In a previous post, I presented reflexivity as a phenomenon that we can observe in schools. The concept is grounded in the mutual feedback and feedforward influences that exist between humans and the technologies they use (especially the information technologies they use). Reflexivity can be extended to other observations in schools as well. For example, Read More
Category: Leadership
Edtech for Edleaders: Learning Management Systems Defined
Today’s classroom is (or should be) a supplemented by web-based resources. Information and interaction (including feedback from teachers) can be facilitated through web sites and services. These are available form many sources, including vendors (who charge fees or use advertising to support freemium versions) and open source sources. Collectively, many apply the label “web 2.0” Read More
Edtech for Edleaders: Wireless Networks (wifi)
The term “wireless” can be applied to two types of IT networks that are commonly accessed by students and teachers. Individuals who carry smartphones and some tablet computers into school buildings connect those devices to the network of cellular phone towers. Those connections depend on the owner having an active account with a provider and Read More
Papert’s Three Phases of Educational Technology
In 1994, Seymour Papert, the mathematician from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology who was a pioneer in using computer programming to teach mathematics to young children, suggested that the history of computers in schools could be deconstructed into three phases. First, there was a brief time when innovative educators had computers in their classrooms and Read More
Edtech for Edleaders: Choose Two
IT professionals confirm leaders, including educational leaders, want systems that are: Inexpensive; Designed and installed quickly; Of high quality. When faced with those three design needs, the IT professional usually responds with “choose two.” While this is often done in an attempt to introduce humor into the conversation, the response does capture a reality of Read More
On #Data and the Quality of Data
As an undergraduate science major, I came to understand quantitative data; we measured what we observed in the laboratory and in the field and we summarized and evaluated it to draw conclusions about the world as we saw it. Patterns in numbers were our window into the systems we studied. As a graduate student in Read More
Understanding the Quality of #edtech
“So, is my school’s technology good enough?” is a question that principals and curriculum coordinators and superintendents ask—of course they don’t usually ask it when their IT coordinators or staff are within ear shot. The reality is that most school administrators do not have the expertise to assess the IT for which they are responsible. Read More
Deconstructing #edtech
The question of just what should we educational technology professionals spend their time and energy doing and what school leaders should expect of the IT professionals they hire is one that has been raised by several within my network in the last year or so. The answer that I tend to give is this one: Read More
Avoiding Red Herrings: Technology Support that Works
I made this presentation at the 2015 Association of Educational and Communications and Technology conference. Avoiding Red Herrings: Technology Support that Works Abstract Information and computer technology has been incorporated in teaching and schooling for several decades. Despite on-going efforts to provide both technical support to maintain functional systems and support for educators to integrate Read More
The Application of Technology Acceptance to Educational Design
In 2016, I delivered this paper at the Annual Conference of the New England Education Research Organization. Full paper Abstract Despite a long history of computers in schools, many educators continue to struggle with the problem of creating effective technology-rich learning environments. In this exploratory research, documents collected as several K-12 schools designed systems to Read More