After reviewing many key reports on technology trends, usage, and innovations for my master’s class at ACU, I am beginning to develop a better understanding of how technology is being used and the impact it will have on the future of education. First, while any type of technology affects the landscape of teaching, sustaining innovations will only improve what we are already doing. Disruptive innovations are the ones we must watch carefully as they have the most potential to actually change the educational climate of our schools. Secondly, reviewing technology usage by college students will give us a glimpse of where our students are headed; if they are not already there. Finally looking at current technological trends will help us plot our own path. The intent behind looking at the findings of this summary is to help elementary stakeholders grab the wheels of the technology revolution and start charting a course that will help our students be ready for the 21st century world they are in; to help them be drivers of their destiny and not mere riders on the train.
While we are aware of the ever increasing bank of new technologies, it would appear that educational practices are not keeping pace. There is agreement in the Horizon Reports from 2006-2011 that computer literacy skills among students are not improving; and that a wide gap exists between how technology is used and viewed by students versus faculty. The 2010 ECAR report reiterates this notion, “technology and therefore how our students use and think about technology has changed remarkably and campus IT has changed far less dramatically” (Smith & Borreson, p.19). If we want our students to be prepared for the future with the skills they need, these issues must be addressed. We must begin to be as purposeful with instruction of computer literacy for students as we are with math and reading. Students need formal instruction in computer related skills; as identified by the 2009 Horizon Report: “information literacy, visual literacy, and technological literacy”( http://wp.nmc.org/horizon2009/). In addition, the Horizon Report 2008 reminds us with the ever increasing availability to connect learners all over the world, educators need to begin using collaborative elements in their lessons (http://wp.nmc.org/horizon2008/). Tools such as Face book, wikis, Google docs, Skype, blogs and the like need to become the norm in their school activities rather than resources that they use in personal computing. For this to become a reality, purposeful instruction for educators is needed as well.
A look at emerging technologies and trends over the past several years exposes exciting possibilities for the future. One such technology is electronic books. Although absent from the 2006-2009 Horizon Reports, they made their emergence in the 2010 Horizon Report as a growing technology 2-3 years out(http://wp.nmc.org/horizon2010/). At that time the report identified their existence for nearly four decades, but gaining acceptance and improvement in quality and accessibility is what I suspect garnished their inclusion on this report. Initially, electronic books would have been considered a sustaining technology as they were more or less just an electronic version of the written text. However, the innovations they are now employing have not only moved them to the top of the 2011 Horizon Report but have also put them in the light of being a “potentially transformative technology”( http://wp.nmc.org/horizon2011/ ). Publishers are now looking at ways to transform the reading experience by “exploring interfaces that include multimedia and collaborative elements” as well as making them more self-directed, interactive, and tactile(http://wp.nmc.org/horizon2011/). As elementary teachers, we should find this exciting. Adding the collaborative element to these books as well as interactive interfaces could transform traditional literature circles moving them beyond the scope of individual classrooms. Students of similar abilities and interests could converse during school time while residing in different classes and even different grade levels.
The 2010 ECAR Study for Undergraduate Students and Information Technology reported that 94% of college students use their university library websites with over half of the students using it several times a week (Smith & Borreson, p.10). This trend supports the growing acceptance and use of eBooks. Elementary schools would do well to head in this direction. Building an eBook library would allow students to access books from not only the classroom but home. It would also allow teachers to form groups to study the same book; a sometimes cost prohibitive venture when using hard copies.
Another disruptive innovation that has been on all past Horizon reports and is included in the 2011 report as something to watch in the next twelve months, is the continuing development of mobiles. As early as 2006, the Horizon report identified the trend of increasing mobile technology usage and the common sense of delivering content to those devices (http://wp.nmc.org/horizon2006/). The usage of mobiles allows students to access the internet anywhere there is a cell signal and frees them from being tied to a specific destination. While at first glance this could be looked at as merely a sustaining technology, one that allows a mobile to do better than what a desktop or laptop could do; they make accessible what was not previously available to some consumers which according to Clayton Christensen is the definition of a disrupting innovation (Christensen , Horn, &Johnson, 2011, p.47). The continuing development of applications for these devices also offer the opportunity to drastically change the way schools operate. The 2011 Horizon report identified a tool, Poll Everywhere that “turns mobiles into personal response systems” (http://wp.nmc.org/horizon2011/). This application alone has the potential to change how teachers teach and access learning.
An obvious drawback at the elementary level is the availability of mobile devices for their students. The majority of students at this level will probably not own their personal mobile device leaving the burden upon the schools to supply access to them. In the future this may not be the quite the obstacle it is in today’s market. Morgan Stanley’s 2009 report states their belief that Apple will want to dominate the market share on wireless devices and will do what is necessary for that to become a reality, even if it means “driving down hardware prices, pressuring carriers to lower or tier service plan pricing and adding new carrier and distribution partners” (http://www.morganstanley.com/institutional/techresearch/mobile_internet_report122009.html). If this comes to pass it will have obvious implications for affordability in schools.
Another rising technology is augmented reality. It appears on the Horizon Report lists of 2005, 2006, 2009, 2010, and 2011 as one of the six top technologies to watch. Applications that have the ability to bring data to life and make it meaningful have profound implications for education and would be considered a disruptive innovation. As described in both the 2010 and 2011 report, augmented reality blends virtual data with what we see in the real world as students use it to construct new understandings by this interaction. Augmented reality is based around holding a 2D image up to a webcam and then seeing a 3D image on screen (http://www.nickburcher.com/2009/05/augmented-reality-5-examples-of-this-3d.html).. For instance holding up a phone to a newspaper article and having the article come to life. Applications allow you to point it at a person’s face and find information about them on Face Book( http://www.engadget.com/2009/07/09/video-tats-augmented-reality-concept-unveiled/ ), or scan a bar code into your phone and find the store with the best price (http://www.appbrain.com/app/barcode-scanner/com.google.zxing.client.android ). In museums, pointing at a piece of art can yield additional information about the piece. The possibilities are amazing as this technology continues to evolve especially for educators. The challenge will be how to adapt this in the classroom so all students have access to this information. Devices such as I Pads would allow this to be a real possibility. Keeping abreast of available applications should challenge all of us.
Another technology that could pose significant changes in the classroom is that of gesture-based computing. This technology has also been one of Horizons top six to watch for many years; 2004, 2005, 2006, 2009, 2010 and 2011. It is interesting to note however that in both 2010 and 2011 this technology was still being identified as 4 – 5 years out. The 2010 report describes this as a potentially transformative technology because it changes “not only the physical and mechanical aspects of interacting with computers, but also our perception of what it means to work with a computer” (http://wp.nmc.org/horizon2010/). Advancements in this area could have profound effects on kinesthetic learners and provide them with an avenue that allows them to be taught according to their strength. Monitoring of advances in this technology would be well advised.
In closing, the findings show we are truly in a time of vast expansion of our technological capabilities. Mobile devices allow all of us to have access to information at any time. People expect to be able “to work, learn, and study whenever and wherever they want” (http://wp.nmc.org/horizon2010/). With the growing adoption of some technologies; social networking, eBooks, mobile devices, our educational landscape will and should change. Advancements such as augmented reality and gesture- based computing will shape it even further. These disruptive innovations should change the course of education and along with it the way that we approach teaching and learning. However even as technology creates new roads for us to navigate one thing seems to remain constant. ECAR reports consistently show that students want to see “the use of IT balanced with the human touch- shiny new tech is still no substitute for well-trained, passionate instructors” (Smith, Salaway, & Borrenson, 2009, p. 12).
Chen, B. (2009, August 25). If you are not seeing data, you are not seeing. Retrieved from
http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2009/08/augmented-reality/.
http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2009/08/augmented-reality/.
In this article author of Wired Gadget Lab, Brian Chen introduces the powerful possibilities of augmented reality to change information as we currently experience it. Although he sees it as technology seven years out, he identifies the potential for true innovation. As his title suggests, if you are not seeing data, you are not seeing. He points out this technology is not “truly useful in a static desktop environment” it needs to be connected to mobile devices to enter into the world where we primarily reside.
Konrath, J. (2011, May 19). Tech talk and the active ebook. [Blog message]. Retrieved from
In his blog, author Joe Konrath talks about his own desire to see his eBooks move beyond just being digital representations of words. Even with the insertion of videos with text, he doesn’t believe that creates the interaction with books that he desires. Konrath identifies the necessity of making an electronic book and “Active Ebook”.; one that moves beyond being static and becomes alive. His desire is to see electronic books become a community of fans coming together discussing, arguing, contributing, and questioning the nuances of the book.
Grunwald and Associates. (2010). Educators, technology and 21st century skills: Dispelling five
myths. Retrieved from Walden University, Richard W. Riley College of Education website:
In a study compiled by Walden University’s Richard W. Riley’s College of Education and Leadership, the findings of more than 1,000 U.S. K-12 teachers, principals, and assistant principals addressed five myths involving technology use in education. The study defines the importance of teachers’ roles in implementation of technology in the classroom, and exposes such myths as “teachers who are newer to the profession and teachers who have greater access to technology are more likely to use technology frequently for instruction than other teachers.” The study in general supports the notion that teachers are not equipped to provide students with 21st century skills.
Mallison, K. (2008, August 31). Analysis-disruptive innovation. Wireless Week, Retrieved from
Lawrence, J. (2011, January 3). The new wave of computing [Blog message]. Retrieved from
http://www.i-cio.com/blog/january-2011/gesture-based-computing.
The author of this article, James Lawrence, contends that soon gesture-based computing will change the way users interface with a computer. Breakthrough technology is in the works that uses natural movements of the hand to interact with the computer. He believes this technology will be released in the mid to short term and represents disruptive innovation. One developer, John Underkoffler, challenges us that there cannot be just one interface. He thinks he has a new one and we all will be using it in five years.
References
Christensen, C.M., Horn, M.B., & Johnson, C.W. (2011). Disrupting class; how disruptive
innovation will change the way the world learns. McGraw-Hill Pofessional.
Smith, S., Borreson Caruso, J., & Kim, J. (2010) The ECAR Study of Undergraduate
Students and Information Technology, 2010 (Research Study, Vol. 6). Boulder, CO:
Smith, S., Salaway, G., & Borreson Caruso, J. (2009). The ECAR Study of Undergraduate
Students and Information Technology, 2009 (Research Study, Vol. 6). Boulder, CO:
