Searching out educational technology on the web quickly leads to further searches that lead away from the trunk of education technology to offshoots of digital learning solutions, learning tools, interactive experiences, learning theories, pedagogical approaches, massive online courses, learning management systems, and more. Along with the wide spectrum of interests that surround education technology, there exists even more discussion. It seems that the individual communities are all very active, and there is no lack of opinions.
On YouTube, Mary Jo Madda (2017) spoke at the Chicago TEDX. Mary Jo points out that she believes that technology is not the solution to education’s dilemmas. Mary Jo taught in the elementary school system, and presents her strongly held belief that teachers are the key to great education, and that technology should only support the teacher’s efforts in the classroom.
Jesper Aagaard (2015), in Drawn to distraction: A qualitative study of off-task use of educational technology, writes about the the distractions to students that comes with the use of educational technology in the classroom. Aagaard proposes closing laptop lids to help students from becoming multi-tasking and habitual off-task computer users during classes.
Abrami, Wade, Lysenko, Marsh and Gioko (2014) in Using educational technology to develop early literacy skills in Sub-Saharan Africa write about the great success that their research illustrates of the use of interactive, multimedia literacy software with elementary Kenyan students’ reading skills. They found substantive gains were enjoyed by those students who were involved in a 13 week program that utilized ABRA; an interactive literacy software program experience. The authors also noted the success over the entire school year with students who utilized the software in the their Math, English, Science and Social Studies classes.
There is also a chorus of voices speaking to the beginning of, and the ongoing history of, educational technology. From slide rules to virtual reality, the history of educational technology is drawn from widely divergent background streams by divergent voices throughout the internet. Wikipedia (n.d.) refers to a wide range of technologies in use – and adding to – the history of educational technology.
The conversation surrounding educational technology could more accurately be described as the conversations surrounding educational technology. There are many voices involved in this conversation. Some of the voices are contrary, but they all hold fervor.
References
Aagaard, J. (2015). Drawn to distraction: A qualitative study of off-task use of educational technology. Computers & Education, Volume 87, September 2015, pp. 90-97. Retrieved from https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0360131515000883
Abrami, P., Wade, C. Ann, Lysenko, L., Marsh, J., & Gioko, A., (2014) Using educational technology to develop early literacy skills in Sub-Saharan Africa. Education and information technologies, July 2016, Volume 21, Issue 4, pp 945-964. Retrieved from
https://doi.org/10.1016/compedu.2015.03.010
TEDxChicago. (n.d.). Why technology can’t fix education | Mary Jo Madda | TEDxChicago. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lqjh24uq9tM
Wikipedia. (n.d.). Educational Technology. Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Educational_technology
September 5, 2019 at 4:49 pm
Thanks for the resources, Earl! I agree that there are many “conversations” happening in our field – overwhelming to be quite honest, but also exciting to explore and contemplate. We are only scratching the surface!
September 8, 2019 at 10:03 am
Thank you for your comments, Lisa. There are so many paths of study in this field.
September 6, 2019 at 11:05 am
a chorus of voices! , I loved the way you talked about the history of educational technology, indeed there are many interesting conversations and voices out there, I totally agree! This field is so exciting and full of surprises 🙂
September 8, 2019 at 10:04 am
It is an exciting field, Tala!
September 7, 2019 at 12:56 pm
I too found that there were a lot of ideas and opinions that were sometimes in agreement, but also, very divergent. I’m curious if we will discern a more thematic pattern as we continue in the program.
September 8, 2019 at 10:05 am
That’s true; I found a lot of discussions – in agreement and not!
September 8, 2019 at 9:39 am
I appreciated how you shared your research, Earl, exploring (and sharing – thanks for great resources) very different perspectives surrounding educational technology. I am interested in further exploring the role of teachers, and a shift in pedagogical paradigms to meet the new tools and ways to encourage students to be Creators (versus Consumers). As Sue mentioned in her comment above on your post, I, too, wonder if we will discern a more thematic pattern in our conversations on educational technology as we continue in the program.
September 8, 2019 at 10:09 am
That’s a great comment, Leigh – the shift from consuming to creating is an important piece of a teacher’s journey. Tools are so important- not just the choice of, but is it appropriate.
September 8, 2019 at 11:24 pm
Hi Earl,
I found your post to be quite informative; you used some really great resources.
I have to agree with your thought that there are many conversations happening surrounding educational technology and what it is and when it started; each view point certainly having its merit. It will be interesting to see what we uncover in this course!
September 9, 2019 at 9:10 pm
Hi Earl,
Yes all of the ‘voices’ you mention offer much to contemplate. I found some researchers refer to Ed Tech as a field in it’s own right, but it really seems to me to be an umbrella of research with various niches under it. It is a bit overwhelming, considering how fast new technologies emerge. This is why I’m eager to learn about the foundations. Hopefully understanding the roots of the field will bring some cohesion to what I’ve read thus far.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts!
Laren