Blog #3 - Planning and Implementation

Blog 3

My overall impression of the Picciano (2011) text persists in that the book offers a brief and concise ‘pointer’ to external information. The author presents a logically-arranged synopsis of the major considerations to be made for planning and implementing technology with a focus on education and educational leadership. Emphasis is given not only to the technological end of things (hardware, software, etc.) but educating, training, and managing the personnel infrastructure as well as financial considerations that impact all of the other factors.

One example of the ‘pointing’ undertaken is reflected in work by Riaz, Nielsen, Pedersen, Prasad, & Madsen (2009), in which the implementation of broadband internet access is deployed via both wired and wireless technologies. The best of each are combined synergistically to create a hard-wired ‘backbone’ with centralized design terminating in wireless transmitters and routers to maximize flexibility and extend the physical access of range.

Similarly, Monahan (2008) emphasizes the limitations that technology has in attempting to address disparities in access not only to technology, but correspondingly to educational resources. The commentary reflects not only the relationships between wired and wireless access, but also emphasizes ways in which economic disparities may be reflected in the same physical deployment.

As an example of the ‘pointing’ detailed in the Picciano (2011) text, Bielec & Iadarola (2007) also offered a concrete explication of the precise steps and interventions undertaken by a small college seeking to provide world-class technological access and support on a shoestring budget. The offering presents one specific set of examples for how technology planning can achieve synergy between existing partners, facilitate technologic planning and implementation, and result in the physical deployment of an effective technology plan.

The final chapters of the text, in my opinion, offer many valid points for consideration by technology planners, but again the savvy planner would be well advised to seek out previously tried and proven research and methodology existing in the literature.

References

Bielec, J.A., & Iadarola, A. (2007). Strategic collaboration: Building a major league technology                infrastructure on a small college budget. New Directions for Higher Education, 140, 111-120.

Monahan, T. (2008). Picturing technological change: The materiality of information infrastructures in in            public education. Technology, Pedagogy, and Education, 17(2), 89-101.

Picciano, A.G. (2011). Educational leadership and planning for technology, 5^th ed. Upper Saddle River,                New Jersey: Pearson Education, Inc.

Riaz, M.T., Nielsen, R.H., Pedersen, J.M., Prasad, N.R., & Madsen, O.B. (2009). A framework for planning a unified wired and wireless ICT structure. Wireless Personal Communication, 54, 169-185.

Section II - Technology in Action

The second section from Picciano (2011) provided a very broad overview of the current state of technology use in the United States with emphases on the nature of the changing environment and the resulting impact(s) on education. So in that sense, the section stayed true to its stated intent of assisting educational leaders in planning.

As an educator who is presently immersed in the delivery of education using technology (and in addition to be a bona-fide techno-geek), it was interesting to gain additional perspective from the viewpoint of leadership and management rather than one of the underlings who uses and deploys the technology.

In light of the 'information age' and 'information superhighway', the digital divide presents challenges to widespread use of all that modern technology offers. I was forced to wonder, while reading, how the author might have appproached the subject differently had the book been published electronically rather than in paper form. I have a Kindle, but the book is not available for download. It is interesting to note (along the same line) that the book is in its 5th edition. As technology evolves, the book likewise responds to the changes present.

Some of the content in the section alluded to how decisions are made in the present day, including how the accessibility of data relates to decision making. Some of the models presented (centralized decision-making vs. hierarchical structures) have been the subject of intense debate for years as far as which is best suited for education. From the discussions present within the course setting, it is evident that the instructors definitely feel the need for inclusion in decision-making while also experiencing exclusion from the same processes.

I am always struck by the reflexivity that I am experiencing yet which the book doesn't seem to be aware of; the fact that we are using the paperback text in an 'online' course. The availability of the text in electronic format would potentially move the entire educational experience from a bricks-and-mortar experience to a digital one...which was much the point of the large section on distance education and how planning could best be carried out. There is still significant debate over how distance education could best be delivered.

Complicating the situation is the rapidly evolving hardware and software scene. As fast as one set of technology is adopted and embraced, something 'new and better' emerges. This makes decision-making and program design especially challenging.

As a sort of summary, I did find the text a good resource pointing the reader to external sources for further investigation. The vast amount of material available electronically or throughout information technology systems is way too much to present in a small textbook; for this reason, readers are continually encouraged to seek out resources only alluded to in the text. One example alone would include the use of PDA or SMART devices - for which there are large sections of shelf space allocated in bookstores (remember those?) and online for ideas and strategies for implementation. One example is the following Amazon.com website link, which displays the results of a book search for the iTouch:

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=itouch&x=11&y=10

So again, I point out the reflexivity as reading of the text points one to the internet which then points back to text and electronic references. Interesting.

John Scarbrough

Technology Planning and Grant Writing: Reflection of Section I Basic Concepts and Foundat...

Technology Planning and Grant Writing: Reflection of Section I Basic Concepts and Foundat...: " In this first section the author presents the importance of connecting teaching and learning through the use of technology, which ben..."

Hi Hector -

Very interesting posting, and extremely well written (in my opinion). I do feel that you hit on all the major points covered in the text, and explained them very well.

After visiting the comment about the video links, when I returned to the initial blog posting, the links *do* show up .... just fyi. Don't know why they didn't at first.

I'd really like to know more about one of your concluding statements; that of students needing to think critically. Do you think that we (as educators) have really done a very good job of defining that? If you asked 10 instructors, do you think you would find consensus as to exactly what we are talking about? I ask this, because it is one of the key points of my dissertation that I am waist-deep in right now (figuratively speaking). I am looking to see if there is a correlation between a student's trust in their instructors and the development of critical thinking i.e. are high levels of trust associated with high levels of critical thinking or vice versa? Here is a link to an entire organizational society that is concerned with the subject of critical thinking: http://www.criticalthinking.org/

They have really embraced technology - as you can see by the video embedded as well as the multitude of hyperlinks and contact sources.

Secondly, I have to admit that I am a total technology 'nerd' - but nonetheless this is my first experience with blogging. I knew what it was, but have been so busy that I just haven't had time to investigate. I don't even have a Facebook page or MySpace account. (It seems that BlackBoard dominates my time!)

Thanks for a great posting - and I'd love to hear what you have to say about critical thinking.

John Scarbrough

Blog #1 EDLT 574 FA10

Blog #1 EDLT 574 FA10 Scarbrough

I have found the first section of the text by Picciano (2011) to be interesting and extremely relevant to my present role as faculty at NMSU. The layout is logical as it moves from introduction to planning and then applies both to learning with an emphasis on fairness and accessibility. Although the introductory section speaks primarily of early education (primary and secondary school), I have found that the same principles apply not only to undergraduate education where I teach, but also graduate education where I am still a student. The key point that I gained from Chapter 1 of Picciano (2011) was the stress placed on the need for systematic planning and organization in order to achieve the most effective use or ‘bang for the buck’ concerning technology.

The second section outlined the concepts behind some basic steps to be undertaken by anyone involved with or seeking to incorporate technology into the educational environment. The guiding framework recognized the influence that social and behavioral factors can have on learning outcomes, and emphasizes the need of the planner not only to keep these in mind, but also the same factors as they involve faculty and administrative systems.  It was particularly interesting to note the sort of ‘reverse engineering’ that was used; in many of the examples, the author started with the outcomes and goals and then worked backwards in order to facilitate planning. I have commonly use this practice myself when designing a new course or curriculum; start with where we want the students to end up (what should they know? What should they be able to do? What are common barriers to achieving the goals?) and then find the materials and learning experiences that will best help to meet the objectives. An excellent example of using technology to ‘teach the teacher’ is found at the following wiki link: http://edutechwiki.unige.ch/en/Instructional_design_model. Though it may not seem like it to students, designing a good course is a lot of work and takes a lot of thought and energy if it is to be maximally successful.

The central point from the third section (chapter three) concerned what has come to be known as the ‘digital divide’, in which disparities in access to technology have presented significant obstacles to be overcome. What good is the very best technology if students can’t access it, or faculty don’t understand how it might best be utilized? Attempts to bridge the gaps have elicited the development of websites such as http://www.digitaldivide.net/, which brings together theorists, activists, educators, and other concerned parties – all seeking to reduce or eliminate disparities in technological access and implementation.

An underlying theme throughout all three chapters is the idea and belief that the end goal should be improving education and learning, and not simply to focus on the technology itself. Sometimes even the ‘old technology’ (and I’m thinking of blackboard and chalk here) can make the most significant impact. The challenge then becomes one of bridging between old technology (blackboards) and the new (social networking websites); there are features common to both that can help those of us instructors schooled in the ‘old ways’ to embrace the newer technologies as they emerge.

Reference

Picciano, A.G. (2011). Educational leadership and planning for technology, 5^th ed. Upper Saddle River,   New Jersey: Pearson Education, Inc.