The General Context Of The Educational Technology Research

Modern technology has penetrated every aspect of our lives and made great impacts on our daily activities, especially in the area of education. The continuous infusion of technology in education has become an unchangeable tendency. Given the increased use of technology in education, much research has been done on the value of technology in education. However, none of the studies have answered all of the questions that are essential to determining whether continuous infusion of new technologies in education can improve the quality of education. Since a clear answer to this question is vital to help educational organizations to make decisions on how much

265). Incorporating how students would like to receive instruction matched to their learning styles and strengths will increase student motivation to succeed. It is important for me as the teacher to know what instructional strategies work with each student. When students are presented with information in a manner they feel comfortable with they will be less likely to misbehave during class time.

Great outline and arranging, while pivotal for each kind of training system, are significantly more imperative for e-learning tasks (Asirvatham, Venkatachalam, & Kapa, 2013). In traditional training, the biggest exertion is in the conveyance of training sessions, while in e-learning, it is in the configuration and development of organized materials, which must act naturally contained and ready to be utilized various times without making progressing alterations. There are numerous instructional frameworks outline models, a large portion of which are based on well-known ones, for example, the ADDIE model, which is diagrammed beneath. The ADDIE model incorporates five stages: Analysis, Design, Development, Implementation, and Evaluation.

As another work week approaches, many teachers struggle with how they are going to accommodate to many of their student’s needs within the classroom; however, with adequate planning and the amazing ability of technology today I will succeed. As my third graders scurry into the classroom they immediately feel the atmosphere with laughing and a sense of innocence. On the outside they all look like a normal 8 year old who loves recess and intriguing science projects; however, their learning ability is vastly different which is where different learning resources come in to play.

Setting Instructional Direction. My interest in Instructional Design began during my first year of teaching when I had poor classroom management skills and looked for solutions to managing a disruptive classroom. I learned that I was in charge of my classroom, the kids’ behavior was up to me, and the easiest way to have a smooth classroom was to design lessons that did not allow for off-task behavior and to deliver those lessons with strong instructional strategies. Because it was up to me to engage my students in their own learning, I had to find instructional strategies that worked for my kids, and I’ve spent the past 18 years continuing to do so. The result has been my passion for teaching and learning.

Once we can identify the learner’s needs then planning the sessions can have purpose and direction. According to Francis and Gould (2009:59) it is important to “give purpose and direction to your planning”. When teaching a course on computers to absolute beginners, a teacher may want to help learners gain the knowledge and skills to use a computer which they can use at work or home. One of the tools that can help to make sure this learning objective is achieved is SMART which is Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant and Time bound. It makes sense to describe what is to be learned, what can be done as a result, using various methods to teach it, how useful would it be to help learners now and in the future and how long it will take to achieve.

ELL students usually arrive to class with a variety of academic abilities. Teachers can use technology to personalize learning by developing individualized learning plans and resources that addresses and meets the needs of students with varying academic skills. Some of the benefits of using technology in the classroom is scaffolding lessons, which allows the advanced student to progress at his own pace while offering support to the beginning

Research on how people learn – regular and meaningful formative feedback is crucial to learning.

Growing from this universal design notion stemmed the idea of Universal Design for Learning (UDL). Thus, in a UDL learning environment, it is an environment unimpeded for all learners regardless of any disability or label such as LD or ELL. The Center for Applied Special Technology (CAST) purports in their 2011 document “Universal Design for Learning Guidelines version 2.0”, that such learning environments should center on the “How” of learning examining strategic differentiated learning for the classroom; the “What” of learning with the wide range of assessment options available to teachers and students; and the “Why” of learning providing the purpose of learning and engagement in the learning process.

Universal Design for Learning provides age-appropriate materials, techniques, and strategies allowing to provide learning preference “customized” instructions for students to achieve the best education. The Iris Center informs that addresses the educational needs of all students: average learners, English learners, students who have received poor instruction in the past, students with learning disabilities, students with sensory and motor challenges, and gifted and talents students among many others” (Page 1: Universal Design for Learning (UDL)). UDL’s makeup consist of three different principles. The first principle is representation. Representation provides the students with multiple formats that allows all students to have equal learning opportunities. The second principle is action and expression. Action and expression provides alternatives for completion of assignments that best fits the student’s needs. Final principle of UDL is engagement, which consists of motivational techniques to help attract the student’s interest (Page 2: UDL Principles).

Technology has revolutionized the human experience by changing the way one learns. Technology can best be defined as a tool that supports and promotes human learning. This can be seen through the usage of calculators, tablets (example: iPad), Smart Boards, video cameras, and, of course, the computer. These are all innovations that can have a profound impact on classroom learning. Although there are some schools that have a strict policy that technology should be removed from the modern day classroom, other schools believe that integrating technology into the classroom helps prepare our students for the elaborate world they will face going forward. Throughout this essay, I will be focusing on the technology policy and how it has a positive

The education system around the world has progressed and changed in a plentiful amount of ways, and the concept of knowledge and learning has changed in modern day. For example, certain schools around the globe are moving on to implementing technology in classrooms because it provides many benefits and statistical research that states how students are improving their academic readiness because of the instant access to information, a greater engagement and interactive process in learning, and the personalization that instructors can do towards the educational experience that students receive. The benefits of technology in class can be rather debatable, for there are people who think it's a distraction, but it certainly seems to be beneficial according to the increase of passing percentages in schools.

On a daily basis, both businesses and individuals rely on technology. It cannot be denied that technology has become part of our everyday life. As individuals, we all depend on technology, either for education, health purposes, transportation, communication, romantic relationships, and/or business growth . It is impossible to explore how each advancement in technology has impacted our lives as well as how it will impact the future, but we can briefly explore the major advancements. Technology impacts the environment, people individually, and the society as a whole.

There is much in the literature regarding the use of technology in education. According to Dede (2009), Banister (2010), Peled and Schocken (2014), my topic can be characterized as technology in education is an effective tool for motivating student engagement, increasing academic success, and providing new environments for students to learn. Thus, the more technology that is incorporated in a students’ earlier grades, the more inclined they will be to prefer that type of instruction in their latter years. It is an important topic with respect to education because the wave of new technology is increasing at rate never before seen in the field of education. These articles track the study of technology use in the field, and how they are beneficial for my study of technology in education. All of the articles support the idea of the use of technology in education, and each represent a different aspect in which technology can improve a child’s education.

John Dewey, a leader for the progressive movement in education in the United States once said, “If we teach today as we taught yesterday, we rob our children of tomorrow.”