22.1: Introduction

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Elizabeth Reyes-Acetyuno, Freda M Antoine and Tamika M. Porter

Learning Objective

Selection of Educational Technology describes how preservice teachers can select technological tools and applications for various experiences and situations they may encounter as teachers.

child using a computer

We know that there is a problem when the devices we plan to use in our instruction are more outdated than the personal devices that students carry with them daily. A problem educators face daily is keeping their lessons innovative and interesting. The average student has an attention span that ranges from five to twelve minutes (Dunneback & Therrell, 2015). The combination of advances in technology along with the individual needs of each student must be considered when designing and revamping lessons. The characteristics of the “millennial” student are significantly different than students from previous generations. Millennials can be described as students who were raised by “helicopter parents” who tended to hover, over protect, and coddle. To successfully teach them, there must be revisions to pedagogies and tools (Russo, 2013).

There is much to consider when selecting educational technology. While some of the time, your district will choose a set of tools for you to use, there are also often opportunities for teachers to decide on their own that services will best meet your teaching philosophy. Most school districts have upgraded their school campuses to being Wi-Fi enabled, along with having devices like Chromebooks and tablets available for students. Some schools have even received grant money to allow each student to have a device assigned to them individually.

Once devices have been selected for use, the security of information and student data is paramount. The student information system utilized by the school should already have security provisions in place. Firewalls and spam blocking technology are something that individual teachers should not have to worry about. If your school/district has not upgraded its technology, then this would be your starting point. Determining the resources that will affect your ability to implement or embed technology into your plans must be considered.

Once technology devices have been selected, the next step would be to consider what type of learning system or application you would like to use. Considering what your goal or purpose is important at this point. It is recommended that you start out small. Understanding your own ability levels and how you may access these tools effectively is what educators must be focused on. If the district has a grade book or LMS that they have mandated that everyone use, this would be the starting point. The emergence and increasing use of tablet technologies and applications are changing the work of teacher educators. This change calls for the need to have tools to guide educators in the direction that will aid their intentions (Cherner, Dix, & Lee, 2014).