Our society is in the middle of a technological revolution. The tools we use seem to be evolving and changing at an exponential rate. New cell phone models are released by various manufacturers about every 9-12 months, and computer upgrades are released more often than I typically change my car oil. In 2007 the iPhone App store hadn't even been released, but now if you need something, "There's an app for that." The technology we use is beginning to grow quickly enough to adapt to contemporary changes in our society; for example, in 2010, changed Transportation Security Administration Laws in the United States created controversy that has led to heightened TSA complaints from Americans; now, as of April 30, 2012, there is a free iPhone app available for quickly filing TSA complaints.
At the same time that we create technology to adapt to us, we must also learn to adapt to technology. Our DNA has set the stage for our ability to adapt to changing environments, but our technological environment is in a state of such constant change itself that success calls for rocket-paced adaptation.
So what does this mean for education? How are we going to prepare our kids to be ready for such a fast-paced, fast-changing, constantly connected era? I believe that the social context into which today's children have been born hold several important implications for the world of education:
1. Technology plays a role in authentic learning experiences. There are plenty of instances in which all is needed for an authentic learning experience is a pencil and a piece of paper. But as technology becomes integrated further into daily life and the workplace, authentic experiences are becoming better represented when activities involve student interaction with technology. Business owners are doing all that they can to profit from the release of new technologies, such as blogging and social networking services. Furthermore, new technologies are already a part of everyday life for children, because young children are growing up with a growing variety of available technologies and the perception of digital connectivity. For the increasingly technologically literate generations of the future, fostering student learning by drawing meaningful connections to students' personal lives is calling more and more for educational experiences that include technology.
2. Technological developments offer resources for enhancing student learning and success that teachers simply can't ignore. Teachers are charged with the responsibility of creating for students educational experiences that will best serve their needs. It's no secret that the vast amount of variation that exists between individual students makes this a rather daunting prospect. That's why the increasing options offered by technological developments have to be a key interest for teachers. Why would a teacher supply a student with a book and a pencil if an audio-enhanced text and a keyboard would better serve the student's needs? To reference a favorite example of mine, check out my post about the newly released Echo Smartpen, an enhanced version of the simple tool that is a writing pen. This technology was constructed with the universal benefit in mind of enhanced note-taking ability, which it certainly can serve - but it also offers so many other possibilities for teachers to use in serving students with specific needs. For example, here is a highly creative way that a teacher used the Smartpen to serve as an engaging presentation tool for students who needed writing support.
The key is that in order for technology to be used most effectively to support and assess learning, teachers must constantly educate themselves about what technological resources are available to them, as well as how to effectively use these technologies. This requires a student-centered disposition toward adaptation over the preservation of tradition in teaching---a habit that must be learned, but one that will undoubtedly serve students effectively.
3. Teachers and students must work together to critically assess technological resources. Modern technology isn't going away any time soon, and we can use its presence and its growth to our advantage. But if we are to do so, then teachers need to be capable at discerning which technologies are advantageous for learning under a given circumstance. Just because something is cool doesn't necessarily mean that it is useful for your purposes! Here is how you can tell if an instructional or assistive technology is appropriate for enhancing student learning:
- The use of the new technology does not simply replace old methods, but adds more dimension to the learning experience. For example, this teacher uses Gapminder to add further dimension to a scatterplot, making data interpretation more accessible to his eighth graders, and therefore facilitating a more fulfilling experience.
- The new technology facilitates higher order thinking, problem solving skills, and student collaboration. In this article, Brigid Barron and Linda Darling-Hammond address the advantages of these facets of learning for promoting "powerful learning," thereby authentically preparing students for success in the real world. While some technologies are certainly fit to serve the purpose of building foundational skills, technologies that call upon higher-order means of learning can enhance educational experiences beyond the capabilities of traditional methods.
- The new technology motivates and engages students. Many educational and assistive technologies provide students with multiple sensory input and heightened interaction, which is naturally captivating--educational technologies should capitalize on this. Students who are growing up in a culture of accessible technology are drawn toward devices that offer information to multiple senses, which is why many teachers, like this one, are calling for more technology-based resources in the classroom.
- The new technology provides students with options for multiple means of representation. There are many types of learners with different natural interests and preferences, and I echo the pedagogy of John Dewey in believing that a quality education is one in which students have the ability to guide their learning of the content via the perspectives offered by their interests.
Furthermore, students will be well-served if they are taught by their teachers how to think critically about technology, as well as how to use it effectively. The digital generation is so named because they are bombarded every day with digital information, and success will undoubtedly require learning how to interpret all of that input. Hence, this creates a great learning opportunity for teachers and students to work together in the quest to grow healthily with the times.
A look into the future...
I dream all the time about my future classroom, and what I want to be part of it. For all of the reasons stated above, I know that technology has to be woven into the design of any future educational environment under my control.
It is a dark age for educational funding, and teachers across the United States are barely scraping by with outdated textbooks and crayons replaced with their own pocket money. On the other hand, I recently observed a teacher's classroom in which every student was supplied with a personal laptop, all thanks to grant money. And schools that are beginning to invest in the use of eBooks and iPads in the classroom are seeing positive changes in the students, as well as reduced printing and book expenses.
For me, it will be a matter of persistently and actively researching what is available, and then pursuing access to those resources. I currently am building an inventory of ideas on Pintrest for future integration into my curriculum. I follow Free Technology For Teachers on Facebook. It's a matter of seeking out the information, and deciding what will be appropriate for enhancing learning experiences and streamlining instruction.
Of course, I won't REALLY know which resources will best serve my students until I have a bunch of unique kids of my own. I'm counting on a variety of diverse learners walking through my classroom door from Day 1 onward. There are a plethora of assistive technology choices available for serving individual needs, but I believe that the core of my instruction should follow the principle of Universal Design For Learning and work to make the content inherently as available as possible to everyone. In order to do so, I will seek out technologies that help my instruction appeal to multiple senses, learning preferences, levels of language comprehension, and levels of content comprehension in order to include all learners in classroom learning experiences and curricular content. The main personal goal for my curriculum is to abide by the three guiding principles of Universal Design, and I believe that capitalizing upon the growing variety of technologies will assist me in doing so.
If this is an age in which education is under more pressure than ever, then now is the time to be proactive in taking advantage of the other defining feature of this age: a booming cornucopia of technology, and all the possibilities thereby entailed. I would certainly like to do so in my contributions to this noble and essential field!
Written by Emily Hie
