Technology Integration in all areas of Education

        Why hasn't good technology integration occurred in education?  What tips would you offer teachers and/or administrators? Please share your blog link here and provide a peer review. 

         Technology is all around us. In fact, it’s even at our fingertips. Students today were born into a world of technology. Because of this, you would think teachers would have technology integrated into all their classroom lessons.

         Since the 2020 COVID pandemic, many schools have now gone to 1to1 with students having their own Chromebooks or iPads. The pandemic showed us that we can use any device, anywhere with anybody. So, why are teachers still making hundreds of copies of math units for each student? Why are these lessons not integrated into some program they can access on a device?

         Many schools are unable to invest into some technology resources due to expense or lack of reliable internet (Brown, 2016). There’s also the continuous fight between teachers and students with technology being a distraction. Students are quick to figure out how to text or search with their cell phones under a desk or look at other websites on their school device during a teacher’s lecture.

         Still, having students copy out of the textbook is flat outdated (Brown, 2016). This doesn’t mean that this method is not used in teaching. However, teachers need to realize that according to the 2023 Census tablet ownership in U.S. households with children was 22 percentage points higher than in households without children in 2021. Overall, 64% of U.S. households owned a tablet computer in 2021, the Census study stated. The household income did not matter in the study. Even those households where the householder had less than a high school education, 60% of those with children owned a tablet computer compared to 32% without children. Income didn’t matter either. Households making less than $25,000 a year still had 62% of those with children owning a tablet computer compared to 35% without children.

         Technology is everywhere. It doesn’t matter the education, income, household, or race. Technology means students of today have access to information that students of the past simply did not have (Brown, 2016).

         Many teachers, including ones I know personally, don’t understand how to integrate technology into their classroom. They are uncomfortable or afraid of it because they don’t understand how to use technology or the technology program. Much of the activity under way on multiple levels of the educational system is driven by a very strong perceived need for action, but it is often not guided by any substantial knowledge base derived from research about what works and why with regard to technology, teaching, and learning (Lawless and Pellegrino, 2007).

         There is also no consensus as to how to implement technology to enhance and improve learning (Obara et al., 2017).

     “Technology should not be treated as a separate entity but should be considered as an integral part of instructional. delivery. The teacher should be able to assess the appropriateness of any technology used for teaching and learning in relation to specific instruction. The teacher should also consider how the technology selected fits into the objective of the lesson, methods of instruction, evaluation, feedback and follow-up initiatives. Such consideration will provide teachers the opportunity to reflect on their practice and reduce the tendency to integrate technology into teaching and learning in a mechanistic way,” (Okojie et al., 2006).

 

Tips for Technology Integration

 

        The International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) (2017) publishes technology standards for educators (Obara et al., 2017).

         The standards assume the following roles of teachers play in the use of technology:

1). Learner. Educators continually improve their practice by learning from and with others and exploring proven and promising practices that leverage technology to improve student learning.

2). Leader. Educators seek out opportunities for leadership to support student empowerment and success and to improve teaching and learning.

3). Citizen. Educators inspire students to positively contribute to and responsibly participate in the digital world.

4). Collaborator. Educators dedicate time to collaborate with both colleagues and students to improve practice, discover and share resources and ideas, and solve problems.

5). Designer, Educators design authentic, learner-driven activities and environments that recognize and accommodate learner variability.

6). Facilitator. Educators facilitate learning with technology to support student achievement of the 2016 ISTE Standards for Students.

7). Analyst.

ISTE YouTube Channel

         ISTE is a great place to start. The organization has lots of professional development opportunities on their website for individual teachers, school districts, librarians, and administrators (ISTE.org).

         ISTE U offers flexible online courses that help all educators – from teachers to leaders – to develop digital competencies focused on pedagogy (ISTE.org).

         Another factor in integrating technology into education is starting at the elementary level. I am a parent of two elementary school children. I asked them this week what technology they use in their classrooms. Both of them told me their teachers use programs like Kahoot and Blooket, which turn lessons into online games. They complete the programs by using the iPads that the school provides in their classrooms.

        Also, they told me all about the different programs on the iPads that their teachers let them work with. These included Lexia for reading, Prodigy, IXL, and others. When I asked my children if the teacher works with them while using technology, the answer was mixed with sometimes or if they only needed help.

        At the high school level, where I teach, I see students who are still afraid of certain technologies. Oh, they can do it if it’s on their phones or a Chromebook but set them in front of a desktop computer and many of them don’t know how to navigate the machine. Many don’t even know how to turn on a desktop computer. Students fear the screen (Dirnberger, 2012).

        Starting technology integration at the elementary level would help eliminate some of the screen fear. Common Sense Education has a free digital citizenship program for teachers that starts at the kindergarten level. The program covers media balance, online privacy, digital footprints, communication, cyberbullying, and news and media literacy.

        We teach bicycle safety, stranger danger, but internet safety is just as important (Dirnberger, 2012).

        Teachers need good professional development that shows them, gives them examples, even role-playing, on how to properly integrate technology into their classroom, school districts need to be supportive in getting teachers and students the right tools, and it all needs to start at the elementary level.

        We need our kids leaving our school district knowing more than what they find on TikTok.

 

References

Common Sense Education (n.d.). Everything You Need to Teach Digital Citizenship. Retrieved September 30, 2023, from https://www.commonsense.org/education/digital-citizenship

Hughes, S. E., Bradford, J., & Likens, C. (2018). Facilitating Collaboration, Communication, and Critical Thinking Skills in Physical Therapy Education through Technology-Enhanced Instruction: A Case Study. TechTrends: Linking Research and Practice to Improve Learning, 62(3), 296-302. https://doi.org/https://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ1176817

International Society for Technology in Educaiton (n.d.). International Society for Technology in Educaiton. ISTE.org. Retrieved September 30, 2023, from www.iste.org

Lawless, K. A., & Pellegrino, J. W. (2007). Professional Development in Integrating Technology Into Teaching and Learning: Knowns, Unknowns, and Ways to Pursue Better Questions and Answers. Review of Educational Research, 77(4), 575-614. https://doi.org/10.3102/0034654307309921

Obara, S., Nie, B., & Simmons, J. (2017). Teachers’ Conceptions of Technology, School Policy and Teachers’ Roles When Using Technology in Instruction. EURASIA Journal of Mathematics, Science and Technology Education, 14(4), 1337-1349. https://doi.org/10.29333/ejmste/83569

Okojie, M., CPO, Olinzock, A. A., & Okojie-Boulder, T. C. (2006). The Pedagogy of Technology Integration. Journal of Technology Studies, 32(2), 66-71. https://doi.org/https://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ847571

[TEDx Talks]. (2012, August 1). The Importance of Technology Education at the Elementary Level: Kasey Dirnberger at TEDxMCPSTeachers [Video]. YouTube. https://youtu.be/pz5JnjByXh4?si=8W6OGgy8QQvLfUEg

[TEDx Talks]. (2016, March 28). Redefining Learning & Teaching using Technology [Video]. YouTube. https://youtu.be/AOTEQVYDPpg?si=m0LXxe6YM1HEKEn_

United States Census Bureau (2023, April 13). Four Out of Five Households With Children Owned Tablets. Retrieved September 30, 2023, from https://www.census.gov/library/stories/2023/04/tablets-more-common-in-households-with-children.html