Educational Technology Vocabulary, revisited

Amen to the post on eSchool News, "Experts: Ed tech must change its message". (Thanks, Ryan Bretag for the heads up!) In the article, Dennis Pearce discusses the need to change our educational technology focus from tools to teaching. As technology trainers in our district, Ryan and I have been spending time trying to figure out how to do just that in our schools. The focus in technology integration has been, in my experience in the classroom and as a trainer, just that, "technology integration" -- not curriculum, not instructional design, etc. Our current mission, as I referenced in April, is to shift our focus to the teacher's instructional design, not the tools. A small but essential shift in our vocabulary can have a huge impact on that message. (Frankly, the content of my technology classes won't change all that much -- but the advertising will!) The main conversations with our staff should include more words like curriculum, engagement, collaboration, creativity, assessment, instructional design, professional learning, and problem solving and fewer words like CPS, SMART boards, Bluetooth, Web 2.0, MS Office and other techie talk. Not that those words are eliminated - certainly not - but they play supporting roles; not the lead. We need to talk with teachers first about their instructional goals-- and then we can have a much more impactful conversation about the tools that can support what teachers and students need.

Educational Technology Vocabulary

Ryan Bretag and I have been discussing our approach to our "Technology Trainer" positions in our district. Our mission is to work with teachers to help "integrate technology in the classroom". One of the issues we are addressing is the vocabulary of our "technology training". There are so many titles for what we do out there (see THE Journal) and they all mean different things.

What terminology issues have you faced over the years and how have you addressed the ever-changing technology positions in your schools with vocabulary? For instance, instead of a technology trainer do you have an "educational technology specialist"? Instead of training are you "facilitating"? Instead of integration technology are you....well, I still need a word to describe the more natural....infusion?...of technology in our curriculum.

I think changing the vocabulary we and our colleagues use can, in some small way, help us focus on our real mission here and facilitate changes in our classrooms, curriculum and how we approach education and technology. What do you think?