Technology elicits a variety of feelings for different people.
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| Retrieved from https://hubpages.com/technology/Technological-Dystopia-10-Reasons-to-Fear-Technology |
Some people view it as too hard and scary; therefore, they hide from it in hopes that it will go away.
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| Retrieved from https://sites.psu.edu/reinert/2018/05/29/meme |
Others keep up with all of the latest and greatest experiences that technology has to offer.
Most people fall somewhere in the middle of these two extremes.
Mobile Technology
As of June of 2019, Pew Research Center reports that 96% of Americans own a cell phone which has attributed to mobile technology continuing to grow in the realm of education (n.p.). Within the broad heading of mobile technology is mobile learning and mobile devices. Mobile learning can be “defined in the terms of the technology being used in the hands of students, rather than in terms of the learners’ experiences with these devices” according to Whitehead, Jenson and Boschee (2013, p. 109). Therefore, the way the devices are used becomes the learning experience supported by Whitehead et. al. (2013) “learning occurs when the learner is not at a fixed, predetermined location” (p. 109). Mobile devices are those technologies in the hands of students such as cell phones and Chromebooks. According to Whitehead et al. (2013) “vast numbers of students now have a phone, and most of them are using them as a regular, almost invisible function of their daily interactions with the world” (p. 108).
Along with students, “parents are a critical component of the school technology process” (Whitehead et al., 2013, p. 164). We must involve parents in the process of the use of technology for learning through strong communication and opportunities for parents to experience the technology first hand. Flowers (2015) states “that in order for activities or programs designed to enhance parental involvement to be effective, the school the researchers were studying must take into account the school’s culture” (p. 2).
One way that I have worked with schools to involve parents in understanding mobile learning and mobile devices is through “Lunch and Learn” sessions. These sessions are designed so that parents can eat lunch with their children and attend a one hour session on a specific topic. I took into account that the culture of the schools included parents often eating lunch with their children. One of the sessions included the use of Padlet with parents. They were able to use their cell phones to access Padlet and add their thoughts on the topic. We then pulled up the Padlet for everyone to see and continued our discussion based on the input. This gave parents the chance to sit in the seats of students and use their cellular devices to extend a discussion just as children are doing in classrooms.
“Being aware of parent feelings about technology can make the difference between a positive program and an ineffective one” states Whitehead et al. (2013, p. 164). In order to have mobile technology active within a school, we must consider not only the students but the parents as well. Without their support for mobile devices to be a part of the classroom setting, mobile learning will not take place.
Ashley, including parents in “Lunch and Learn” sessions and other learning opportunities is such a good idea. Sometimes I take for granted that I know and understand how technology can be used in a classroom, but most parents do not. Parent feelings toward technology in education could sometimes stem from not understanding what a technology infused classroom looks like. For most parents today, cell phones barely existed when they were in school, so the notion of using a mobile device of any kind in a classroom setting is possibly confusing. In a 2018 study, Zhu et al. found that parents were more hesitant to move toward mobile device learning models than students. They suggested building awareness and parent training into implementation plans. You’re already trying to accomplish this, and more school and districts should do the same.
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Zhu, S., Yang, H. H., Macleod, J., Shi, Y., & Wu, D. (2018). Parents’ and Students’ Attitudes Toward Tablet Integration in Schools. The International Review of Research in Open and Distributed Learning, 19(4). doi: 10.19173/irrodl.v19i4.2970
Ashley,
DeleteTechnology is definitely changing our education system in many ways! Whitehead, Jensen, and Boschee (2013) states, "Educators are no longer bound by classroom walls and are allowing students to work in multiple settings" (p.2). I agree with you in that parent involvement is a necessity when incorporating technology in a school. My school has also offered lunch and learn sessions about a variety of topics and have seen it make positive changes for our community! Offering parents an opportunity to learn about what their students are using is so important!
Reference
Whitehead, B. M., Jensen, D. F. N., & Boschee, F. (2013). Planning for Technology: a guide for school administrators, technology coordinators, and curriculum leaders (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin.
Thank you for focusing on parents and helping them to understand technology better. In my position I do not have much contact with parents. When I do, it can be very interesting. I recently had an incident where I received a message "Hangout Chat" from a students account at 1:30 AM. Instead of being addressed to me, it was focused toward the student who owned the account. I researched and found 3-4 other messages sent at the same time. They were "to" the student, but sent to random other recent contacts.
ReplyDeleteI suspected the account had been "hacked" by one of their friends. I spoke to the child about the issue. I then get a call from the child's parent. They were checking the account and clicked reply to all of his conversations thinking they were replying to their son. They had no idea it was being sent to other people. Even after speaking with her on the phone, I do not think she understood how I saw the message she sent her son at 1:30 AM. I desperatly need "Lunch and Learns".