Category: LRNT 524

Choosing the technology to implement in a K-12 classroom can be overwhelming. Morris (2018) states in his article about critical digital pedagogy that educational technology offers many benefits but that participation in these tools requires a complex understanding of multi-literacies. That complex understanding takes time to assess, research, and implement, but teachers are notoriously short on time when effectively implementing technology (Delaney, 2011). The following design principles are meant to address significant steps to ensure that teachers choose the right technology for the right reasons and keep student safety and success at the forefront.  

Firstly, choosing technology with purpose goes beyond simply using it but instead focuses on the reasoning behind this technology; this can be more impactful for your teaching and students’ learning (Morris, 2018). 

Being aware of security and privacy allows you and your students to protect personal and sensitive information (Kimmons, 2020). Some questions to consider before choosing technology are: has your school district approved the tool? What personal information does the tool require from users? Where is this data stored, and who effectively owns it? The answers to these questions will aid in choosing technology that prioritizes student safety. 

Clarity and transparency are essential when it comes to technology tools. Being explicit with your intentions allows for more meaningful learning, increased motivation, and even an increased sense of belonging and confidence (Kirkpatrick, 2020). 

Differentiation is a key principle in teaching and learning and can also be applied to technology. By offering multiple ways to show understanding, differentiation allows all types of learners to be successful and included (Takacs et al., 2021). Universal Design for Learning (UDL) is a great framework to help plan for differentiation. 

Awareness of your students’ diverse backgrounds allows you to be inclusive and understanding of the variation in your classroom and can help plan for and address “learner jaggedness” (Takacs et al., 2021, p.17). Technology can help but also hinder when it comes to diverse learners. Using a cycle like the one proposed in Kaczorowski et al.’s (2021) article, Designing an Inclusive Future, illustrates the importance of choosing technology that reflects classroom diversity.

From “Designing an Inclusive Future: Including Diversity and Equity With Innovations in Special Education Technology”, by T. Kaczorowski, D. MacMahon, and A. Hollingshead, 2022, TEACHING Exceptional Children, 0(0), (https://doi.org/10.1177/00400599221090506). 

When implementing new technology, educators must remember that it takes time, not just for the teachers to learn but also for the students to adjust and learn (Delaney, 2011). Educators often need more time to effectively learn new technology; it is helpful for educators to plan for this extra time as they incorporate new technology (Delaney, 2011). 

With technology and technology tools, consider incorporating collaborative resources. Using technology that promotes collaboration can foster problem-solving and interpersonal skills, while allowing more of a facilitator approach to teaching (Amplified by Design, 2018). 

Finally, being aware of the effects of technology on our environment can help educators make smart and environmentally conscious decisions. By choosing refurbished technology and focusing on durability and quality, teachers can alleviate the strain of “limitless technology” and potentially create less e-waste, not to mention saving precious and limited funds (Selwyn, 2021) (Selwyn et al., 2020). 

By using these eight design principles when implementing technology into the classroom, educators can effectively implement resources that are reflective of diversity and inclusivity and have students’ best interests in mind. 

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References

Amplified by Design, (2018, August 17). Five principles of EdTech Design: Designing educational technology that makes an impact. Medium. https://medium.com/@amplifiedbydesign/five-principles-of-edtech-design-d3d6b11fe678

Delaney, M. (2011, November 1). Training teachers to implement technology. EdTech Magazine. https://edtechmagazine.com/k12/article/2011/11/training-teachers-integrate-technology

Kaczorowski, T., McMahon, D., Gardiner-Walsh, S., & Hollingshead, A. (2022). Designing an Inclusive Future: Including Diversity and Equity With Innovations in Special Education Technology. TEACHING Exceptional Children, 0(0), https://doi.org/10.1177/00400599221090506

Kimmons, R. (2020). Online safety. In A. Ottenbreit-Leftwich & R. Kimmons,  The K-12 educational technology handbook (1st ed). EdTech Books.  https://edtechbooks.org/k12handbook/online_safety 

Kirkpatrick, M., (2020). Transparency in the classroom. Teaching toolbox: Center for faculty innovation. https://www.jmu.edu/cfi/_files/t-t_19-20/02.27.20-transparency-in-the-classroom.pdf 

Morris, M., (2018). Critical instructional design. In M. Morris & J. Sommel, An urgency of teachers: The Work of critical digital pedagogy.  Hybrid Pedagogy, Inc. https://pressbooks.pub/criticaldigitalpedagogy/chapter/critical-pedagogy-and-learning-online/ 

Selwyn, N., Hillman, T., Eynon, R., Ferreira, G., Knox, J., Macgilchrist, F., & Sanch-Gil, J.M.(2020). What’s next for Ed-Tech? Critical hopes and concerns for the 2020s. Learning, Media and Technology 45 (1),  https://doi.org/10.1080/17439884.2020.1694945

Selwyn, N. (2021). Ed-Tech Within Limits: Anticipating educational technology in times of environmental crisis. E-Learning and Digital Media, 18 (5), https://doi.org/10.1177/20427530211022951

Takacs, S, Zhang, J., Lee, H., Truong, L., & Smulders, D. (2021) A comprehensive guide to applying Universal Design for Learning. BC Campus. https://pressbooks.bccampus.ca/jibcudl/ 

In an increasingly technologically driven society, it is no surprise that digital content is at the forefront of both organizations and education. In education, digital content libraries are collections of digitized learning materials that can include (but are not limited to) audiobooks, videos, texts, social media posts, and even practice assignments; these “learning nuggets” aid students with learning concepts in various areas of study (Dani, 2022). Content libraries are also used in organizations to help streamline and share content with various groups; content libraries help these organizations with company-wide access, communication, and identifying content needs (Vasquez, n.d.). 

By CMBJ – Screenshot of The English home page of the World Digital Library, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=8680623

For this blog post, I will focus on the K-12 educational use of digital content libraries. There are many examples of digital content libraries ranging from simple to complex. An example of a simpler version is through the Ballenas Secondary library website. Here you can find various resources, including e-books, writing help, presentation, and Web 2.0 tools. The resources included include various videos, website links, and graphic organizers. More comprehensive digital libraries are Europena, the World Digital Library, and specialized digital collections such as the Miguel de Cervantes digital library. With such a plethora of resources and information, learners can explore and choose based on their needs. 

The impact of these content libraries on learners has the potential to be quite significant, mainly in the area of accessibility. Learners no longer have to go to a physical space to get materials; they can log on to a computer, tablet, or phone and access learning content in various formats (Dani, 2022). Digital libraries also promote personalized learning for students, where learners can choose what and how they learn (Candella et al., 2007). By promoting personalized learning, digital libraries could also increase student engagement, which could positively impact student achievement (The Center for School Reform and Improvement, 2007). 

Despite the possible benefits to learners and users, there are some challenges associated with digital libraries. One concern is cultural sensitivity. Many digital libraries are curated and run by Western countries, meaning there is a high possibility of inherent cultural biases (Witten et al., 2010). Secondly, digital libraries rely heavily on technology, which can pose its own challenges. In order to gain access, users must have access to reliable internet or wifi; many people, most notably remote users and lower socioeconomic status users, have challenges concerning accessibility, meaning the reliance on technology can be exclusionary (Vincent-Lancrin et al., 2022). 

As with any learning innovation, digital content libraries are useful tools that are not without their challenges. They provide learners with multiple modes of information and allow for learner autonomy, but they also may be culturally biased and are heavily reliant on internet access. Moving forward, digital libraries can improve by offering a variety of cultural content in multiple languages and having organizations employ people of varied backgrounds to help with culturally sensitive curation of materials. 

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References

Candela,L., Castelli, D., Pagano, P., Thanos, C., Ioannidis, Y., Koutrika, G., Ross, S., Schek, H-J., & Schuld, H. (2007). Setting the foundations of digital libraries: The DELOS manifesto. D-Lib Magazine, 13 (3/4). doi:10.1045/march2007-castelli.  

The Center for School Reform and Improvement. (2007, April). Using positive engagement to increase student achievement. https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED497205.pdf  

Dani, V. (2022, December 11). Top 7 innovations in K-12 education. Kitaboo. https://kitaboo.com/top-innovations-in-k-12-education/ 

Vasquez, A. (n.d.). Content libraries. G2. https://www.g2.com/glossary/content-libraries-definition 

Vincent-Lancrin, S., Cobo Romani, C., & Reimers, F. (eds.), (2022). How learning continued during the COVID-19 pandemic: Global lessons from initiatives to support learners and teachers. OECD. https;//doi.org/10.1787/bbeca162-en. 

Witten, H., Bainbridge, D., & Nichols, D.M (2010). How to build a digital library (2nd ed.). Morgan Kaufmann. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-374857-7.00001-3  

We have just begun our fourth class in our Master’s program journey. This class (Innovation, Design, and Learning Environments) has asked us to reflect on design decisions in learning and technology.

I found some key tenets of both LD and ID helpful in my readings. First, each design is unique and different, meaning that there is no ‘one’ design that is made to ‘fit’ all projects (Dousay, 2017). Because of this, many models are available for designers to use as a basis for their design. 

When looking at several of these models, there seemed to be some commonality in their principles. For example, Dousay (2017) states that the ADDIE process (analyze, design, develop, implement, evaluate) is at the heart of most design models, but how it is used differs with each model, allowing designers to customize their designs according to the context and learner needs.

After reading Dousay’s (2017) introduction to Instructional Design Models, I had a better grasp on the structure of design. At the end of this chapter, Dousay (2017) asks industry designers for tips for ID; the tip that resonated most for me was from Brent Wilson, University of Colorado: “… do not forget to meet the needs of learners, especially those at the margins.” (Wilson, n.d., in Dousay, 2017). 

There are several reasons why this particular tip resonates with me. Firstly, I am a K-12 educator with a specialty in Special Education, essentially the teaching of those learners ‘in the margins’. Everyone has the right to learn and be included, which means that ID and LD need to reflect this principle, yet it seems like many past models may not. Heaster-Ekholm (2020) looks critically at ID models of the past and concludes that many models neglect to address the inherent biases of designers and their lack of cultural diversity in the design process. 

In my culminating paper from our last course, I wrote about the future of education being based on the theory of respectful design (Grandoit-Sutka, n.d.). Kaczorowski et al. (2022) pointed out that technology use in the classroom was not reflective of classroom abilities or culture, therefore creating barriers to learning for many students. As Heaster-Ekholm (2020) suggests, if designers are aware of their biases and aim to understand the culture and context of the learners, they can select a model that will best reflect the learning environment.

Finally, realizing the importance of design to include all learners helps with effectiveness and practicality. Although ID and LD have some differences, they both aim to improve opportunities for learning (Parchoma et al., 2020). 

Image: Universal Design for Learning, by Giulia Forsythe, 2013, Flickr. CC0 1.0 Universal (CC0 1.0)

Shelly Moore, (n.d.), a special education advocate and teacher, discusses UDL through a special education lesson lens and provides short, relatable, easy-to-understand videos of how UDL works in the classroom. In one of these videos, she describes a more ‘traditional’ model of learning that emphasizes a need to “fix” students who do not fit into the model (Moore, 2021). The traditional approach uses many resources (Educational Assistants, specialized equipment, etc.) for a handful of students. Instead, Moore (2021) asks us to design with all learners in mind, making those limited resources available to all, not just those in need. By removing barriers and asking ourselves, “What is limiting learner success?” we can create a more effective and practical design for learning (Moore, 2021). This idea of design being cognizant of context is seen in Dousay’s (2017) chapter regarding ID models and Heaster-Ekholm’s (2020) literature and can lead to improved opportunities for learning. 

As I continue with my career in K-12, I will search for design models based on the concept of respectful design and be cognizant of those learners in the margins. 

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References

Dousay. T. A. (2017). Instructional Design Models. In R. West (Ed.), Foundations of Learning and Instructional Design Technology (1st ed.).  https://edtechbooks.org/lidtfoundations/instructional_design_models 

Grandoit-Sutka, A., (n.d.). Elizabeth (Dori) Tunstall on designing for respect. deem journal. https://www.deemjournal.com/stories/dori-tunstall

Heaster-Ekholm, K. L. (2020). Popular Instructional Design Models: Their Theoretical Roots and Cultural Considerations. International Journal of Education and Development Using Information and Communication Technology, 16(3), 50–65. https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1275582.pdf 

Kaczorowski, T., McMahon, D., Gardiner-Walsh, S., & Hollingshead, A. (2022). Designing an Inclusive Future: Including Diversity and Equity With Innovations in Special Education Technology. TEACHING Exceptional Children, 0(0), https://doi.org/10.1177/00400599221090506

Moore, S. (2021, October 7). Removing the barriers: Planning for all! [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MzL8yMBKM7k 

Moore, S. (n.d.). 5 Moore minutes. https://fivemooreminutes.com/about/ 

Parchoma, G., Koole, M., Morrison, D., Nelson, D., & Dreaver-Charles, K. (2020). Designing for learning in the Yellow House: A comparison of instructional and learning design origins and practices. Higher Education Research & Development, 39(5), 997–1012. https://doi.org/10.1080/07294360.2019.1704693

Takacs, S, Zhang, J., Lee, H., Truong, L., & Smulders, D. (2021) A comprehensive guide to applying Universal Design for Learning.  https://pressbooks.bccampus.ca/jibcudl/