I will do better

Photo Credit: By: Charlotta Wasteson

How do instructors successfully integrate technology? Instructors must know their students’ technology mediated learning characteristics. One critical aspect of this is knowing if the students are Digital Immigrants or Digital Natives. While age does not always define technology experience and attitudes, research has shown that those that have grown up with technology think differently (Prensky, 2001b). The comfort level of students with trying new technology matters as instructors plan the balance of structure and dialog within their course. The range of possibilities with these two factors affects transactional distance, which is the gap between the understanding of a teacher and that of a learner (Moore, 2018). I have not integrated technology into a course, so I lack experience from that perspective. However, as an online student in this technology course, I look back at the way the instructor had each of us introduce ourselves and share our technology experience, and the extra directions that were available for those of us that were not comfortable with new technology. I will remember that in the future when I can integrate technology into my own course. 

I am a Digital Immigrant, so I understand and sympathize with that perspective. What I learned this week is that I did not fully understand the change needed to teach Digital Natives. I was not aware that the way those “students think and process information [is] fundamentally different” (Prensky, 2001a, p.1). Their brains have physically changed and they prefer receiving information fast, parallel processing, multitasking, and networking (Prensky, 2001a). A study looking at use of new teaching technologies with a sample of digital native students highlighted the “mental fracture operating between nonlinear-thinking digital natives and linear-thinking instructors, a gap that places the education community in front of new challenges, as it imposes a deep re-adaptation of class pedagogy and teaching methods” (Hamidou, 2016, p. 183). In the discussion, a statement caught my attention, “the reluctance shown by most ‘older paper natives’ to use computers is to be compared with the reluctance shown by most young ‘digital natives’ to read books” (Hamidou, 2016, p. 200). I realized our faculty has been discussing how our current students are not reading the textbooks. There is a lot of frustration and speculation as to why, but this option was not discussed or considered. Prensky (2001b) says “Linear thought processes that dominate educational systems now can actually retard learning for brains developed through game and Web-surfing processes on the computer” (p.4). It is time to try to understand things from their perspective and adapt. So, to my future classes, I will do better.    

Credit:  Juan Cristóbal Cobo on Flickr

The second instructor take-on that I would like to discuss is one I do have experience with: add a layer of personal touch. I think this is important in any setting and under all circumstances. In an Educause Review (2021) podcast, speakers recommended several things to promote student engagement, including personalizing experiences, using students’ names intentionally, getting to know the students on a personal level. These things stood out to me because I try to do them to create a less stressful, more welcoming, safe environment for my students to learn in and I believe it helps.

Sources:

 

Hamidou, K. (2016). New interactive teaching technologies and education process at the UAE University: What are the uses, obstacles and added values? Journal of Arab & Muslim Media Research, 9(2), 183–206. https://doi.org/10.1386/jammr.9.2.183_1

 

Moore, G. M. (2018). The theory of transactional distance. In M. Moore & W. Diehl (Eds.), Handbook of distance education (4th ed., pp. 32-46). New York, NY: Routledge. https://www.routledgehandbooks.com/doi/10.4324/9781315296135-4 

Prensky, M. (2001a). Digital natives, digital immigrants Part 1. On the Horizon 9(5), 1–6.  https://doi-org.er.lib.k-state.edu/10.1108/10748120110424816

Prensky, M. (2001b). Digital natives, digital immigrants Part 2: do they really think differently? On the Horizon 9(6), 1–6.  https://doi-org.er.lib.k-state.edu/10.1108/10748120110424843

Techniques for Student Engagement  https://er.educause.edu/podcasts/educause-exchange/techniques-for-student-engagement

 

 

I am Jane

        Image by Sybren Stüvel 

I am Jane….not literally, but close enough. For anyone not in my technology class, my professor presented a scenario about Jane, a woman returning to get her master’s degree after being out of school for a long time only to find a slew of new technologies and an expectation to use them. So now what? Two options were presented…quit the class or sail along? I need a third option. Why? I am not a quitter, but “sailing along” sounds way too easy. I am along for the ride, but it is not peaceful or painless. The good news is that I enjoy a challenge. 

 

When considering the acceptance of new technology, Davis’ Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) uses two variables, Perceived Usefulness (PU) and Perceived Ease of Use (PEOU), to predict behavior (Lee et al., 2003). I am going to focus on perceived usefulness because without that, there is no point in adopting a new technology. This also relates to the learner take-on or responsibility to ask “What/How will I benefit from this technology?” I see this more as a why question, like the title to my blog. I meant literally…why learn to blog? My personal answer….to increase my digital literacy, to gain experience and a possible tool to use when teaching, to learn something new, to challenge myself, to accomplish what is required to get a good grade in my class and further my progress towards my master’s degree. There are so many whys, which means more motivation to persist when it is hard, and ownership of that choice.  

 

Within TAM, there are many external variables that can affect perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, and behavioral intent/outcomes, such as “system quality, training, compatibility, computer anxiety, self-efficacy, enjoyment, computing support, and experience” (Lee et al., 2003, p.760). I find that many of these relate to each other. I have self-efficacy within school and learning, but not with trying new technology. That will require more experience and training, which will also lesson my computer anxiety and increase enjoyment. The only way to get where I want to be in life and as a teacher is to commit to gaining that experience. The findings using TAM to assess teachers’ adoption of technology found that training targeted at improving PU and PEOU may ‘also focus on enhancing teachers’ self-efficacy in using technology” (Sherer et al., 2019, p.31). This is critical because technology is here to stay. Sherer et al. (2019) discusses how teachers are “working with ‘digital natives’ who are growing up with new technologies as a non-remarkable feature of their life” (p. 14). So, what will I benefit from learning new technologies? I will become a better teacher for all those generations who only know life with technology. 

 

Sources: 

Lee, Y., Kozar, K., & Larsen, K. (2003). The Technology Acceptance Model: Past, Present, and Future. Communications of the Association for Information Systems, 12 (50), https://doi.org/10.17705/1CAIS.01250

 

Scherer, Siddiq, F., & Tondeur, J. (2019). The technology acceptance model (TAM): A meta-analytic structural equation modeling approach to explaining teachers’ adoption of digital technology in education. Computers and Education, 128, 13–35. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compedu.2018.09.009

 

Blog vs. Discussion Board

Is blogging the same as discussion board activity for an SDLer? In first considering this comparison, I did not expect there to be much of a difference. However, there is a considerable one. My mistake in this assumption was that I had never been exposed to blogging. The two predominant differences that stand out are self-directed learning and creativity. Merriam and Baumgartner (2020) state that the assumption behind much SDL research is that "learning in adulthood means becoming more self-directed and autonomous" (p.155) The blog adds more elements of self-direction and autonomy than the discussion board. One of these elements is the freedom for creativity, from choosing a theme to adding photos, videos, or links. There is a whole dimension of creation, end-product, and independence because there is ownership. Oliver and Coble (2016) discuss how "blogs can be an excellent balance between the rigor and structure of a formal written assignment and the freedom to experiment with ideas and arguments" (para. 5). 

The research on blogging has shown multiple benefits. Bush et al. discovered three themes (expanded thinking, competency development and interconnectedness) and four sub themes (change, self-awareness, networking, and affiliations) while concluding that blogging is a "useful tool for exploring reflective processes" (p. 278). Blogging for older adults has promoted a sense of satisfaction, personal growth and purpose, being more creative, using imagination, learning and improving ICT skills, contributing to the welfare of others, relational, cognitive, and identity benefits (Celdran et al., 2021). 

Use of blogs in teaching has lead to higher perceived learning (Garcia et al., 2019) and a solution for self-directed learners because when they learn to use personal learning environments, such as blogging, they can take control of their learning, choose to learn anything, and then be able to share and teach others (Haworth, 2016). 

Hear Vanderbilt teachers discuss how and why they have chosen to use blogs in teaching:

VANDERBILT TEACHERS

As for my personal experience, this is literally my first blog. However, I chose to come into this with an open mind. I am 47-years old, so technology does not come naturally. My foray into blogging started with a list of terms I have never dealt with--robot tags nodp, noindex, crawlers, gadgets, etc. I took a deep breath and moved on to pick a theme and follow the set-up directions on the video. I believe we must be uncomfortable to grow and learn, so I am determined to keep going, learn more, and get as far away from this as possible.

So far the research is holding true....blogging is expanding my technology, and the creative aspect, while I wish I had more time, was an interesting and fun added dimension. While I may not have all the technology pieces figured out, there is a sense of accomplishment that I have my blog up and running, and my first post published. 

Please share with me your thoughts on blogging, whether you are a seasoned blogger, or a beginner like me. Which of these benefits have you experienced? Is there a benefit to blogging that I didn't mention? 

References:

Bush, S. A., Seibel, M. M., Corkins, C. R., & Elliott-Engel, J. (2019). Evaluating the Virginia Agriculture Leaders Obtaining Results (VALOR) program: Blogs as a reflection process. Journal of Agricultural Education, 60(1), 268-282. http://dx.doi.org.er.lib.k-state.edu/10.5032/jae.2019.01268

 

Celdrán, M.,  Serrat, R., Villar, F., & Montserrat, R. (2021). Exploring the benefits of proactive participation among adults and older people by writing blogs. Journal of Gerontological Social Work. Online first. https://doi-org.er.lib.k-state.edu/10.1080/01634372.2021.1965688

 

          Garcia, E., Moizer, J., Wilkins, S., & Haddoud, M. Y. (2019). Student learning in higher education through blogging in the classroom. Computers and Education, 136, 61–74. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compedu.2019.03.011

 

Haworth, R. (2016). Personal Learning Environments: A Solution for Self-Directed Learners. TechTrends, 60(4), 359–364. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11528-016-0074-z

 

Merriam, S. B., & Baumgartner, L. M. (2020). Learning in Adulthood: A Comprehensive Guide. Jossey-Bass.

Oliver, K. H. and Coble, R. R.,(2016). Teaching with Blogs. Vanderbilt University Center for Teaching. https://cft.vanderbilt.edu/teaching-with-blogs/