When I began my Master of Arts in Educational Technology (MAET) coursework last fall, I was asked about my goals for myself at the end of the program. Honestly, when I first started the extensive scope of educational technology, and all that can be accomplished with it, was not clear to me. I wrote something rather vague about how my goal was to bring innovative technological skills into my class and provide resources to make technology accessible in my generally high-needs district. Were laptops going to magically show up in the classroom? Was an anonymous donor going to deposit ten thousand dollars of cold hard cash into my bank account to purchase this technology? These early goals were based around, what I now know to be, instrumental thinking. Instrumental thinking focuses on the use of the tool, not the overall goals of the lesson.
An important educational learning theory that the MAET program focuses on is the Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge Framework (TPACK) (Mishra & Koehler, 2006). The TPACK Framework tells us that educators should take our technology, pedagogy, and content area knowledge into account when designing lessons. Although it is exciting when we learn about a new technological tool, it is not always appropriate to throw it into any lesson. Competent teaching is about choosing the right tool for each task. When I began this program, my goal reflected my lack of knowledge on the subject of educational technology. I was looking for tools, when I should have been more thoroughly studying the tasks I was asking students to complete and how a tool could help (or hinder) the instructional goal of that task. Technological tools aren’t necessary for “twenty-first century” learning, and teachers can reimagine and redesign these tools for use in any classroom.
Much of the focus of one of the first MAET courses I took (CEP 811) was “reimagining” technology. One insightful lesson was in a TED talk by Richard Culatta who said that there is a digital divide between “those who know how to use technology to reimagine learning and those who use technology to digitize traditional learning practices”. Working in a district that lacks technology in schools, as well as my students’ homes, is no longer the nightmare it seemed. The MAET program taught me that it is essential to stand firmly on the side of the divide that uses technology to reimagine learning. As a result, I have become particularly conscious of the technology I use and how I prioritize the technology access my school has. My goals have shifted from “using the technology” to “innovating the lessons” and the way I teach, and the way my students learn, is all the better for it.
Sources:
Sources:
- Culatta, R. (2013, January). Reimagining Learning: Richard Culatta at TEDxBeaconStreet [video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z0uAuonMXrg
- Mishra, P. & Koehler, M.J. (2006) Technological pedagogical content knowledge: A framework for teacher knowledge. Teachers College Record, 108(6), 1017-1054. doi:10.1111/j.1467-9620.2006.00684.x