Want to effectively integrate technology? Make it invisible.

I facilitate online professional development for teachers on integrating technology in their classrooms, and one of the participants—a high school art teacher—came up with a powerful insight into the whole concept of integrating technology. He said: 

The technology should be invisible.

In that one short statement, he was able to capture the essence of effective technology integration. We don’t want the tool to be the focus, nor do we want the tool to drive the learning. Rather, the goal is to put the learning first and allow the use of the tool to be so seamless, so natural, so smooth as a means to reach the objective, that it is…invisible. 

For example, you may have just discovered PowToons or Quizlet. These are both fabulous tools! However, if you’re thinking, “Oh wow! I want to use those with my kids!” then you’ll want to stop.

If your goal is to use the tool, then the technology will not be invisible—it will be a glaring neon sign that reads

                                     Heyyyy, We're Doing Technology Nowwww

Further, once the novelty has worn off, your students will potentially be turned off to the tool as they will not see its value of transfer. They’ll only know that they “did a PowToon” or “did a Quizlet” in class.

Maybe that’s how we can judge whether or not our integration of technology is effective. If you ask a student, “What are you doing in class?” and the answer is anything along the lines of “I’m making a video” or “I’m drawing a Bitstrip” then, your technology is too visible.

Rather, your goal is to keep the learning as the objective. You want the kid to say, “We’re trying to solve a mystery” or “We’re coming up with solutions to a problem in our community.” 

HOW they look for ways to solve that mystery (through internet research) or share that solution (video, blog, infographic) shouldn’t be the focus. 

So, the question is, how do we make our integration of technology invisible?

 

       1. Ask big questions. What kinds of questions do you want kids to be thinking about as they move into the lesson/unit? Generally, the use of clearly relevant how, why, or what if questions tend to stimulate more thought.

       Why is there still racial tension in the U.S., today? (high school)

  

2. Based on those questions and your state standards, create learning objectives. What should the student be able to do by the end of this lesson unit? 

       By the end of this lesson, unit, the student will be able to:

•  Discuss multiple perspectives on the issue.
•  Identify at least four valid reasons for the persistence of racial tensions in the U.S.
• Support their identified reasons with evidence from recent data and statistics.
• Posit two or more plausible solutions for easing tensions, based on research.

                                  

 Standard: Students are able to develop well-reasoned argument, posit solutions with the      

use of evidence from research.

3.  Determine what technology tools will aid the students in reaching those objectives. Even   better, offer students a choice of tools. In the examples above, the most logical technology tools are:

• A curation tool to gather and house research (Pinterest, Symbaloo, or other)
• A word processing tool (Google docs, Word, or other) OR
• Another publishing tool (Podcast, blog, Glogster, or other)

 Nothing fancy. Hopefully, in response to the question, these kids would say, “We’re talking about why there’s still racism,” and not “We’re making a Glogster thing.” 

Make it invisible. 

You'll find more teaching strategies in our book, Transparent Teaching of Adolescents: Creating the Ideal Class for Students and Teachers. Some former students and I collaborated on the development of best strategies for secondary educators. Check us out!

Converting Theory into Practice: Organic Technological Integration

We've all thought this at one point in time: "Please, for the love of all that's holy, just give me some practical things to do in my classroom."

We don't want to hear about all the specifical statistical theory that goes into the infrastructure of the framework of the ideological paradigm--we just want the nuts and bolts that we can immediately begin adjusting in our classroom.

I used to think that, too. Then, I had one of those "ah-hah" moments.

If you can understand the principle or theory, you can do anything.













It's kind of like what we try to do with students. We strive to teach them skills: how to think, how to learn, how to collaborate, how to read.


Because those skills transfer to a host of other things, smaller things. Now, we just need to remember that for ourselves! We need to embrace theory. I'm not saying that practical things have no purpose, but IF we have the theory down, we can then approach anything on solid footing. 

For technology integration, especially, a lot of teachers just want to learn the program or the application. They want the practical side of things because that, they feel, is where their potential weakness lies. That's what they're afraid of: not knowing how to work the technology. 

For a minute, let's see how working from a theoretical foundation might actually improve their practical application and help them overcome this fear. Consider:

The best integration of technology comes from an understanding of theory, not how well you can use the app or the program.

Teachers wanting to learn practical things first are potentially at risk of working from the technology tool as the foundation. This approach, though it does meet the basics of integrating technology, fails to reflect purposeful integration.

What teachers need to understand is not how to use Program A or Application B or even that the programs exist, necessarily, at first. They need to know what their objectives are for their lesson, first.

Let's say one of those objectives is collaboration.

Then, they need to know that IF and only IF they have determined that collaboration will enhance their students' learning, then they need to figure out HOW they want the  students to collaborate. Then, and only then, are they ready to even think about a particular program or application:

Do they want students to work together on single page or document or separately on a single page or document? Do they want students to simply discuss in a forum?  (There are certainly more ways that students can interact and collaborate with technology, but we'll stick with these general ways.)

Then, they also have to decide whether the choice to use technology is the BEST choice, given that they can do any of those three of these without it.

Why might it be better to use Padlet or Wikispaces than say, a posterboard in the classroom? Why might the use of an online discussion be more effective for student learning than an in-class discussion?  Why would I want them to collaborate on a google doc instead of working together on a physical paper?  Why is the use of any online tool warranted in this instance for this lesson?

All of these WHYS must be answered. Here are some potential answers:

•       I want a paperless classroom.
•      The technology saves money and resources (markers, etc.)
•      I'm required to integrate technology.
•      It's a really cool app!!!

If any of these answers are "Yes," then the use of technology is potentially superficial. You have to be honest with yourself, here. Consider that technology may not be the best choice, and using technology for the sake of using technology is a misuse of it.

However, if the technology tool enhances student learning in some way towards the objective, then we've got something. Some possibilities might be:

• This topic is controversial and may be uncomfortable for some students to discuss in person.
• Students would benefit from having the opportunity to publicly express their ideas with forethought.
• Part of the objective for the lesson is that students work on their visual aesthetic abilities, which is made readily available with the tool.
• For those students who are uncomfortable with creating original artwork or lettering, the use of the web tools puts them on more equal footing, thus increasing the likelihood that they will take academic and creative risks.

If your thinking takes you down one of these kinds of paths, then you can do a quick search for a program or app that helps students collaborate. Now, you have a program or application that is clearly and purposefully, and dare I say, "organically" integrated. It makes more sense.

(Consider the difference in student response to these reasons, too. More than likely, if the reasons for the technology are theoretically and/or pedagogically sound, then you will experience less student resistance.)

But this is just theory...

                                           with which you can do anything.

 
What's my objective?
How do I want students to work towards the objective?
Ask "Why technology?"
What tool will match what I'm trying to do and why I'm doing it?

Mindy and some of her former students wrote Transparent Teaching of Adolescents: Creating the Ideal Class for Students and Teachers--a philosophy, method, and timely application of strategies that span the school year. A collaborative effort from all over the globe, the dialogue between this teacher and her former students presents both the wholeness of teaching and a model of how to build rapport, engage high school students in their experience, and enrich learning at the secondary level of education.