Marisa
Burkhart
I had the great fortune to attend ISTE in 2011, where I heard Chris Lehmann say those words. That’s a tough thing to say to thousands of educational technology enthusiasts – “quit talking about it". It’s true, though. In one short year, I’ve grown weary of the constant struggle, debate, and discussion revolving around educational technology. Aren’t we there yet? Is there anything left to debate? Aren’t the benefits obvious? Isn’t the last question to answer, “How?”
Lehmann’s mantra of technology that is ubiquitous, invisible and necessary so clearly articulates what I think many are starting to feel and a foundational root of my own philosophy. I think the reason why there is still so much discussion is because even though we all can agree that technology is necessary, the ubiquity and invisibility are more difficult to obtain.
My philosophy of relevant, inquiry based learning didn't just start with my trip to ISTE. It started long ago, when I was a student. It was then I starting formulating ideas about what contributed to my learning and what hindered it.
I was a good student in school, but I always felt I was “playing school” Nothing we did much mattered to anyone else but the teacher. I got really good at playing the game of school. I remember when I was in high school, we got to select a book to read. This was the first time that I truly got to pick anything I wanted to read. I read a non-fiction book written by a popular political figure – I was very interested in politics at the time. I felt like I was cheating the system. I sure showed them - I was reading a book that I enjoyed and that wasn’t “meant” for school! There was no literary discussion, no character study, no comprehension questions, it was just a book that was interesting…to me. I can remember very little about work I did in high school, but I remember that. I remember how empowering it felt to be guided by my own curiosity and answer questions I asked of myself. That feeling is what I believe all students should feel at school – not just once, but continuously.
This feeling of empowerment, of choice, and to be guided by interest is truly motivating for students. This is why I believe that Problem Based Learning should have a role in the classroom. In problem based learning, students are presented with a problem and then go through a series of experiences on a quest to solve that problem, and finally create a product that demonstrates their solution. This teaching and learning strategy can be applied in all grade levels and subject areas, and when married with technology, the result is relevant experiences for students and leads to the creation of high quality products as evidence of learning.
Ubiquity of technology can be a stumbling block that many districts face due to budgetary constraints. I believe our goal should be that all students have access to the internet on demand. We can debate devices forever and we can debate who should own them and manage them and so on. It makes no difference. Again, I will recall the words of Lehmann -- "let's quit talking about it". The internet is what connects us all, allows students to connect with information, and share what they create with others. It's necessary and therefore however districts can best connect their students, staff, and community is really a non issue. This is how technology becomes invisible. It isn’t novel, it isn’t scheduled, it just is how things are done.
Using technology in this way requires reevaluating pedagogical strategies. The TPACK framework suggests that having pedagogical knowledge, content knowledge, and technology knowledge in isolation is much different and less desirable than having knowledge of the intersection of these 3 domains. I believe that teachers' pedagogy should be focused on inquiry based learning where students are conducting real work, real research, and creating real artifacts as evidence of learning. Work that has real world relevance will no doubt be rooted in technology used to enhance productivity or creativity.
It also involves reevaluating the role of the teacher in the classroom. I think Lehmann’s quote about needing to stop talking about education can be extended to mean that we need to recognize that with technology's necessary role in education, also comes a change in how teachers teach. Some teachers are afraid that they will be replaced by computers. Teachers need to be unafraid of letting technology into their classroom. The internet is what can unshackle teachers and students from the time and space constraints of the school system. Extending the “school day” to constant on-demand access allows students to follow their interests, frees them to dive deeper into a topic, and have choice in when and how they participate. Online learning is only starting to make it’s way into k-12 education and I believe, as Clayton Christensen discussed in Disrupting Class, the landscape of k-12 education will change dramatically in the next 10 years. Teachers will become a guide instead of a giver of knowledge. Not having to be the sole key to information frees up time and resources for teachers to do what teachers do best – have inspiring, caring, human interactions with students. That is something that can never be replaced by a computer.
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Philosophy
