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
First and foremost, I want to cheer lead you. You got this! I didn't identify with Jane at all when reading the coursework. School is pretty much a perpetual hobby of mine and I love experimenting with technology. Because of that, I think the one thing that I am critical of TAM is that it is very focused on user and their perception. This is of course important, but there is also an entire field of study on UX and UI that will tell you how easy something actually is to use (for most). Presumably, these are efforts that would be assessed before they're brought to the learner as a whole, but I think it's important for those who may be new. You may be discouraged because the product is actually terrible, not because you're not familiar with technology.
ReplyDeleteCatie,
ReplyDeleteThank you! I wish I didn't identify with Jane...but accepting reality is the first part of fixing it. You made me laugh with your comment that the product may actually be terrible, so maybe it isn't all me! There is some validity to that. I didn't focus on PEOU because, for me, all new technology is somewhat difficult. I have to get over that first miserable use and know that it will get easier. Once I get accustomed to it, I usually love it.
Hello,
ReplyDeleteI was interested to read about Jane's dilemma in the reading this week. Before starting my graduate program at K-State, I was only out of my undergraduate studies for 4 years. Just in those 4 years, there were many changes and improvements made to the online learning experience. I will say, I personally feel comfortable with technology changes usually, but there are still certainly times where I can be intimidated by new tech. Thanks for sharing your thoughts!
Chase,
DeleteThank you for your response--I apologize that I missed it waiting for moderation!! That is my fault and I emailed our professor already to let him know. Won't happen again!
Your willingness to be self-reflective enough to know there are more than 2 options in the Jane scenario is key. You are likely successful in your professional role. You equally have chosen more for a reason. Successful people surround themselves with ways to motivate their further success. For you it sounds like it is the challenge. The technologies may have changed but your willingness to challenge yourself to find a way to succeed sounds like it has not. Might be a journey with some additional work, but sounds like you know the factors to succeed. Discovering this with a group when implementing a new technology is my greatest takeaway from this lesson.
ReplyDeleteWe are all motivated for different reasons. Here is one question I ask myself when I am challenged with something..."If I had to bet on someone to succeed at this would it be me." My answer is usually yes and then I find a way to make it work. Sounds like you are similar in your motivation. Bet on you!
DeleteAaron,
I apologize that I missed your comment...it was waiting for moderation! I have emailed to let our professor know. I am still learning this blogging thing, but now I know and it won't happen again.
I like your question to yourself--that is a good way to approach things and I can appreciate that the answer is usually yes. :)