Philosophy of Teaching and Learning with Technology Track

Breakout Session B

Thursday, May 24
8:30 - 11:30 a.m.
Location: Conference center:Office Showcase Room

Why Should I use Technology in Teaching - or Should I?

One of the primary goals of this discussion session is to summarize key issues related to integrating technology into the teaching and learning process by identifying the potential benefits, direct and indirect costs, and barriers to the effective use of technology in teaching. In addition, through discussion of these issues we will develop guiding principles for determining when the use of technology in teaching is most likely to add significant value to the teaching and learning process.

We will meet these goals by:

• outlining potential benefits of using technology in different teaching and learning environments;
• outlining current and potential "costs" of using technology in different teaching and learning environments;
• determining when the potential benefits of teaching with technology are likely to outweigh the costs of teaching with technology (and when they're not);
• examining how we can overcome costs and increase potential benefits of using technology to improve teaching and learning;
• sharing examples of "best practices" from our own campuses;
• describing the characteristics of successful "teaching with technology" initiatives; and
• developing a draft guide entitled, You Should Consider Using More Technology in Teaching if…

Discussion Questions:

• What are the potential benefits of using technology to teach? Are they currently being achieved? Why or why not? Does the reality match the hype?
• What are the costs of using technology to teach? Are they greater than the potential benefits? How can the costs be reduced? Are they likely to increase, decrease, or just change?
• What are the barriers on your campuses to the effective use of technology?
• If technology is so great, why isn't everyone using it?
• What have we learned from past technological innovations in education? How is the current situation different (or is it)?
• In what type of educational environment is technology likely to have the biggest impact on student learning?
• What educational goals are best supported by the use of technology in teaching? Which educational goals are thwarted by the use of technology in teaching?
• Why should I use technology in teaching?