Technology & The Mind

If educators were reluctant to explore how technology can enhance learning before the Covid pandemic, they were not only forced into a crash course to figure it out, but eventually came to the realization that the educational landscape would forever be changed. There was no more going back to the “way things were.” Institutions scampered to provide one professional development opportunity after another, some educators were assigned to mandated training, others did what they could when they could, and all were most likely inundated with emails pushing out one technology tool after another without much support centered on how to use the technology for learning.

 

Another phenomenon was that the conversation surrounding technology remained centered on the task of replicating in-person practices in an online format. By centering the conversation on this assumption, educators wasted precious time with frustrated efforts such that some have resigned themselves to another false assumption: that in-person instruction is simply more effective than online instruction. Distance learning is not in-person learning; it is a digital context which requires innovative and creative approaches to designing and facilitating learning experiences and the leveraging of technology to not “replicate in-person activities” but to create new activities that redefine how learning can take place. This rings true for technology integration in the in-person classroom as well; it is not simply there to emulate what has already been done, but to enhance the learning experience in such a way that learning would simply be less effective without it. 

​

For this reason, I employ learning technologies to enhance the potential for learning in a particular context and for a particular purpose. I am a community college English professor, and I choose technologies with care and with particular learning goals in mind. I use the SAMR (Substitute, Augment, Modify, Redefine) framework to assist me in such decisions. Developed by Dr. Ruben Puentedura, this framework guides my reflection as to how the technology in question would function in the classroom. Would it function to simply substitute a task? Augment or improve an activity? Would it allow me to modify or redesign a task? Or would it allow me to redefine how I do things by creating completely new tasks previously inconceivable? This practical framework allows me to evaluate the potential of a technology to enhance learning experiences and with specific learning goals in mind before I potentially plan activities using it. 

 

Integrating technology is not only about intentional and deliberate selection and specific activities, but creatively designing learning experiences. It requires dedication to not only learning and developing new and more effective uses of technology but a practice for harnessing user creativity and a means to support it. Learners need time, support for their ideas, and resources to enable them; they need motivation to persevere through uncertainty and ambiguity and the space to take risks; they need time for reflection and sociality, a means to collaborate with others through technology (Nichols 2007). To this end, I forefront creative technologies such as Canva, Genially, and Powtoon and scaffold activities for learners to explore them through a series of low-stakes assignments before used for larger assessments. And I integrate technologies that enable robust collaboration and communication between learners for our digital community to pulse with ideas and communal support.

​

One valuable learning technology I use to assist in critical reading instruction is the social annotation tool Hypothesis, which allows students to collaboratively annotate a text and even engage in a discussion of those annotations in the margins. This is a valuable enhancement to previously commonplace social metacognition activities of verbally sharing thoughts in the reading process, which was always limited in its functionality and effectiveness, and allows for new tasks to take place as well. With technology, students are able to return to the text and engage with the various perspectives, knowledge, and thoughts other students bring to the classroom as many times as they want, not only within the fleeting timeframe of classroom activity. In facilitating collaboration in critical reading practices, this technology also helps to build community among students as they are not simply sharing thoughts but the experiences, cultures, and identities that inform their viewpoints.  

​

It can also be valuable to integrate technology without specific learning goals of the course in mind. Technologies that help foster communication, support, and community among students outside of class can enrich the learning experiences inside of class. Sometimes a simple group text platform can help, such as GroupMe, or one that can be integrated into the LMS such as Pronto. Cultivating this type of digital community can lead to supportive study habits such as group study over Zoom. In another respect, providing outside resources for students to develop skills and receive professional support online, such as reading and writing tutoring or librarian assistance with research through Zoom or other digital channels, can help students take ownership of their learning process and develop efficacy, particularly for those who experience social anxiety, feelings of intimidation, or simply lack resources to access such support in non-digital formats. 

​

Learning technology is an ever-changing and evolving field, and there is a lot that I need to learn and will always need to learn. I approach the study of technology with the mindset of continuous learning and keeping up-to-date with new features and emerging tools. While some technologies have become standard features of the English composition classroom, such as computer use for research and word processing, others have yet to make such a stamp on the learning environment. As such, updates to academic databases, Zoom, and LMSs that offer new features to enable more pointed research, collaboration, or more efficient workspaces require time to learn and explore, and there are also technologies to pilot and learn about. One such technology that I currently plan to learn about is VoiceThread.

  

Technology tools that truly enhance the learning experience and not just function as replacements for in-person activities are welcomed integrations into my classroom. Those that enable creative expression and help to foster community and support among learners have proven most valuable to designing learning experiences and motivating learners. As we move toward a so-called post-pandemic educational environment in which technology can no longer be de-centered but is a vital and rich necessity to contemporary learning, my philosophy is more of a commitment: to continuously learn and explore innovative ways technology can be harnessed to transform how learning and assessment occur.