Intro to Teaching with Technology
Instructor Toolkit
In higher education, incorporating technology into your teaching can greatly enhance student engagement, promote active learning, and improve learning outcomes. This guide aims to provide you with a step-by-step approach to effectively integrate educational technology in both physical and virtual classrooms.
Integrating Educational Technology
Understand the Purpose
Before incorporating any technology, clarify the purpose of its use. Technology should serve a specific purpose rather than being added for the sake of using it.
Consider how technology can:
- Support your teaching goals
- Enhance student learning
- Improve overall engagement
Exploring Available Tools
- Take time to explore the wide range of educational technology tools available.
- Familiarize yourself with the institution’s learning management system and course creation tools.
- Explore tools for active learning to promote student participation and immediate feedback.
- Research creation tools for learners to create and share content.
- Consider tools that support academic integrity.
Match Technology to Learning Objectives
Align the capabilities of the technology tools with your desired learning outcomes. Choose tools that provide the necessary features and functionality to support your teaching objectives. For example, select audience response systems that offer various question types and grading integration if you want to assess student understanding during lectures.
See examples and ideas of how educational tools and technology can align to course objectives.
- Teaching technology descriptions
- Group Work Technologies
- Tools for low-stakes assessments
- Tools for high-stakes assessments
- Polling tool options
Consider Equipment and Accessibility
Determine the required equipment for both you and your students. Ensure that your computer, tablet, or smartphone is compatible with the technology tools you plan to use. Consider the accessibility of the tools for students by choosing platforms that are available across multiple devices and operating systems.
Planning for Adaptation Teaching Strategies
Incorporating technology may require adjustments to your teaching methods and time allocation. Plan your lessons to accommodate the use of technology, allowing time for student engagement and learning activities facilitated by the tools. Be aware that students may need additional time to familiarize themselves with the technology, so provide clear instructions and resources in advance.
Familiarize Yourself with the Tools
Take the time to learn how to use the selected technology tools effectively. You can do this by:
- Exploring online tutorials, instructional videos, and support resources provided by the product or your institution.
- Attending workshops or training sessions offered by your institution to enhance your proficiency.
- Experimenting with the tools yourself to gain confidence in their functionality and potential applications.
Assess Student Readiness
Before implementing technology, assess your students' readiness and familiarity with using educational technology.
You can assess readiness and prepare students for tech use by:
- Conducting informal surveys on students’ access to devices and internet connectivity.
- Providing students with resources or support to address any limitations.
- Communicating the short- and long-term benefits of using technology in your class.
- Offering personalized guidance on how to navigate and utilize the chosen tools effectively.
Evaluate Effectiveness
Regularly assessing the impact of educational technology on student engagement, learning outcomes, and overall teaching effectiveness is necessary in courses that utilize educational tech for learning. This kind of evaluation is especially important to conduct within the online learning space since interactions between instructors and students is limited in the virtual classroom.
Instructors can gather useful feedback from students on the effectiveness of technologies and tools through use of surveys, focus groups, or informal conversations. You can also monitor student progress and performance using the tools' built-in assessment features, if available, and use the data and feedback to refine your use of technology and improve the learning experience moving forward.
Interested in piloting a new tool?
You have the academic freedom to use any tools you have access to so long as they support ASU's mission and goals of inclusivity and do not access ASU student data, research data, or business data.
Considerations
Security Review
Tools that access student data must undergo a security review and a procurement process, which includes a detailed procurement contract, prior to deployment to students. Student data includes names, emails, ASUrite IDs, grades, and any other personally identifiable information per FERPA, HIPAA, etc.
Cost
If a tool or resource isn't adopted at the enterprise level for ASU-wide use, academic units or departments hold the responsibility of funding and contracting course-related resources, which would need to be worked into their annual budgets.
Accessibility and inclusion
All tools should also be universally accessible and inclusive to culturally-diverse learners of all ages and abilities.
Tool piloting process
Connect with [email protected] if you're interested in exploring a new learning tool for additional advising on the tool's status in the ASU ecosystem, to facilitate discussion of pertinent info with the vendor, and to begin the evaluation and security review process.
Stay Updated
Educational technology is constantly evolving. Stay informed about emerging tools, trends, and best practices in educational technology integration. Engage with professional development opportunities, attend conferences, and connect with colleagues who have expertise in this area. Continuously explore new tools and strategies to enhance your teaching practice.
Resources
Integrating Technology with Bloom’s Taxonomy
Creating an Instructor Presence in the Virtual Classroom
Reframe lecture videos, readings, and other materials