Use Technology Because It's There?

So, what's the point? Do you use technology for instruction because you can, or because it actually improves instruction by doing something new, different and meaningful. Or...it's there and mandated by the system and I will use it to satisfy the powers that be.

Collaborative Learning: Just because you *can*, doesn't mean you *should*

MIT operates a learning lab on campus where they closely examine technological practices in their classrooms to find out what should become a "best practice." Student feedback is the determining factor for a successful practice. Here is what they have found:

MIT Teaching and Learning Laboratory - What Works

The Teaching and Learning Laboratory collaborates with MIT faculty, teaching assistants, and students to promote excellence in teaching and learning throughout the Institute. Their work contributes to MIT's commitment to educational innovation and its standing as a leader in science and engineering education.

The TLL has worked out protocols to examine hypotheses on the effectiveness of teaching methods. They have been examining the impact of technology on conceptual learning and student interaction. Their conclusions can be stated in simple form:

a. Too much technology is not good

b. Poorly applied, any amount of technology is not good.

c. Students must be monitored with technology use.

d. Lectures composed of narration, text, and slides interspersed with problems with hints produces improved learning by the students. Courses that are hybrid garner the best results.

e. Students hate discussion boards.

Using Digital Video in the Classroom-A Primer

When it comes to instructional resources, very little surpasses appropriately applied video content. It can develop the context of a problem by giving it a face.
Clipping videos and using them in short segments makes them more effective when presenting information. Streaming and embedding websites such as Teacher Tube and United Streaming afford teachers an almost endless source of instructional material. Previewing and placing the clips at pertinent spots in your presentation makes them an effective device. Misapplied by simply running them with no support is an almost unforgivable instructional mistake. Remember, your students are immersed in a world of visual stimulation and like Pavlov's dogs can have a conditioned response to seeing them.

Videos must be prefaced before viewing and followed up to determine if students comprehended what they just experienced. In other words the video needs to be "packaged" in your presentation so that when it is opened it produces the expected response.