Being Critical of Our Assumptions (Online Activity 3)

The fine line between pessimism and optimism

After reading the critiques of the use of technology in eduction by Selwyn (2014) and Knox (2019), I will be a lot more cautious in not getting caught up in the ‘hype’ when new technologies are presented to me, and rather look at it through a lens of 'Is this technology or software fit for the educational purpose I need it for?' These readings have definitely highlighted a lot of the issues that come with digital education. I can identify as being an optimist in terms of the use of digital education and have been quite passionate about its uses and ability to not only enhance my teaching, but also engage my learners. A lot of the professional development we have received over the past few years has been focused on the positives technology has to offer, ignoring or failing to point out any criticisms. It leads me to question whether my students are any better off learning through using a device or are these tools (or at least some of them) actually impacting negatively on my students cognitive abilities? Are these tools being pushed on the education sector as means of only gaining profit at the expense of us providing a truly quality education?

I feel I’ll now be more cautious about being caught up in the ‘hype’ of digital technologies and rather have a more pessimistic view when ‘great’ new ideas and technologies are introduced. The bottom line is digital technologies are here to stay and are ingrained in all areas of society and our daily lives. Our students need to have some form of skill in this area in order to function successfully in society and most future careers will depend on this. Regardless of what degree we use these tools in our classrooms, our students have constant exposure to digital technologies and often their skills far surpass those of their teachers. Maybe a better approach to teaching students using digital technologies, needs to be through a lens of being responsible and informed users; rather than misguided fun tools. It’s on us as the educators to make sure that we are as informed as possible to guide our students in the right direction.

 Wishart (2018) raises some important ethical considerations teachers and schools need to consider when using digital technologies in classroom programmes. Some that stood out to me include misuse of devices, off task behaviours causing distraction, accessibility, cyberbullying and plagiarism. These points highlight the importance of schools having sound ICT policies and student/staff internet agreements in place to set clear boundaries and ensure the school has clear guidelines to manage issues that arise (Wishart, 2018). Incorporating digital technologies in classroom programmes should be to enhance student learning and potential, but for this to be successful, we need to target student behaviours and teach students how to be responsible users of these devices. You wouldn't give the keys to your vehicle to someone who has never driven and expect them to drive you around without first learning the road code and practising with an experienced driver; so why are we giving students devices and expecting them to be responsible users without the appropriate training and guidance?    

 Online activity 3 has helped me to meet learning outcome 2 as it has prompted me to critically evaluate how I implement digital technologies into my classroom. I now realise that I am responsible for building students competencies with using devices responsibly in my blended learning environment. It is not enough to merely have high expectations of learners - there is a lot more scaffolding needed to promote responsible device use and online participation. 

References:

Knox, J. (2019). What does the ‘postdigital’ mean for education? Three critical perspectives on the digital, with implications for educational research and practice. Postdigital Science and Education, 1(2), 357-370. https://doi.org/10.1007/s42438-019-00045-y

Selwyn, N. (2014). Why distrust educational technology? In Distrusting educational technology: Critical questions for changing times (pp. 1-19). Routledge.

 Wishart, J. (2018). Ethical considerations in the incorporation of mobile and ubiquitous technologies into teaching and learning in educational contexts. In S. Yu, M. Ally & A. Tsinakos (Eds.), Mobile and ubiquitous learning: An international handbook (pp. 81-93). Springer.

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