focus and can help calm test anxiety. Allowing students to listen to I-Pods during tests or using them for audio books or podcasts can be effective strategies to meet your goals.

This blog is just the tip of the iceberg. The number of uses for technology in the classroom is only limited by your imagination. Below are a few web sites that might help. Good luck!

www.techsavvyed.net
www.ateachersguidetohappiness.com
www.edutopia.org
www.cellphonesinlearning.com

Read more from Mary Calhoun Brown at her blog: http://blog.marycalhounbrown.com

Also, check out her recent book, there are no words, available at http://www.amazon.com: