Computers+as+Catalysts+for+Change

Teachers' Views of Computers as Catalysts for Changes in Their Teaching Practice A Wiki Page by Andrea Galgano, Tiffanie Sun, Nicole Zakharin, and Lauren DeBellis = **Introduction** = toc

**Abstract**

 * **Purpose:** This study was conducted in order to examine teachers’ use of in their instructional practices and their perception of the impact that computers made to their classroom.
 * **Participants:** The data was collected from 47 teachers from 20 K – 12 schools in 3 states. These teachers completed a questioner, participated in interviews, and were observed 3 times in their classroom.
 * **Key Results:** The findings of this study revealed that the teachers who implemented more progressive teaching practices felt that computers helped them change; however, they did not acknowledge that computers were the catalyst for that change. Instead, they cited reflection, classes taken, and the culture of the school as different catalysts for the changes.
 * **Conclusion:** In order for teachers to implement educational technology in a constructivist classroom, they must have opportunities to academic knowledge in a supportive environment.


 * Teachers’ Views of Computers as Catalysts for Change:**
 * Many educators believe that technology can be a catalyst for educational transformation in the classroom. [[image:e-conf-jigsaw.png width="255" height="200" align="right" link="http://alaasadik.blogspot.com/2009/04/tech4102-online-portfolio.html"]]
 * The use of technology will allow for a change within the roles of the teacher and the students. Instead of conducting class in a teacher-centered model, technology will encourage a student-centered classroom where students can actively construct their own knowledge.
 * Educational technology magazines have stressed the importance of gradual change in regards to incorporating technology in in an educational environment. Educators must also have access, support, and training with the technology in order to successfully reform education.


 * Different constructivist approaches to using technology:**
 * Re-conceptualize why teachers adopt the use of computers and constructivist practices
 * Need a focus on teacher development and how a teacher thinks
 * Teacher as decision maker
 * Teaching is a constant stream of decision making points (Shulman)
 * Teacher as learner
 * In order for teachers to implement new teaching strategies, they must weave together new knowledge with the demands of the curriculum, classroom management, and existing instructional skills
 * Change as a process of learning
 * Teaching is a dynamic activity and the teacher there needs to be a process and coordination in order for success.
 * Schools as a social context for learning
 * Constructivism as a model for a teachers learning and making instructional changes

=Data and Methods= Data were collected as part of a preliminary study for a national survey of teachers’ instructional beliefs and practices and their use of computer technologies. A team of researchers administered a questionnaire, conducted three semi-structured interviews, and made three observations in the classrooms of each of the participants.

This report focuses on the responses made during the third interview. Participants were 47 teachers at 20 elementary, middle, and senior high schools. Schools were selected on the basis of their reputation as technology-using schools. Principals within each school selected three teachers to participate based on their practices (traditional to highly innovative), so it was not random assignment.

In this third interview, the researchers examined the use of computers in the participating teachers’ instructional practices and their perception of the impact of computers on changes they made in their classroom practice.

Interviews followed a list of open-ended questions: 1) Describe your best and worst experiences with computers and the computer software you find most essential to your teaching. 2) Describe critical experiences that caused you to rethink how you went about teaching. 3) Overall, would you say that computers have helped to change what you want to accomplish as a teacher, or have they mainly helped you make changes you already wanted to make, or haven’t they had either of those impacts?

Teachers were also given a questionnaire to determine their teaching style, defined as “non-constructivist ," “weak constructivist ,” or “substantially constructivist .” In this study, the researchers compared teachers’ degree of constructivism against the codes assigned to the three interview questions.

=Results= 32 teachers of the 47 interviewed were categorized as constructivists. All 32 teachers used computer software for their own productivity for grading and word processing. Of these, 25 teachers noted that the most valuable software tool are word processing and multimedia authoring, and or digital information sources such as encyclopedias on a CD-ROM and the Internet. The results from this study were derived from interviews as a way to help understand recent changes in their instructional practices and the role the computer made in those changes. In the interview, it is found that change to use technology was the consequence of reflecting on teaching practice, goals, and efficacy.
 * Constructivist Teachers**

From the interviews, most teachers attributed their change in pedagogical practices were due to insights and self-reflections. Some teachers, especially those in their first 10 years of teaching, had an epiphany in their first year of teaching. During this time, teacher often reexamined their beliefs about teaching and determined which method would serve as their pedagogical foundation. One teacher mentioned that her first year of teaching primarily focused on “classroom management” before giving the information. However, she mentions classroom incidents like cheating to change her instruction. In her words, “I use the computers very minimally…they have just made things easier. Computers have not played a role at all.” On the other end of the spectrum, another teacher had a more positive reaction to the use of computers. He mentions that “[Computers] have allowed me to do what I am trying to do in a more efficient manner and bring what I want to bring to the class in a timely manner.” Similar to the first teacher, he mentions that his first year of teaching focused on his own content knowledge rather than the curriculum. Over time, his experience shaped the curriculum. His practice and self-reflection shows that the computer was a tool put towards a goal.
 * Teaching Experience and Reflection upon it**

Another teacher had a similar experience as the previous teacher mentioned. She felt that the used of computers is an on-going process. “The more exposure [she has] to computers, the more that [she learns] about different types of software.” She felt that the computers facilitated the changes she made which further exemplifies the general attitude of teachers in this study. Another teacher mentioned that prior to the use of computers, he only wanted to lecture to get through material. However, he now views computer software as an interactive program where students can interact around and focus on the complexity of the issues discussed in class. In the interviews, many teachers saw themselves as driving the changes they made in the classroom, but they also acknowledged that computers and network technologies made many of these new opportunities possible.

Finally, the teachers interviewed felt that the changes made did not “derive from any one source as the right way to teach,” but a combination of best teaching practices (11). For the most part, these teachers felt that the computer helped them do a job they needed to be done and their use of the computer stemmed from “decision about how to teach, not from hardware or software capacity” (11).

Teachers also contributed their utilization of computers in the classroom to what they had learned about using computers in teaching practices in a formal institution or formal learning experience. One teacher from a California elementary school claimed that the computer programs that she had learned about in her college courses allowed her to keep students' attention and interest, therefore benefiting her teaching practices and student learning. A junior high science teacher also stated that the computer assisted with the teaching style he wanted to implement in his classroom: hands-on science experiences and more student interaction through an online log. These experiences have implied that using computers can serve as a tool for teachers if it coheres to their teaching practices and classroom context.
 * Formal Learning Experiences**

Six of the ten teachers that were deemed as strongly constructivist to their teaching approach claimed that the goals at their schools was the most influential factor to how they changed their teaching practices. When schools and districts started mandated that teaching practices should have a more constructivist approach, it was a very influential factor that reshaped how teachers planned and implemented lessons in their classrooms. Many of these teachers started using computer technology to assist with reaching their school's and district's goals, having computers serve as an opportunity for hands-on experiences, and as an aid for students to express their ideas. Two teachers, a high school science teacher and middle school math teacher, both explained how the computer had allowed them to implement performance assessments and to enhance learning experiences for their students. Specific examples of how computers were used are graphing programs, spreadsheets to calculate figures like catenary curves, and assistance for exhibitions.
 * School-wide Expectations and Instructional Emphasis**[[image:http://i174.photobucket.com/albums/w109/taekmarlon/computer%20parts/vie_teacher_boy_computer_6627042Med.jpg width="405" height="274" align="right" link="http://i174.photobucket.com/albums/w109/taekmarlon/computer%20parts/vie_teacher_boy_computer_6627042Med.jpg"]]

Researchers also discovered that different software was used in different schools based on the instructional approaches the school or district emphasized, which also influenced how teachers utilized computers and technology in school. One teacher was not provided any software from his school and therefore had more difficulty implementing the teaching style desired by him or his school.

Having computers also assisted with another goal of constructivism: collaborative/cooperative learning. In another middle school teacher's classroom, his students were able to communicate and work more collaboratively on multimedia projects due to the technology provided by the school. He explains that his instructional goal was incorporating cooperative learning techniques and that this, in addition to his school's culture, constructed how he could utilize technology in the classroom.

Out of the 47 teachers interviewed for this qualitative research study, 15 were categorized by researchers as non-constructivist. The reasons for changing their teaching practices and the utilization of computers in the classroom were similar to what other constructivist teachers had stated. Many of the changes that they had made were also due to reflection upon teaching practices, such as making lessons simpler due to students' lower readiness to learn, or what they had learned in a formal institution, such as instructing a new approach to reading. Two teachers in the questionnaire stated that their teaching practices had not changed while one teacher did not answer the question.
 * Non Constructivist Teachers**

In all of the results listed above, computers were listed as a tool that aided in instruction and teaching practices, not as a catalyst that changed classroom practices. The only influences that did change teaching practices were school-wide initiatives and the teacher's own reflection on experience. The results also imply that reflection upon teaching practices were most likely influenced by school-wide initiatives for more constructivist approaches since reflection upon teaching can lead teachers to many different solutions aside from constructivist practices and theories.
 * Summary of Results**

=Conclusion= This study allows us to think about the current practices of teachers as socially constructed knowledge- what “works” and “doesn’t work.”

We should consider the various influences on the knowledge construction process: 1) Experiences in the classroom 2) Reflection on those experiences 3) Professional culture of a school

According to this study, there is a need to revise the image of the computer as a catalyst for changed instructional practice. This view is too simplistic because it disregards what this study has found about teacher development and the process of change. It also underestimates the extent to which teachers’ beliefs affect their teaching styles, simplifies the professional development process, and may cloud the examination of how social norms and structures might support or contradict a proposed change (i.e., what are the barriers or supports for adding computer instruction in a classroom?).

Just as the students should be allowed to construct their knowledge of the content, teachers must be allowed to construct their own knowledge about educational technology. The workplace should offer models, supports, reinforcement, and learning opportunities (i.e., these need to be present in a school site for teachers to successfully incorporate computers into their instuction). It should also encourage reflection and adopting new approaches.

Only after these conditions are met will teachers use computers as a part of their decision making in the classroom.