Conclusion

Summarization

In closing, the field of instructional technology can be described as one that synthesizes an array of methodologies and resources in an effort to identify and meet the needs of learners found in any number of settings. The field of IT itself has a rich history, and although parts of it extend back centuries, the majority of what entails the profession today has emerged in the last several decades. It can be thought of as a fluid field, one that morphs as it continues to meet emerging needs with emerging tools. In addition, unlike some other professions, this is one that casts a wide net of support over numerous other careers. Instructional technology can be used to support public or private education, businesses, or governmental agencies.

In our schools, the integration of IT would lead to stronger lesson planning for teachers, including how to approach students and include them as a part of the process. The learning experience should be relevant to them, all the while staying in-line with the educational standards set for each classroom. When lessons are engaging and meaningful, behavior is typically less of a problem. Technology itself can be a part of this process, and IT can assist in using tech in the classroom in the most appropriate and game-changing ways. Going back to my definition of instructional technology, it's "the science of utilizing technological resources to develop, facilitate, and maintain all aspects of instructional practices". These instructional practices can be aided by technology, but the analysis, design, development, implementation, and evaluation of our instructional practices as a core approach must take precedent to improve performance in the classroom.

Reflection

Personally, I feel very strongly about the need for professionals who can relate instructional design methods and resources into meaningful and substantive learning facilitation for a variety of settings. Being a middle school teacher, I have seen firsthand the needs of students, teachers, parents, and other faculty/staff alike. Needs are various, but existent nonetheless. The only thing worse than not being able to meet the needs is there being a lack of effort in trying to analyze and find a solution to solve the issues that arise in the local educational arena.

In today's society, we in education are facing an ever-changing classroom. The desire for technology rings as often as the downtown church bells at noontime. The wonderful thing is that we have so many tools at our disposal today, far more than imagined just ten or twenty years ago. However, with power comes responsibility. How do we utilize these tools? How do we ensure we are still identifying and meeting our students' needs?

As shown in the graphic above, our tech-savvy students of this generation prefer the use of technology in the classroom (which should come as no surprise). In fact, a substantial percentage (42%) of these students not only stated that technology is already in widespread use, but more than half (55%) prefer to see even more use of it. There is nothing wrong with this, and we need to keep in mind that "technology" is far more than just computers, phones, or Chromebooks. However, it is the role of the teacher, or the facilitator, to understand how to use technology in the classroom. Having students go from copying notes from the board to copying notes from a Chromebook is not within itself a bad thing to do, but should not be our end-goal when we say we are "using technology in the classroom".

Any educator who sets aside some time to explore the possible uses of technology for them and their students will see a wide variety of options. We hear a lot of "buzz" words in education, such as collaboration, 21st-century, CCR (college & career readiness), engaging, or student-centered. A lot of tools teacher can find would suffice in meeting the needs of students and provide rigorous, higher-order thinking opportunities. The problem is, however, that many teachers do not know how to properly integrate these tools into their instruction. There is more involved than simply "using" the tool and thinking it automatically helps students. Beyond technological tools and resources at our disposal, there lies the processes and methods to seeing what combination of tools will work in this scenario to meet these specific needs. Some teachers may choose to ignore these processes and use the tools anyway, to little or no avail. Others, though, will simply choose to continue doing what they've always done: stay in the comfort zone and avoid what can be wonderful, game-changing means. As illustrated by The Chronicle of Higher Education in a 2009 study of numerous colleges and universities across the United States, many professors chose not to venture far past the prevalent learning management systems (Canvas, Moodle, BlackBoard, etc.). Other tools available, such as Skype, Google Apps for Education, or good old blogs are simply not even close to being used by a vast majority of educators. Could the reason be that these educators just need to be trained in how to apply these tools to their learning environments?

Bloom's taxonomy is, of course, a staple in education. There is good reason for it, too. It provides a nice visual to show how different classroom instructional activities can be grouped into lower-level memorizations and recall vs. higher-level applications and critical thinking. Very much tied into IT learning theories, Bloom's taxonomy can also be extrapolated to many of today's technology-dependent activities. As prefaced earlier in this reflection, are we using technology to accomplish a task we couldn't do before, or are we simply now regurgitating facts into a machine instead of to a face? The diagram from Hannes Köpper does a good job of connecting Bloom's taxonomy to how we apply the use of technology. With the help of instructional technology, we can identify the best means to take what could be a lackadaisical effort at teaching with technology and transform it into a truly 21st-century, real-world, student-centered learning experience.