You would think after almost four years of the forced migration to remote learning and the new ways to connect and teach thanks to edtech, teachers would be ready to accept these tools as an essential part of their work. According to Julianne Ross-Kleinmann, data analysis & technology integration specialist at Ulster BOCES in New York, that’s not necessarily the case.
In this conversation, Julianne shares her experiences encouraging tech-hesitant teachers to embrace technology that improves teaching and learning. We touch upon a number of topics including the challenges of technology adoption, the role of trust in educational technology, the TPACK framework (Technology, Pedagogy, and Content Knowledge), and the need to tailor approaches to individual teachers’ comfort levels.
Julianne emphasizes that despite progress, resistance to technology still exists, and she shares her strategies for building trust and advocating for equitable technology access.
Don’t worry. If you wait for it, we end up exploring the evolving role of technology in education and the positive changes Julianne has observed. Click below for a listen and read below for some edited highlights and some resources on TPACK:
On the first steps in reducing resistance to tech:
“I think the very first thing is building trust. So everything that we do is relationship based. We’re humans. Everything that we do is based on relationships, relationships and the comfort of our relationships with others.”
On how the pandemic perversely helped advance the use of tech:
“I think people were apprehensive about using new technologies because they were forced to do them at the time. So that’s also difficult when you’re forced to do something and change comes so quickly and you don’t go through a process. It’s very difficult. But what I have noticed is people adapting the things they were forced to use and asking more questions and changing them to customize it their way.”
On what the future holds:
“I do see a change in the way in which we’re using technology. The way we’re asking about technology. And I think moving forward, we’re only going to continue to grow. As more and more people are venturing out to conferences… there’s a new spark of excitement that I think will only continue to grow.”
Scroll down for some more resources on the TPACK method:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Technological_pedagogical_content_knowledge
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