Technology Integration: The Good, the Bad, and the Obstacles

This post is in part a response to Feldman, Coulter, and Konold's (2001) article entitled "Linking Technology, Learning, and School Change" (Learning & Leading with Technology 28(4), 42-47. Retrieved September 17, 2007, from http://neirtec.terc.edu/template/resources/pdf/LTLSC.pdf). To briefly summarize, the article details the process by which one (fictitious) teacher successfully integrates technology into his classroom in a way that enhances his students' learning.


First, it is worth noting that the article presents a very convincing case for technology integration as a means of expanding and deepening the learning that takes place in classrooms. In particular, the authors draw attention to the ability of technology to appeal to visual learners (e.g., with maps and graphs). It is quite evident that this advantage of technology integration can be applied to a wide variety of subjects, including science (as in the authors' case study), mathematics, and social studies. For instance, students may have an easier time understanding the details of the fur trade if they have access to interactive and/or animated maps detailing major transportation routes and First Nations' territorial boundaries. This would be one way of--pardon the cliché--"bringing history to life" for those students best suited to visual learning. Thus, it would serve as an example of good technology integration.

Of course, technology integration is a double-edged sword, and readily lends itself to misuse. Consider the example given in the aforementioned article, wherein a teacher is looking to expand his students' understanding of ecology beyond the schoolyard. He could have attempted to make connections between their schoolyard's ecology and that of the African Savannah (for example), by showing them videos of lions, elephants, and giraffes. While interesting, such videos, particularly in the absence of the teacher's carefully-chosen commentaries, probably would have done little to expand the students' understanding of ecology. Thus, this would not be good technology integration.

Finally, successful technology integration is not quite as simple as Feldman et al. (2001), and my response to them, have made it out to be. There are numerous obstacles to be overcome before technology can enhance student learning, perhaps the most important of which is school or school district support. The fictitious teacher in the article was able to integrate technology into his teaching in large part because of the support structure put in place by his school. In reality, due to a lack of funding, a lack of progressive thinking, or some other factor, these support structures are not always present. And even the most creative teacher will find it difficult to integrate technology when he or she has access to little more than a decades-old VCR and an overhead projector.