Making Technology Work in Schools

How PK-12 Educators Can Foster Digital-Age Learning

Timothy D. Green, Loretta C. Donovan, Jody Peerless Green

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2020
• ISBN:
  9780429677656
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Education
• Subtopic: Education General

Making Technology Work in Schools is an easy-to-use guide for transforming your school into a learner-centered, tech-rich environment. School systems are increasingly adopting ambitious new educational technologies, but how do you make sure they are yielding effective teaching and learning experiences? The authors' proven, intuitive practices speak directly to academic coaches, school technology leads, district technology directors, and teachers on special assignment who are responsible for introducing new tools and programs. After reading this book, you will be able to better prepare the educators you serve to empower their learners, whether digitally savvy or not, to be engaged, collaborative, and better prepared for college and careers.

The only constant in life is change.

—Heraclitus

We all are affected by change. Change rarely happens at a time when we are simultaneously ready and able to welcome it. If you have been an educator long enough, you can attest to this. Most educators can regale others with stories about the changes they’ve been asked to make—curriculum adoptions, revised content standards, benchmark assessments, and last-minute class schedule adjustments. Do these sound familiar? We’re certain you could add to this list. As the opening quote stated, change in life is constant, but especially if you are an educator.

We all deal with change differently. No matter what the change is that we are asked to make, how we approach it impacts how effectively we live with it. Helping you effectively approach change—or dare we say learn to embrace it—is our intended outcome of the book. Specifically, we want you to understand the change process as it relates to implementing technology and innovation adoption in your classroom and school. More specifically, we want you to gain the knowledge, skills, and confidence needed to successfully support yourself and other educators in the adoption and integration of digital technology in equitable and inclusive ways to improve educational experiences for all learners. This will help you to be confident in your ability as a change agent. To help you achieve this, we share what we have learned over the past three decades from studying, conducting research, and facilitating change and innovation adoption in educational contexts.

Point to Consider: You the Change Agent

We believe that every educator is a change agent whether it is in the classroom or whether it is on a larger scale. Although you may not view yourself as a change agent (yet!), it is our intention to help you realize that you are a change agent. You are in a position to help make a positive difference in your environment and the profession. This is why we intentionally use the term change agent throughout the book when we refer to you, the educator reading this book.

The Book Organization

We explain in the Preface that the book is organized into three parts. Part I is the why, Part II is the how, and Part III is the what. This organization scheme is based on the Golden Circle idea that Simon Sinek (2009) describes in his book, Start With Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action. Sinek’s core message is that you must understand your why if you want to achieve exceptional things and inspire others to do the same. Your why, according to Sinek, is your purpose, cause, or belief. Understanding your why is about finding and living your passion. Sinek offers the notion of the Golden Circle to depict the relationship among the why, how, and what. He stated that “A WHY is just a belief. That’s all it is. HOWs are the actions you take to realize that belief. And WHATs are the results of those actions—everything you say and do” (p. 67). Your why should be at the core of all that you do. Leaders and organizations who have the why as their core have achieved a high level of influence because they are at their natural best (p. 38).

Part I begins with an explanation of our why—our core beliefs about technology-rich teaching and learning, and why we do what we do as educational technologists and educational change agents. Next, we challenge you to consider your why. This will help you better understand your core beliefs and what motivates your actions as a change agent. We then move into exploring the why of change theory by examining different approaches to educational change to provide you with an overview. Foundational concepts of technology integration and adoption are explored as well. We end Part I with a description of a specific approach to change that is grounded in educational change theory. This approach, the Concerns-Based Adoption Model (CBAM) developed by Gene Hall and Shirley Hord (2020), is one we often use.

Each chapter in Part I focuses on a specific foundational area or concept that will help increase your understanding of educational change and innovation adoption. As you increase your understanding, you will continue moving along the path to becoming a successful change agent. Our primary goal with Part I is to provide you with foundational knowledge that leads to understanding how change occurs, how innovations are adopted, and why your role as a change agent in this process is crucial. It will be difficult for you to influence long-lasting and sustainable change and innovation adoption in your classroom, school, or district without these understandings.

Part I Outcomes

We have outlined five outcomes to guide your reading of Part I. After reading Part I, The Why of Educational Change and Innovation Adoption, you will be able to:

1. explain your why;
2. describe the fundamental principles of change theory;
3. comfortably speak with other professionals about the change process;
4. communicate with administrators and educators about challenges associated with the change process and innovation adoption; and
5. provide recommendations on how to approach sustainable innovation adoption.

Self-Reflection

As you read Part I, you will learn that a change agent needs to be aware of the needs of individuals who are being asked to change. This awareness comes about through acknowledging your current comfort level and experiences with initiating and supporting educational change. We’ve provided a self-reflection exercise for you to assess your comfort level with the concepts presented in Part I. Before you begin reading the chapters in Part I, we suggest that you read the five statements provided and reflect on where you feel you are with the ideas presented in each statement. If you strongly disagree with a statement, we suggest that you read the chapter or chapters that focus on that statement. You may need to only skim the chapters in Part I for which you answered strongly agree to the statements associated with the chapters.

Assess yourself on the following statements. The self-reflection will help focus your efforts as you engage with concepts and ideas presented in this part of the book.

• 1 = strongly agree, 3 = neither agree or disagree, 5 = strongly disagree.
  1. I am clearly aware of my beliefs and purpose that drive what I do as a change agent who focuses on educational technology.
• If you rated yourself 3 or below, you will want to make sure you read Chapter 1.
  2. I can discuss with ease the foundational elements associated with educational change.
• If you rated yourself 3 or below, you will want to make sure you read Chapters 2 and 3.
  3. I can clearly define the various important terms and concepts associated with educational change and change theory.
• If you rated yourself 3 or below, you will want to review the list of terms and concepts presented in Chapter 4.
  4. I am thoroughly familiar with different approaches to change and innovation adoption.
• If you rated yourself 3 or below, you will want to make sure you read Chapter 5.

Simon Sinek (2009) described in Start With Why that to achieve exceptional things and to inspire others to do the same, you must understand your why. Your why is a belief, a cause, or a purpose that drives what you do. Understanding your why helps you find and live your passion. When you live your passion, it will permeate into all that you do as a change agent. It will help focus your efforts by keeping you grounded in what you believe in.

Gary Keller and Jay Papasan (2013) discuss a similar notion in The One Thing. They provide a direct approach on how we can focus our efforts to find our passion that leads to our purpose. They describe a process for understanding how to effectively focus your priorities and efforts on the one thing that will bring about the greatest returns professionally and personally. They indicate that, “Extraordinary results are directly determined by how narrow you can make your focus” (p. 10). This does not mean that we should limit ourselves, other educators, or our learners to small ideas and goals. It means honing in on those activities—based on our passion and priorities—that bring about the greatest results. Those who are high achievers have a clear sense of purpose driven by specific and well-articulated priorities. They are focused on what matters (“the one thing”) to achieve the results they desire. Being focused will help inspire others because they will see the passion you have and how it drives what you do. They will want to join you in your efforts to bring about innovation and sustainable change.

Our purpose, which we mentioned in the opening paragraphs, is supporting educators in their adoption and integration of digital technology in equitable and inclusive ways to improve educational experiences for all learners. We approach this through the lens of educational change theory and innovation adoption. This approach helps us make sense of events, people, and the systems and structures that we work with. Our purpose—our one thing—is woven throughout our teaching, our research, our publications and presentations, and of course, in our work helping lead change and innovation adoption in schools. Our purpose translates into us being passionate about helping educators grow professionally and hone their craft as they use technology in ways that promote high-impact teaching and learning. It also translates into us being passionate about helping change agents gain the knowledge and skills they need to lead change and innovation adoption in schools.

Point to Consider: Finding Balance—Is It Possible?

An interesting idea discussed in Chapter 8 in The One Thing (Keller & Papasan) is balance. Balance is the notion that we are able to attend equally at all times to all elements of our life (e.g., work, family, health). We change agents often beat ourselves up (metaphorically, of course) because we often feel like we are out of balance with our lives due to the work demands placed on us. Keller and Papasan made a bold statement about balance that might make you bristle (or relieved), but one you should take to heart. They state that, “A balanced life is a lie” (p. 73). As a general philosophy, balance is a desirable ideal. Practically, however, it is not realistic. They state that, “Extraordinary results require focused attention and time. Time on one thing means time away from another. This makes balance impossible” (p. 73).

If balance is not possible, how do we make sure that areas of our life do not suffer? Keller and Papasan address this with the idea of counterbalancing. They indicate that there are two types of counterbalancing: “the balancing between work and personal life and the balancing within each” (p. 81). So, why is the discussion of balance important for change agents—especially the notion of not pursuing balance? They sum it up in the following way: “The reason we shouldn’t pursue balance is that the magic never happens in the middle; magic happens at the extremes” (p. 76).

If you are a change agent living on the extremes doing extraordinary things (or want to do extraordinary things!), there is no doubt you will feel out of balance at times. Keller and Papasan indicate that this can present tremendous challenges for us. The key is to know how to manage life while living out on the extremes. We suggest reading their book to learn about the strategies they share on how to achieve this.

Explaining Your Why

We want you to explore your why. Grab a notebook or some paper (or your favorite digital tool) to write down your ideas. We encourage you to take time right now to answer the following questions and to reflect on your answers. Is there a cause that you are passionate about? What belief or beliefs drive what you do? What do you see as your purpose—your one thing? It is important as a change agent to understand and clearly articulate your why, so you are deliberately and consistently living your passion. This will guide you as you assist others through the change process. It will inspire others to join with you and to take action to innovate and bring about positive change.

Jody’s Perspective From the Trenches: Internal Conflict

It is important to realize that not all change you are asked to make or that you need to help others make will perfectly mesh with your why. There might be instances when you experience some internal conflict. How do you deal with this when you are faced with this type of situation? I do not have a definitive solution because each situation comes with its own set of unique circumstances. I have found, however, that awareness is key. Being aware that conflict can exist will allow you to better cope with the situation. It will allow you to acknowledge your concerns and deal with them. It is important as well to recognize that those being asked to change will have concerns. You will need to address these if the change process is to be a success. Want to know more about this? We discuss this in Chapter 5.

There are many different approaches to making change. We examine three in Chapter 5 that have greatly influenced our work. It is important to understand that approaches to change vary depending on many elements. One element that directly impacts the change process is where the change is to occur (e.g., an elementary school, a community, a business). Despite the differences among approaches to change, the common element they share is the purpose of bringing about sustainable and long-lasting change. This purpose is the why of change.

Another important idea to understand is that the change process is based on years of research and applied practice. There is an entire area of study—Change Theory—devoted to understanding and explaining how individuals and organizations go through change. The genesis of this field is often credited to Kurt Lewin (1947–1980) who was a pioneer in the areas of social, organizational, and applied psychology. Lewin examined change from an organizational perspective through a deliberate exploration of group dynamics and organizational development.

A significant contribution from Lewin is his three-phase process to change. This is a foundation on which other change processes are built. Phase one is unfreezing. This phase involves getting rid of the current mindset and resistance to change. The change to be made is introduced. Phase two is implementation; this is when change occurs. During this phase, individuals are working through uncertainties about the change. Individuals are at different levels of understanding about the change. Individuals are also at different levels with implementing the change. The final stage is freezing (or refreezing). Individuals have a more clear understanding of the change and have adopted the change. The change has become part of what they do. An individual’s comfort level often goes back to what it was prior to the change (hence the term, refreezing).

Point to Consider: Action Research

Action Research is another contribution to educational research Kurt Lewin has been credited with developing. Action Research is a practitioner-based research method that focuses on improving performance and practice. This method has been used frequently in K-12 education as an approach to better understand and address issues that are present in classrooms that affect performance (generally, student learning). An appealing aspect of this research method is the classroom educator as the researcher. This allows the classroom educator to systematically approach critical classroom issues. What is learned through an Action Research study can lead to improved practice of the educator. The insights gained from an Action Research study can also extend beyond the classroom where the study took place. As educators, adding to the knowledge base and helping improve the practice of others is something we should strive to do.

So, how is Action Research conduc...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half Title
• Series Page
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Dedication
• Contents
• Foreword
• Preface
• Acknowledgments
• PART I: THE WHY OF EDUCATIONAL CHANGE AND INNOVATION ADOPTION
• PART II: THE HOW OF EDUCATIONAL CHANGE AND INNOVATION ADOPTION: LEARNERS, TECHNOLOGY, AND INSTRUCTIONAL PRACTICES
• PART III: THE WHAT OF EDUCATIONAL CHANGE AND INNOVATION ADOPTION: THE PURPOSE FRAMEWORK
• References