They don't train substitute teachers. We kind of get thrown into the classroom after a quick orientation after being hired. It's a very learn-on-the-job kind of gig.
As the classrooms acquire new tech, we subs have to kind of figure things out as we go. Luckily, the teachers need us to use things from time to time, and they'll clue us in on how to use them.
Tuesday. It was the teacher's first class of the day. The students got out their Chromebooks and logged on as I figured out where the roll sheet was. The phone rang.
Mr. J was out due to some family emergency, and he was calling to let me know what the class was doing. But more importantly, he needed me to reset the Chromebooks.
He explained that it was something he does every year. The students were doing a light simulation activity, but it wouldn't load due to cookies and such. Every year he does a hard reboot on the computers so that the loading issue doesn't occur, but due to the family emergency, he hadn't gotten around to it.
So, I got to learn how to do a hard reboot on a Chromebook. Yay. New skill.
(By the way, it's holding down three keys at once: escape, refresh, and power. That opens the screen that allows you to command the computer to reboot.)
After getting one computer rebooted, I hung up with Mr. J and informed the class of 8th graders why I had been on the phone so long. (They're always a little shocked that I was talking to their teacher. I think if they had known that, they wouldn't have been as loud while we were talking.) And then it was time for them to repeat what I had just done.
Because the quickest way to reset 36 computers is to have the kiddos reset the computer they have in front of them (and for me to repeat on the remaining five that weren't claimed by a student).
It was an advanced 8th grade class, so it went pretty smoothly. And the kiddos told me that they could then access the activity they were to do.
Until one girl called me over, more than half way through the period. She couldn't submit the assignment she had completed.
We did the usual restart of the computer, but that didn't work. Would rebooting the computer again help?
Yup, it did.
So, now I have a new trick to pull out when the technology fails.
I don't think I'd like just being thrown in like that!
ReplyDeleteIsn't it amazing how often you can fix techie issues by restarting or turning it off and then back and on? I have a reputation at work for being able to fix the copier, but all I ever do is restart it.
I wouldn't be nearly as successful at diagnosing student computer problems if restarting the computer didn't work as well as it does.
DeleteIt's what I always do when my computer acts up.
ReplyDeleteIts all about strategic decisions with the advancement of technology these days to get the best out of students and see results.
ReplyDeleteDifferent to Australia. All substitute teachers are fully qualified classroom teachers. Must have the degree to be in front of a class.
ReplyDeleteYay for new skills and a class that co-operates!
ReplyDeleteI don't have that many classes that don't cooperate. I would have burned out of this job long ago if all I did every day was to battle them.
DeleteWow, school has changed. We had chalkboards in 8th grade.
ReplyDeleteOne of these days I want to do a post on the tech in the classroom. We've got projectors that we can connect to the computers to show presentations. They just got big flat screen TVs that are basically computers. And they just upgraded all the clocks. It's amazing what tech we have at our fingertips.
DeleteI'm not sure all this tech is good.
DeleteJust like anything else, these are tools. It depends on how they're used.
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