Brief Philosophy of Educational Technology

Karen Jones

My philosophy of educational technology is a reflection of my background and the educational setting in which I have worked for twenty years. Our program provides an alternative for at-risk students who have not been successful in a regular high school setting for a variety of social, emotional, and educational reasons. My values, purposes for incorporating technology, and theories of teaching have been shaped by this setting, and by the needs of its students. I came into education with a background in biochemical research. I aimed to transmit my enthusiasm for the processes of science by engaging the students with hands-on methods. Over the years, the types of technology have changed, but I continue to value methods and media that can motivate both the students and me. The flexibility of technology enables us to experience a variety of learning experiences, and has played a pivotal role in enabling success among our population of diverse abilities. For the future, I value the role that web-based strategies may play in promoting student-centric education, moving the role of the teacher away from disseminator to that of facilitator, and providing alternatives to commercially produced software. Educational technology has three main purposes for me. First of all, in an academic sense, the Internet has totally changed the way I plan my curriculum. No longer do we use textbooks, whose reading levels and technical language are inaccessible to our students. Instead I traverse the web looking for current ideas that involve a variety of media, and focus on student engagement. In addition, technology has improved the relevance and inclusiveness for these disenfranchised students. Paper-based assignments seem irrelevant in their world of digital music, social networking, and Youtube. Providing students with opportunities to use a variety of media has been rewarded with increased enthusiasm, and improved behaviour. As well, many of our students have problems with written output. Digital media provide alternate means of expression for those whose poor writing skills inadequately reflect their intellectual abilities. With regard to the theory of teaching through technology, I believe that technology enables us to more effectively incorporate Gardner's theory of multiple intelligences (Gardner, 1999) in our teaching practices by varying input and output modalities with different media. As well, technology encourages a constructivist approach using simulations that allow “what if?” exploration. I don’t believe it is necessary to teach about technology so much as it is up to the teacher to instruct students about the ethical issues of copyright, 'safe surfing' , cyberbullying, and sustainable lifestyles. At the junior high level, I don’t believe we are training students for any particular technological occupation, but should be exposing them to a wide spectrum of educational experiences to increase their technological competency and critical thinking. There are instances where technology can work against our teaching. Jumping on the bandwagon of a new technology may lead to costly duplication of more effective methods of instruction, necessitating teachers to reflect on what constitutes ‘best practice”. As well, as the variety of technology in our lives grows, so does the risk of mistaking it for social progress. It is necessary to teach and model sustainability against the pressure of mindless consumerism. Only by being aware of the values implicit in technology, can we hope to help our students make informed choices about the role technology will play in their future. Reference: Gardner, Howard. (1999). Intelligence Reframed: Multiple intelligences for the 21st century. New York: Basic Books.

PHILOSOPHY WEB I: Purpose of Educational Technology