“If you had to choose between compliant, engaged or empowered which word would you want to define your students?” – George Couros
Terms like engagement, integration, and enhancement were once my “go-to” terms to illustrate my stance on technology in the classroom. Ensuring meaningful use of technology tools and guaranteeing that these tools were part of the learning and the curriculum was paramount to my views on teaching and learning. Bond money had been spent and technology needed to be used! Over time I have come to embrace the idea that, although these terms continue to have value, the overarching idea of empowering students is the cornerstone of my philosophy of educational technology. Students come to us every day engaged with technology; that proverbial ship sailed about 20 years ago. It is no longer about ensuring the integration, it’s now about creating functional critical thinkers who are connected through authentic learning opportunities that have relevance to them. In Lee Crockett’s keynote at Western Australia’s STEM Innovation Expo, he related that “it’s about the HEAD-ware, not the hardware” for today’s students. The “stuff” will constantly be changing (almost daily); it’s not going away. It’s now about using these tools to create functional independent humans in the 21st century by meeting them where they are.
Lev Vygotsky’s constructivist theory for learning reflects this philosophy for me. His idea that learning should be scaffolded based on where the student is in his development is the key to student empowerment with technology. Vygotsky’s zone of proximal development (ZPD) sharpens his theory by defining students as novices whose cognitive functioning can be shepherded and differentiated by teachers. Instructional models like TPACK play an important role in defining what empowerment through digital resources can look like and support Vygotsky’s theory. The TPACK model is the convergence of pedagogy and content knowledge with technology. It is within this “sweet spot” that transformational learning can occur as it is taking into account all of the necessary affordances that we need to empower our students in the classroom. All three knowledge areas create a model similar to a tripod. All three legs are necessary to ensure sustained, relevant and ongoing student empowerment in their learning. Reflecting on learning experiences using the TPACK model asks teachers to constantly reflect on the value-add that technology is bringing to the learning experience.
Changes in educational theories and best practices have been around since the birth of education itself. Debates on everything from using ink pens instead of pencils to using calculators in math classes have encouraged deep thinking about what’s best for learners. Educational technology is a similar education debate, except the change, is happening exponentially for teachers. Our learners come to us with digital appendages; just encouraging their use is no longer an affordance educators can make. Be it a 1:1 experience, BYOT or another model to provide students with access, we must differentiate and critically think about how these tools are supporting the continued empowerment of students in our classrooms. Using the terms “engagement” and “integration” is no longer enough. Consistent reflective practices must occur within lesson design and delivery to ensure our students leave us as independent and empowered global citizens.
Lara Lindsey 