SECTION 1.4 - PLANNING FOR TECHNOLOGY

It is not within the scope of this course to look at planning in detail as that is the subject of an entire course unto itself. Rather, planning will be discussed in general and for those who wish to explore the topic further, information regarding detailed planning will be provided under the Resources section of this course.

When it comes to integrating technology there is a great deal of truth to the adage that "a little planning goes a long way". While needs/wants will differ from program to program based on many factors (e.g., focus of the program, funding, etc.), there are two general types of planning which will need to be addressed by all programs. That is, planning that captures both technical and curricular considerations. These are discussed separately in the following two sections although in reality they are inextricably intertwined.

1.4.1 TECHNICAL PLANNING

   Needs Assessment

Perhaps the most important question we should be asking ourselves is why we think we need a certain technology. Technology is attractive and it is easy to get caught up in buying it for its own sake versus to further the goals of our program. Thus, we need to carefully identify and rationalize our needs/wants, be they administrative, instructional and/or assistive technologies.

   Involve "Stakeholders"

There will be a variety of technology users in a program including administrative staff, learners, instructors, volunteers, board members, technicians, and so on. In that their needs/wants may differ, it is important to identify these stakeholders and include them in the planning process. This will assist the program to develop a relevant and practical plan.

   Identify Resources

This includes financial, instructional and support (i.e., both technical and administrative) costs at each stage of integration (i.e., acquiring, installing, using, evaluating, maintaining and upgrading both equipment and programs). This can be the trickiest part of planning since there are often hidden costs that novice technology users are not aware of (e.g., if a program installs computers there will be security and insurance costs).  

   Develop a Plan

Although each plan will differ from program to program, the basic components should include:

·        a 'vision' statement (basically identifies the reasons for integrating the technology)

·        a timeline (from development of the plan through to its evaluation)

·        budget (initial and ongoing)

·        fundraising (initial and ongoing)

·        implementation (technical, administrative and curricular aspects of use)

·        evaluation

   Implement the Plan

Technology does not arrive unpacked and ready to go. It must be installed, learners and staff must receive training to use the equipment/programs, the use of the technology must be written into the curriculum and supporting activities prepared, and so on. It can be said that integrating technology is much like parenthood. That is, although delivery seems like the big moment after many long months of waiting, in reality it is just the beginning of the journey. The key question here has to do with after delivery; that is, the various technical (e.g., operation, maintenance and upgrading of equipment/programs), administrative (e.g., record keeping, statistical tracking), and curricular (e.g., instructional and assistive) aspects of interacting with the technology.

   Evaluate the Plan

It is important that we examine how well we have integrated the technology into our programs. This will differ for each program depending on its goals, but essentially the questions to be asked will centre on the technical (e.g., resource planning, stakeholder acceptance of technology, etc) and curricular (e.g., learning objectives, professional development, etc) aspects of integrating technology.

1.4.2 INSTRUCTIONAL PLANNING

Simply put, the best place to start is at the beginning, the "beginning" in this case being--learn the technology. Users will need to know at least the basics of the equipment/program being used. Thus, we need to pose the question, "What knowledge/skills are needed to use the technology effectively?" The answer to this will vary somewhat from user to user (i.e., instructors, learners, administrative staff), from technology to technology (e.g., computer versus a fax machine), and from program to program (e.g., some programs will offer fairly extensive instruction on the computer because the program's mandate is to assist learners to become more employable in fields that use computers while others may focus on upgrading academic skills and thus focus less on Internet searching, interactive online activities/courses, etc). Whatever the case, a certain level of technical training will be essential for instructors and to greater or lesser extent for learners depending on the technology. Programs will need to decide on what constitutes a basic level of training for each technology, and include this in their curricular plan. The PALTIP (Philadelphia Adult Literacy Technology Integration Project) web site provides an excellent example of the process of integrating technology, especially from the staff's point of view.

Part of learning the technology involves managing it effectively. Because technology is dependent on a power source, is mechanical, and requires varying degrees of technical knowledge/skill, it is in the "nature of the beast" so to speak, that there will be 'glitches' from time to time. Accepting that this is so will go a long way toward reducing frustration, both instructors' and learners'. Some ideas for managing the technical aspects or 'glitches' are listed below:

   Have a plan "B"

For example, if you had planned to give a PowerPoint presentation using a data projector and the projector will not work, you can have overhead slides, handouts, or a web version of the presentation as a backup. Or, you could have an alternate activity and save the presentation until such time as the projector is fixed.

   Check equipment ahead of time

Ensure the equipment is ready to use and fully operational before the learning session. While it is relatively easy to arrive for class and find a piece of chalk at the last minute, trying to fix a piece of equipment or get a program to run will inevitably take much more time. It is best to do this ahead of class rather than while students are watching you and waiting for the session to begin.

   Practice, practice, practice

Run through your presentation and/or activity from start to finish. In addition to practicing for the simple reason that we need to become familiar with the equipment/program, we generally have a personal 'rhythm' or 'flow' to our teaching which technology can disrupt or change. As such, as much as possible we need to assimilate the technology into our teaching style through practicing ahead of time as much as possible rather than on class time.

   Consider your learners

Having said the above, do warn learners about the possibility of 'glitches' when using technology so that their frustration will be reduced if and when something does occur. In addition, you will need to plan for the fact that some learners will be more uncomfortable with technology than others. For example, extra time for one-to-one support and/or activities designed to be fun and raise comfort level with using the technology may need to be included in the curriculum plan.

   Know where to obtain technical support

There are many sources of technical support, both human and otherwise, that we can tap into when we run into a problem. These can range from a technician on staff if your program is lucky enough to have one, to other staff/volunteers, friends and family who are more experienced with technology, to the use of telephone help lines or web sites, speaking to a multimedia retailer, technology 'e-zines', magazines, and/or manuals.

Once users have learned to operate and manage the technology, the focus needs to switch from learning the technology to using the technology to learn. In that multimedia instructional technologies are relatively new, research data regarding "best practices" and "lessons learned" are just beginning to emerge. As such, at this point in time adult literacy practitioners must be guided to a great extent by sound educational principles rather than proven technological practices. We must take care not to neglect the curricular questions; that is, the quality of learning that the technology promotes and supports. Thus, practitioners will need to decide what the benefits of using technology are in comparison to traditional/non-technical methods and whether or not the cost-benefit is worth the effort. Some questions that can assist in this decision-making include, "Does the technology ...

   address a variety of learning styles (i.e., more effectively than non-technical methods)?"

   incorporate a wider range of teaching approaches/techniques (i.e., than would non-technical methods)?"

   increase access to educational resources?"

   make abstract concepts more concrete?"

   assist learners in organizing and analyzing information?"

   enable learners to revise products more easily than non-technical methods?"

   allow users to communicate more easily/inexpensively/speedily than non-technical methods (e.g., e-mail versus letter writing)?"

  Next Section ( 1.5 )

 Back to Contents

this page was last updated 03/06/01