Teachers Require Training and Time to use Educational Technology

Reading Time: 8 minutes

Applying educational technology (EdTech) in the classroom can have multiple advantages, and as we have discussed before, there are effective ways to incorporate it into an academic program. The general discourse that revolves around EdTech is it offers solutions to problems that teachers face daily and benefits students. Educational institutions then invest in products that promise to make learning more efficient and education more accessible while improving the students’ academic trajectory. But what happens if teachers do not have the means to know if the educational technology they use is the most appropriate or would work in their classes?

A study conducted by WGU Labs’ College Innovation Network (CIN) entitled “Faculty as EdTech Innovators: Moving Beyond Stereotypes to Promote Institutional Change” surveyed 402 members of eight higher education institutions. The professors indicated not having enough time to evaluate and learn how to use the technologies implemented in the classroom. The report raised the question of what teachers can do to get the most out of EdTech, help them improve their practices, and support their students’ learning experiences.

Moreover, the survey showed that 71% of teachers felt that educational technology improves their courses, and 41% identified themselves as an EdTech leader. Therefore, while most educators recognized the contributions of educational technology, others considered themselves capable of applying it (81%) and wanted to use new tools in the classroom. Some (34%) did not feel satisfied with the time allocated to learn how to use a product or assess its service. In addition, 15% of teachers said they did not receive training to use these instruments.

The report also identified that how EdTech information flows through university systems is a barrier. Professors learn about educational technology through their communities and have clear what they need to solve and optimize their processes in class. However, institutional leaders buy and sell many of these products instead of teachers.

Among the conclusions, the CIN educational technology survey indicated that “most teachers have a positive perception of the use of EdTech in their teaching practice, but institutional and market systems are not designed for teachers to use EdTech effectively.” “Institutional changes that provide more time, better training, and a seat at the decision-making table are starting points for a better EdTech experience for teachers. Because higher education aims to serve students better and provide optimal learning experiences, teachers must receive the right support, training, and resources.”

Clear needs

The American Institutes for Research (AIR), a nonprofit organization that conducts research in the social and behavioral sciences, established that technology can make a difference in learning when the learner has an adult (a teacher, parent, or assistant) who understands the value of tools and supports that create interactive activities.

Tracy Gray, CEO of the AIR Equity Initiative and expert in education and technology implementation, determined that it all comes down to strategic planning of the technology investment when the district acquires the software and budgets the initial cost. However, planners often fail to calculate the necessary upgrades and licenses, replacement devices, security systems, and critical information technology (IT) infrastructure elements. Teachers do not have the time or experience to make technology work for themselves and their students, and because of the continuous evolution, they also need more than one training.

Melissa Collins, a second-grade teacher in Memphis, Tennessee, presents a clear panorama of how the technology cycle works within certain educational institutions. She says that, first, schools invest in EdTech without taking the time to check whether the resource or product will actually work in their unique context. Sometimes, they choose a new program without providing sufficient professional guidance and training for its practical adoption. Subsequently, she argues that if the tool does not operate as expected, it ceases to be used. Eventually, the institution replaces the technology with another, allowing the pattern to continue.

It is therefore essential that governments work on the professional training of teachers. Another example is the data of the Australian Bureau of Statistics, which indicates that there are more than 300 thousand members of the educational community in Australia who are hardly capable of implementing digital learning correctly, as they require training in new technologies.

Jennifer Zakrzewski and Brianne Newton of the University of South Charleston suggest in their study called “Technology in Teacher Education: Student Perceptions of Instructional Technology in the Classroom” that educator training programs should teach future professors the skills needed to apply technology effectively within the classroom because it is one of the challenges of teaching. They suggest that while technology integration is critical in the professional preparation of faculty, it is not widely researched.

In Latin America, The Puerto Bemberg Institute in Argentina has discovered that they can develop a deep connection between teachers and students through technology. In this model, teachers use a training module to prepare and update their practices through the Ticmas platform. The platform provides educators with accompaniment and follow-up using intuitive navigation with content that enriches the teaching processes. The director of the Institute explains that they began to apply training guidelines as a resource that helps teachers to serve students.

Listening educators

Sean Michael Morris, Academic Vice President of Course Hero, states that for educational technology to aim for student success, the industry must listen to what teachers have to say. He claims that in most cases, EdTech presumes to understand teaching better than teachers and refuses to hear how learning takes place. Students’ success is not directly linked to efficiency, nor is it about grades, but about meeting their needs and developing their creativity and ingenuity.

Just like Morris, Collins mentioned above that schools do not listen to their teaching staff about what works, where, and why. If the school administrators contemplate the types of products requested by their teachers and gain their acceptance before being put into practice, educational technology can be effectively implemented.

Collins is part of the project EdTech Evidence Exchange, which brings together educators from the United States to gather detailed feedback on their experiences and see which resources are contextually helpful, including how they should be selected and implemented. Specifically, a group of researchers and teachers from all over the country generated the EdTech Genome Project Report. More than 1,500 participating educators found that the cycle of choosing EdTech tools without their full exploitation persists because teachers do not have the mechanisms or incentives to document their experiences using the technologies and share their lessons with colleagues in other institutions.

The EdTech Genome Project developed 10 consequential variables that describe the school contexts that influence the performance of educational technology and produced two tools, the EdTech implementation framework and the EdTech implementation inventory, to define, detect, and measure the variables.

Morris adds that pedagogical educational technology is needed to complement educators’ roles, strengthening ties with their students. “EdTech has the power to make education a more humanizing experience, but only if its creators listen,” he says.

A collaboration

Teachers’ recommendations and feedback about tools must continue in the educational community. Larry Ferlazzo, an English and social studies teacher at Luther Burbank High School, says many educational programs focus on the “what” rather than the “how” when discussing implementing classroom routines, setting behavioral expectations, and organizing lesson plans. He believes that beginning professors should be exposed to practical scenarios and live teaching situations, so they need a mentor.

The incorporation of Virtual Reality in Russian classrooms offers an example of the advance of collaborations on new technologies. The study results were reported in “Teachers’ Perceptions of Using Virtual Reality Technology in Classrooms: A Large-Scale Survey.” The report identifies the usefulness of the joint work of teachers and information technology developers in assessing this tool when applied under the teacher’s philosophy and pedagogy. The lack of technical support has been one of Russia’s main barriers to technological integration. The Russian educators participating in this study stated that the implementation of virtual reality could be more successful if personnel were available, along with adequate teacher training in using the software.

Educational systems would then be able to use teaching initiatives that demonstrate their effectiveness in solving problems. However, practical and long-term adoption of educational technology will not be achieved without empowering and vesting the teachers to use EdTech. What challenges have you experienced when incorporating new technological resources into your classroom?

Their new report explores trends in nine countries, student competencies needed for five emerging positions, and ten academic disciplines to develop them.

Coursera, the massive open online course provider, released its new report, Campus Skills Report 2022, seeking to close the skills gap by identifying those required in emerging jobs. For the 3.8 million students registered on the platform and 3,700 campus customers, the research determined the steps that higher education institutions worldwide must take to develop skills in students and improve their employability.

Although some educational institutions struggle to keep their curricula up to date, especially data management and technology, the pandemic accelerated the global adoption of technology. According to the report, 85 million jobs will disappear by 2025, while 97 million new ones will be created. Future jobs will focus on uniquely human skills, including cognitive (such as decision-making and creativity) and social and emotional skills (such as collaboration and project management). However, technological skills will continue to be tremendously demanded.

Coursera assures that higher education is more relevant than ever, and improving student employability must be a priority. While jobs today are organized by skills, institutions are arranged by academic disciplines. One of the main reasons for youth unemployment is the disconnect between what students learn and what employers seek. Therefore, an approach that prioritizes skills in the curricula and adapts them to the needs of the labor market is essential.

Global Skills

The report identifies the five emerging jobs most attractive to the students: data scientist, data analyst, software engineer, machine-learning engineer, and marketing specialist.

However, are students prepared with the necessary skills to enter any of these jobs? The analysis reveals the following:

• Students who take the scientist or data analyst paths should improve their data visualization skills, math, probability, and statistics.
• Students studying software engineering exhibit a gap between those who do and do not have the vital competencies for demanded positions. Those deficient or lacking in these skills require more courses in programming languages, data structures and operating systems, and practical coding projects.
• Machine-learning engineering students must focus on probability and statistics to improve their computer programming to obtain the available positions.
• Students who wish to become marketing specialists must have experience in communication and data analysis software for current jobs that combine storytelling and data management.

Trends by Country

In another section of the report, Coursera analyzed students’ competency and course preferences in nine countries through a study of macroeconomic and environmental factors. The analysis showed that students are attracted to technology and data skills, which will help them enter the world of digitalized industries and startups.

For example, in India, students seek digital skills in C programming and cloud computing to prepare for jobs in their country’s expanding digital economy. In Turkey, Coursera users prefer human skills and characteristics like critical thinking and resilience because industry leaders see them as central to its service-driven economy.

Meanwhile, in Colombia, students acquire programming, software, and data analysis competencies as its economy focus its efforts on technological support. Coursera members in Mexico are attracted to business skills, such as organizational development, human resource development, and negotiation, applying them in internships and practical projects relevant to their employment.

For Egyptian students, software architecture, software testing, and software engineering prepare them to create their own companies. Saudi Arabian preferences combine human abilities, such as writing and emotional intelligence, with entrepreneurial skills, such as negotiation and strategy, to leverage opportunities in the private sector.

Different Paths

The research report describes 10 academic disciplines that allow mapping the skills learned on Coursera to the jobs in which the users show interest. These categories provide insights to higher education leaders on which positions to recommend to students to align their preferences and develop competencies for a successful transition. The skills can be classified as fundamental, multidisciplinary, or emerging.

Some of the research findings regarding these disciplines are:

• In all subjects, students pursue technological skills, such as computer programming and statistics, for stability in the technology sector.
• Engineering students, particularly, appreciate the growing need for human skills that complement practical success techniques in the workplace.
• Arts and humanities students who intend to become teachers prioritize communication, research, and writing.
• Individuals enrolled in the biological sciences programs develop data analysis and data management skills to strengthen their research abilities.
• Business students concentrate on mobilizing data with computer programming and machine learning to achieve business goals.
• Students double down on computer programming and cloud computing skills in computer science.
• Some users in education training want jobs outside of teaching as data scientists and entrepreneurs; they acquire statistical programming and machine learning skills.
• “Data scientist” is a preferred job for health sciences students; they study data analysis, data management, and general statistics.

The platform provides this report motivated by the notion that online learning presents higher education with great opportunities to incorporate these skills and courses into its programs. Coursera believes that including these competencies and aligning them to today’s labor markets will allow students to create versatile portfolios with expanded interests and job preparation.

 

Translation by Daniel Wetta

This article from Observatory of the Institute for the Future of Education may be shared under the terms of the license CC BY-NC-SA 4.0