| | December 20139CIOReviewIT and academic affairs on not only the technology supplied but how it can be effectively integrated and used in the learning process.As an example, I have seen dozens of failed 1:1 computing initiatives where faculty and students are supplied with devices. While having a device available to every student and every educator is a laudable goal, too often the initiative focuses on procuring the device as the end goal rather without looking at how to effectively integrate it into the learning experience. Further, it is rare to see attention to training faculty and students on how to achieve this goal. Too often, after the press releases and photographs of the bright and shiny new devices, educators are left to their own accord to figure out how best to use technology in instruction. The result is that the technology is not used very effectively as the day-to-day demands of instruction leave very little time for faculty to consider integrating it in a meaningful way. There may be a few faculties that do achieve integration but even these "islands of excellence" find little support for their new methods and eventually they atrophy.One university where I worked always set aside a percentage of the total cost of a new campus building for its ongoing maintenance and repairs. The facility planners correctly understood that even new buildings would eventually need something replaced and it was a lot easier to save for this eventuality along the way rather than to scramble and find the budget at the time it might be urgently needed. I would suggest that a similar approach should be taken for each major technology purchase. A significant percentage of the technology budget should be set aside for faculty development so that the full benefits of the technology can be realized. Given the significant demands on faculty members' time, a particularly effective approach I have observed is a "Technology Enriched Instruction" (TEI) workshop for faculty. The one-day workshop has five key components which together, create in faculty a greater awareness, appreciation, and aptitude in the appropriate integration of technology in instruction. The five components are:Familiar Build on what they already knowAuthentic Use examples and exercises from educationCollaborative Project-based work in five-member teamsHands-on Use technology to learn about technologyInquiry-based learning Limited lecture Rather than the all-too-common "techno-centric" approach, which focuses on the technology itself, the TEI approach is based on the TPACK framework. TPACK is a model that emphasizes the appropriate combination of technology (T), pedagogy (PA) and content (CK). The workshop itself illustrates TPACK as faculty work through a series of developmental exercises that themselves display the right "fit" between technology, pedagogy, and content. The result is faculty who experience the use of technology as they learn how it can be appropriately applied to their own instruction.It is time we fully realized in education, like most other areas of the modern economy have, the systemic benefits of technology. Technology can help us to address some of the most pressing issues facing education today such as college completion, personalization, and preparing students for the new world of work. But to achieve this, CIOs must forge closer partnerships with academic affairs and focus more time and resources on helping faculty achieve true integration of technology in education.There may be a few faculties that do achieve integration but even these "islands of excellence" find little support for their new methods and eventually they atrophyJames Garner Ptaszynski
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