Educational technology: thoughts and experiences

Without a doubt contemporary education needs technology and we live in a connected world of learning networks. It is also important because it is the lens through which we view teaching and learning in a constructivist learning environment. This technology-supported learning environment certainly creates a context where learning is a personal, as well as a social activity but the dependence on technology in the learning process  has significant consequences on how learning takes place personally and socially. This is obvious for me in my current courses at HCT which are all delivered through BB9 and OneNote. My experience as a teacher over the past thirty years has allowed me to experience fundamental changes in the way we perceive teaching and learning. We can all celebrate the days of talk and chalks are gone but the drive towards educational technology is really out of our hands. I do wonder about the shift I have seen towards relying on it too much..... There is also the debate and questioning about the quality of deep learning and metacognition that is taking place for learners within this computer-mediated collaborative learning context. Is there enough opportunity for those higher order thinking skills and the reflection that is needed? Are we helping to create environments where our learners are too dependent on technology, group consensus and less on themselves?

 John Page makes reference to ten very logical and obvious reasons why it is important in the contemporary educational context. I would not advocate learning as an outside-guided model but consider learning as self-guided to be a central target to aim for with our students. But the challenge, I believe, is to understand and evaluate the worth of different perspectives and methods to guide the design of effective instruction for learners. The constructivist principles of education seems to assume a lot, where learners are expected to function as self-motivated, self-directed, interactive, collaborative participants in their learning experiences. We know this is not always possible and there are so many variables at play in any learning situation. Therefore I would suggest that teachers today face two challenges. One challenge comes from the changing perceptions of what learning is all about and the second challenge comes from the perceived new learning opportunities that technology now presents.

INQUIRY REPORT

 Summary of the most important points
Misunderstandings about effective teaching as a set of general methods and skills, has created the idea that teachers can teach any subject. But to design effective learning environments, teachers need to acknowledge and reflect on the unique conceptual obstacles in their discipline that their students will face in order to inform their own pedagogy and personal teaching practice.
Knowing just how students learn is as important as knowing what they learn and having a teaching pedagogy of how to teach it.

Research has shown how teachers think about history, mathematics and science and what they know affects how they teach it. This chapter presents exemplary examples of effective teaching in the fields of maths, science and history. These examples highlight the significant and combined roles of teacher’s content knowledge, pedagogical knowledge and understanding of thinking and learning in their subject area. These ‘domains of knowledge for teaching’ (Shulman p.169) allow teachers to know where to start and build on students’ prior knowledge with in a field so as to assess student progress and explore new knowledge.

Having spoken to several faculty teachers here at HCT the initial question posed developed into in-depth conversations about teaching and learning…. This was great.  The initial question that I posted became just a springboard for what I think is my final open question below. I’ve gone back to the idea of pedagogical content knowledge because this kept cropping up in all the discussions.

So I have shifted my focus slightly and I’m refining the focus to a narrower field. This allows my investigation to concentrate on teachers and their own personal perceptions and journeys to get to where they are. J

I’ve added a new introduction to this that explains and clarifies where I’m taking my question. Next I will reinterview the teachers.

Focus Question

What do teachers need to know to design and create effective learning environments?

Opportunities for teachers to learn about their teaching practice are a significant aspect of lifelong learning and professional development. Understanding how teachers reflect on and examine their own teaching practice and what chances they have to develop as professionals is the focus of this study.

Practicing teachers learn about teaching in diverse ways. In the context of higher education, there are multiple opportunities to develop as a professional but how effective are these and do they inform an individual’s personal teaching practice as well as keep teachers updated on content in their field?

Shulman (1987) suggests effective teachers need pedagogical content knowledge not just subject matter knowledge and general teaching methods because one just represents expertise in a field while the other represents helping others to understand and learn. (Teachers pedagogical content knowledge = a cognitive roadmap to guide students and understand conceptual barriers)

When knowledge interacts with teaching strategies, teachers can separate the important content and skills from the peripheral. Curriculums and course content are then mediated by teacher’s subject understanding and content knowledge. This combined with pedagogical knowledge and teachers’ understanding of thinking and learning in their subject supports them to design instructional strategies and pitch content at appropriate levels for learners.

 So how do teachers combine and extend pedagogical knowledge and content to attain pedagogical content knowledge?

 Five experienced teachers from different faculties at HCT were interviewed and a discussion developed using these questions as a springboard to lead into the final enquiry about how teachers attain pedagogical content knowledge.

1.       What training or study did you undertake before teaching your current field?

2.       How do you reflect on your own personal teaching practice?

3.       What kind of PD do you think is effective for the development of your PTP in both content and pedagogy?

4.       Do you think teachers have the opportunity to combine and extend pedagogical knowledge and content to attain pedagogical content knowledge?

All the participating teachers were trained in content and attained university degrees in their field. Only two participants had a background in teaching pedagogies because their majors were in education. These teachers had undertaken action research and they both said it had supported them in the struggle between ‘knowing and doing’ in the learning environment. The other teachers had focused on content in their training and didn’t have a background in teaching and learning theories or practice. They saw the teaching of content knowledge as their prime focus and the preparation of students for assessments. They also agreed there were generic teaching tools that are used by teachers despite their content area.

Personal teaching practice, for many of the teachers, focused around technology and skills. They generally didn’t see the importance of extending pedagogy unless it was seen as relevant to the teaching of their content. So any PD they valued and used focused on skill development and the use of technology in the classroom. They all acknowledged that their technological teaching tools needed constant updating and development so they appreciated PD in this area but also conceded that time management issues were a constraint and significant factor in the extension of their teaching programs. They also said there were limitations because of teaching spaces, assessment schedules and student readiness for independent learning.

PTP appeared to be viewed in relation to professional experience and the development of tacit knowledge as a teacher. They all recognised the need to keep a realistic balance between the demands of teaching their courses and the framing of their PTP. It was usually in response to the delicate balance of many factors and there was not a lot of energy or time to put into reflective practices or trialling new teaching methodologies.

Finally, they recognised the idea of pedagogical content knowledge but said they hadn’t thought about it in detail or in relation to their own teaching. They had a ‘toolbox’ of teaching methodologies that they drew upon and extended when they could. This resource was a combination of their own learning experiences, knowledge of the field and most importantly extensive teaching experiences. So they felt they did assess their students learning and their own teaching but through their own frame of reference and student feedback. They all acknowledged the importance of faculty input, tacit knowledge and the professional exchanges that took place with other teachers as the most significant factors in the development of their own pedagogical content knowledge.