Selecting Digital Technology in the Classroom: Making purposeful use of technology

Selecting Digital Technology in the Classroom: Making purposeful use of technology

This article was written in collaboration with Dominique Patnaik

Dominique Patnaik is a year 2 teacher candidate at the University of Ottawa in the primary/junior division. She has a combined honours in English and History. She can be found online on Twitter (@MsPatnaikTeach) and through her website https://dominiquepatnaik.wixsite.com/loveoflearning.

What is purposeful technology?

When we walk into a classroom in the year 2018, we see digital technology like laptops, ipads, and smartboards to name a few. But how do we know if and when this digital technology has a clear purpose in our learning environments? Mishra & Koehler’s (2009) suggest that educators need to consider interactions between 1) content knowledge, 2) pedagogy, and 3) technology to successfully integrate digital tech into our classrooms. For instance, if we were to consider integrating the Google Expeditions app (n.d.) to teach science we first need to consider what learning goals we have for the lesson. We need to ask: What do we want kids to know by the end of the lesson?

Say we choose grade 6, specific expectation 3.1 –  identify components of the solar system and describe the physical characteristics in qualitative terms. – then we need to consider how to best teach this expectation and ask whether or not this Google Expeditions tech meets our pedagogical needs. Asking these questions allows us to consider how purposeful our technology is.

Why is purposeful technology important?

The Ottawa Carleton District School Board (n.d.) is encouraging teachers to integrate technology into every subject so that we are developing digitally literate citizens. Without questioning the purpose of digital tech, educators may use tech in the class when it is not an effective means to teach the learning goals. But, how do we know if the digital technology is purposeful?

The purpose of digital technology in the classroom is two fold: 1) To teach students how to interact with and utilize this technology (digital literacy); and 2) To inspire learning through interactive ways beyond reading books or listening to a lecture. To help guide our technology choices, the Triple E Framework (n.d.) provides a way to question our digital technology use. Through a series of questions, educators can ensure that the tech is extending and enhancing the learning, and engaging the students. At the core of this framework is the notion that learning comes first and technology second. We must always consider what we need our students to understand and know and then find a technology that can support this learning and pedagogy. Without this critical lens, teachers might not be choosing digital technology for the right reasons or uses.

Let’s come back to our Google Expeditions example from above, where the learning goal was to identify parts of the solar system and describe the physical characteristics of say planets in qualitative terms, to see how this questioning might play out. In this example, we need to ensure that the Google Expedition Jupiter scenes provide a means of extending, enhancing and engaging learning. When we look at the app, we can see that the learning would be enhanced because it is multimodal – The app provides images, text, and sound clips that identify the planet and describe the characteristics of the planet of Jupiter. This multimodal medium makes the app accessible to most, if not all students, in a classroom from those hard of hearing to those kinaesthetic learners. The learning is extended because the tech creates a bridge between the planet and the classroom. We cannot physically take our students on a field trip to Jupiter yet, so this virtual reality (VR) app is the next best option. The learning is also engaging because students seem to be keen to interact with the VR viewer. So this Google Expedition app seems to meet the Triple E framework guidelines and would be a purposeful tech app to use.

When it comes to picking purposeful digital tech for a classrooms, there are many guidelines and tech to choose from. Ultimately, we must come back to the basic questions: 1) What is the the point of this lesson; and 2) How I can I best create an environment for learning?

Google Expeditions App (n.d.). Retrieved from: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.google.vr.expeditions&hl=en

Mishra, P., & Koehler, M. (2009, May). Too cool for school? No Way! Using the TPACK framework: You can have your hot tools and teach with them, too. Learning & Leading with Technology, ISTE.org.

Ottawa-Carleton District School Board. (n.d.). Exit Outcomes. Retrieved from

https://www.ocdsb.ca/UserFiles/Servers/Server_55394/File/Our%20Schools/Exit%20Outcomes/Skills.pdf

Triple E Framework. Retrieved from: https://www.tripleeframework.com/about.html