Ed. Tech.-- Use with Caution!

I'll admit it...I get pretty excited about ed. tech. and when I discover a new tool, I'm usually eager to jump on board and learn how to use it and then implement it in my teaching.  I have also discovered over the years that there is such a thing as getting too excited about ed. tech. because in many ways technology can get in the way of effective learning.  Generally speaking, tools are designed for making work more efficient, but when this work involves the process of learning something, making that process faster and/or easier may not be what's best for the student. Spending time with the content is often what produces new understanding and sometimes the tools that we use in the classroom rush that process, producing a level of understanding that is more shallow than if we relied on more conventional "non-tech" types of methods.  So I've learned to temper my enthusiasm for ed. tech. with a hearty measure of discernment and I'm much more cautious now to adopt and incorporate tech. into my teaching without asking some guiding questions.  One of the first questions I consider is: Does this tech. tool enable or disable learning? And, secondly: How does it help my students attain the aims and objectives I have set out in my curriculum and/or the mission of my school?

I have found that with this filter in place, I'm less likely to use a tool merely because I can or because of its inherent "wow factor".  One of the most quoted reasons for using tech. in the classroom is to engage students, but that's not all there is to it.  I think it's important to remember that the primary reason for using ed. tech. is to enhance learning.  If the tool is engaging, but does little to develop high levels of understanding or if it sucks up precious time that could otherwise be used to foster deeper learning and discourse, our students would be better off if we took the tech out.  Most researchers would say that this is especially true in the earlier grades (Zwaagstra, 2008)

I also appreciate Robin Smith's word of caution in our reading this week.  On pg. 58, she says, "Gratuitous use of technology is not impressive to students.  They've seen much better than what we are able to place into a learning management system, so using a tool just to use it is not helpful."  Knowing who our students are and the exposure to technology that they've had their entire lives, it becomes abundantly clear that using technology simply to grab and hold our students' attention is a woefully inadequate reason for using tools that could do so much more.