The first thing I noticed when I entered the search terms ‘education, technology, history’ is that most of the websites provided information and timelines regarding software and hardware that have been developed over the years. Bates (2014) provides an overview of the history of how we moved through the basic levels of educational technologies:
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Oral communication as the earliest form of sharing knowledge
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Written communication where early correspondence education started in the 1840’s in England
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Broadcasting and video education that started with the BBC in the 1920’s
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Computer based learning that began with B.F. Skinner experimenting with teaching machines in the 1950’s
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Computer networking where higher education institutions began using networks to assist in learning in the 1980’s
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Online learning environments (LMS’s such as Moodle) that began in the 1990’s providing comprehensive spaces for teaching and learning
What I found interesting is that much of the focus on educational technology is on the hardware and software and not the pedagogy and theory of using educational technologies properly in order to effectively integrate them into the classroom. Once I added ‘pedagogy’ to my search terms several articles did appear that related more to more of the theory behind applying technology to education. One early framework for the integration of technology is the TPCK theoretical model where attention is paid not only to the technology itself, but also to the pedagogy, content, and knowledge (Koehler, Mishra, Yahya, 2007, pp. 741-743).
What I have found in my experience as a teacher using technology and a faculty mentor in integrating technology is that people get distracted by the technology itself and tend to focus on the ‘cool, new tech toys’. More focus on how to make a plan to apply technology in the classroom is needed in order to enhance learning, not just supplement it.
References
Bates, T. (2014). A short history of educational technology. In Online learning and distance education Resources. Retrieved from https://www.tonybates.ca/2014/12/10/a-short-history-of-educational-technology/
Koehler, M.J., Mishra, P., Yahya, K. (2007). Tracing the development of teacher knowledge in a design seminar: Integrating content, pedagogy and technology. Computers and Education. (49). 740-762. Retrieved from https://s3.amazonaws.com/academia.edu.documents/31313419/KoehlerMishraYahya2007.pdf?AWSAccessKeyId=AKIAIWOWYYGZ2Y53UL3A&Expires=1504882412&Signature=EKBIIMw3FGgwNn%2BEwR2BpJEyB3k%3D&response-content-disposition=inline%3B%20filename%3DTracing_the_development_of_teacher_knowl.pdf
Hi Steve.
I totally can relate to the ‘flavour of the month’ concept. Not only do I fall into the category of folks who love to explore new tools, I also think it’s important to explore the possibilities out there. That said, I can sometimes spend too much time exploring and not enough time determining why I want to use a tool and what I hope to accomplish, along with an implementation plan that considers human and financial capacity. I am really enjoying learning a bit more about how history repeats itself in edtech!
In your role as a faculty advisor (which sounds so cool), how would you advise me if I came to you with a tool that I wanted to use? How would you support me into making the best decision as per which, if any, edtech to use?
Karen.
Hey Karen,
Yeah the faculty advisor role was pretty cool, I had to give it up to go on sabbatical though…first world problems I realize.
I would usually start by having the faculty walk me through a typical lesson (without using tech), then together do a needs assessment of where we think incorporating tech could be a good fit. Sometimes no tech is incorporated at all. I really stress that the use of tech has to improve the learning experience for the students otherwise there would be no point in using it.
Often I have had faculty or administrators come to me with some new tech, but after looking deeper into it, the tech really didn’t improve the overall learning experience.