Top 5 Problems with Technology in

Education Today
By Michelle Harven

Technology has been used in most schools since the 90s (remember
CD-ROMS?), but it still has some hiccups. We weigh in on some of the
most problematic issues facing the edtech world today.

5. The crutch
Students are so quick to turn to the Internet to answer questions that
some believe critical thinking has gone down the tube. Spelling is no
longer something tested if everything is autocorrected and spell
checked. This may be a larger issue of technology on our memory and
brain-strength, but if we are using the Internet in schools, then kids are
being taught to use Google to answer all their questions and to
essentially, copy and paste their knowledge. Education needs to figure
out how to use technology in a way that doesnt replace knowledge,
but reinforces it.

4. The crash
Before it was the dog ate the homework, now its the computer
crashed and It was all done before it got erased! But, this popular
excuse is used because it does happen. When using the computer and
all its glitches to create a project that requires hours of work, it
sometimes gets erased, doesnt transfer over correctly, doesnt save,
or for one human error or another is gone. Many technology rookies
have been in this position and curse at the computer that has stolen
hours. Some students struggle simply to complete work that it seems
unfair to put obstacles in their way, especially when some students

may not have programs or the technology at home to become familiar

with it. The problem with technology glitches is also seen with online
textbooks. Some students have issues accessing textbooks at home if
they dont have a large enough bandwidth. Other access problems to
online materials can delay students and put them behind in class.

3. The old-timer
Some teachers do not utilize the technology theyve been given. They
have been teaching for years and dont want to incorporate something
new into their time-tested lesson plans. Some schools are pushing
instructors to incorporate technology into their syllabi and when it is
poorly taught the technology is not used at optimal level. Any teacher
given high-tech programs and expected to teach it in the classroom
deserves proper training, and sometimes it isnt provided.

2. The Facebook
And Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, YouTube, etcetera. Putting a
computer in front of a high school student and expecting them NOT to
go on Facebook or any other distracting non-school related site is kind
of a joke. And it isnt just the younger students that are in danger of
losing focus; even graduate students can hardly help themselves to
online distractions in the classroom. When keeping students excited
and focused on the lesson at hand is one of the hardest task a teacher
faces, a computer can be one of the most detrimental things to that
students learning.

1. The Band-Aid
The idea that technology can save education may have some truth in
it, but it may be problematic to treat all our educational issues with

technology. In 2007, Education Week reported on a major federal

study that found, no difference in academic achievement between
students who used the technology in their classrooms and youngsters
who used other methods. If students arent proficient in their studies
to begin with and technology is used incorrectly, a whole mess of
problems could arise. Whats wrong with the Band-Aid thinking is that
technology needs to be planned out into schools in a very precise
manner in order for it to be effective, and to cover all of educations
problems in a Band-Aid may further aggravate the issues.
Comment below if you have something to add to the list or a different
perspective on one of the items above, and make sure to check back
for the top ways technology is improving education!

4 Key Success Factors That Can Enable a Higher Return on

Innovation
By: Adi Alon
In: Strategies
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In a slow or no-growth environment, we know successful innovation is absolutely essential for

companies to establish and maintain a competitive advantage. While that may be yesterdays
news, achieving it is hard work. How can you achieve high value from your innovation initiatives?

In this article Adi Alon discusses four key success factors that can help you get a higher return on
innovation.

New products and services attract new customers and, in many cases, can help companies gain
market share, even when the overall market is growing slowly at best. In survey research, we have
seen that nearly nine out of ten executives in the United Kingdom and the United States agree that
innovation is as important for success as cost management, and many companies are increasing
funding for innovation as they seek growth in an anticipated economic upturn.
Although most companies recognize the importance of innovation, not all organizations approach the
innovation process with the rigor and discipline it deserves. As we have discussed previously, lack
of accountability and focus can produce a negative spiral of too many low value innovations
absorbing too many resources, with an ever-poorer rate of success.

Although most companies recognize the importance of innovation, not all

organizations approach the innovation process with the rigor and discipline it
deserves.

The first step to achieve higher return from innovation is to recognize that the concept of innovation
has broader applications than many companies realize. In addition to new products or services,
possible innovation targets include launching new customer relationship capabilities to transform the
customer experience, revamping their supply chain to dramatically reduce time to market or
introducing new business models to drive superior consumer value.
However, developing a diverse innovation portfolio, which covers the multiple facets of innovation
targets, is not sufficient; in our work with companies with an established track record of successful
innovation, we have observed four additional characteristics which enabled them to drive high value
from innovation:
1.

Innovation is a business process requiring management discipline. Innovation

benefits from the disciplines that apply to other key business functions. While many people
believe that innovation is a creative endeavor that cannot be managed, the truth is that
effective innovation requires cross-functional cooperation and accountability throughout the
entire process. Innovation, however, is not a one-size-fits-all endeavor and organizations
may need to deploy multiple processes, one for breakthrough-type innovations and another for
line extension-type bread and butter innovations.

2.

Selectivity and balance are critical. Successful innovators have a portfolio of

innovations in the pipeline, ranging from modest line extensions to bigger bets on new ideas or
technologies. At the same time, however, the successful innovators keep the portfolio small;
they do not place their bets on too many horses, but they do focus on the best possibilities for
both low and higher-risk ideas. Ongoing trimming of the portfolio prevents the dilutive effect of

having too much effort spread over too many projects.

3.
Innovation must adopt new technologies. To keep up with shorter product
lifecycles and rapidly evolving consumer demands, companies must leverage new tools which
support innovation. In addition to established tools, such as stage-gate and others used for
portfolio management, companies can use social media to develop products and improve
service. Social media tools can accelerate innovation at all phases of development, from
ideation to prototype development to pilot programs to commercialization. Wells Fargo, for
example, created an innovation network to connect and tap into the insights of the banks
employees to identify and address the main threats to customer loyalty. An organization can
accomplish more by mobilizing this type of broad horizontal network of participants than it can
by leveraging a small group of experts such as corporate development or strategy.
As part of the effort, Wells Fargo piloted a new system based on the principles of crowd sourcing,
using Web 2.0 technology and rich Internet applications to effectively source and develop ideas from
diverse audiences. Such open innovation fosters internal collaboration and can also encourage
cross pollination of ideas from other industries.
1.

Innovators must be prepared for failure. One of the hallmarks of a strong innovation
program is the ability to determine at a relatively early stage that a project or product simply
will not work. Terminating initiatives that are likely to be unsuccessful, and doing so quickly and
efficiently, conserves valuable resources that can be directed to other, more promising
activities. Companies must emphasize that failure is part of innovation and that a) failure on a
good-faith effort is not punished and b) there are mechanisms in place to learn from failure. At
SurePayroll, a payroll-services company in Glenview, Illinois, people who are trying to do a
good job, make a mistake and learn from it are eligible for Best New Mistake awards of $400.

A steady flow of new ideas turned into value-adding products, services or process improvements
can be a tremendous source of growth and vitality for companies in almost any industry. A
disciplined, managed approach to innovation can make this process more predictable, repeatable
and profitable, leading to better top and bottom-line results and overall high performance.
By Adi Alon

8 Great Tips for Education and Instructional Technology Innovation at Your Institution
by KELLY WALSH on OCTOBER 21, 2012

Share
A collection of ideas to position administrators and educators to encourage and
embrace innovative uses of instructional and education technologies in their
schools.

Last week, at the annual CIO Summit in Connecticut, innovation was one of the key
topics for the day. There were a wealth of ideas offered and experiences discussed
and I left inspired to share some of these with EmergingEdTech readers. These
notions really apply to innovation in all organizations, and if youre looking to get
more creative in your school, classroom, business, or any other endeavor, there is
plenty here to help turn that light on over your head and prepare you for innovation
success!

1. Innovation often comes one step at a time from small changes: People commonly
think of innovations as being about the next big thing, but that often isnt how it
works. Many successful innovations are a matter of combining small improvements
and changes to create a new approach to an existing problem. Small innovations,
like a change in how content is delivered in a class, how learning outcomes are
assessed in one course, or how a repetitive administrative task is organized, can
lead to meaningful improvements when scaled up over time. A few small
improvements in a process or application can combine to lead to big changes in
how, and how much, that process or application is used in your school.

2. Look to unexpected sources: Innovations can come from many angles, and some
of the best ones will be inspired by sources outside of your organization. When
youre looking for new ideas, talk to students or your kids and see what they think
about the problem youre trying to solve or the technology your working on, browse
around the Internet and get creative with searches for information and topics
related to your work, observe the world around you, and just keep your eyes (and
mind) open.

Innovation Idea Image

3. Be willing to accept failure: Failure is an inevitable part of innovation, and it

shouldnt have the negative connotation it often does. In fact, if youre not failing
from time to time, then youre really not trying very hard. Failure is a learning

opportunity and must be embraced as such celebrate failure it means youve

tried, youve learned, and youre that much closer to success. (This is an important
lesson for students as well).

4. Innovations wont be adopted unless they solve a problem: No matter how cool
and exciting a particular innovation looks, it doesnt mean that users are going to
want to use it. Consider the tablet computer it seemed like a good idea, but it
floundered for a decade before Apple combined a great user interface and app
platform with a highly functional physical device to create the iPad, and suddenly
the tablet was a whole new niche that users love and other tech companies wish
they could get in on. In general, if an innovation doesnt solve a problem or fulfill a
specific need, it isnt going to be widely adopted (in Apples case, they achieved a
rare thing creating a product people didnt know they wanted until they realized
what it could do but thats exceptional). Another example that comes to mind is
the use of Lecture Capture in my institution I was a strong advocate of this
powerful technology for years, but until there was a specific need (in our case,
capturing faculty professional development workshops and trialing a flipped
course), busy faculty just didnt move to adopt it.

5. Look at problems in a different way change the problem you are trying to solve:
Sometimes changing your perspective on a problem can change your approach to
solving it and lead to innovation breakthroughs. Along the same lines, sometimes
people work to solve a problem that is actually a symptom of a deeper underlying
issue. Take the time to consider the problems you look to solve with technology
from multiple angles and dig down to the root cause. Similarly, there are times
when accidental innovations result from working to solve a problem, often because
the innovators have a breakthrough when they see a different angle to a problem
theyre working on (check out Page 10 of this publication from IEEE for a few historic
examples of this).

6. Consider risks openly: Be open and honest about risks, theyre a natural part of
the process. Innovations can look great in the lab but then fail to get adopted for
various reasons. A technology innovation may work well in one course or for one
teacher, but not scale up well. Innovations can also lead in unexpected directions
(which can be good or bad). These are all natural risks that come with being
innovative, and it is more productive to be aware and plan for them than to simply
ignore their potential.

7. Create an innovation lab or other innovation events or places: One way to spur
and encourage innovation is to provide specific spaces and/or times to focus on
innovation. Theres a reason why big companies like Google, HP, and 3M encourage
their employees to spend time innovating, and educational institutions (of all sizes)
can certainly benefit from this kind of thinking. A classroom dedicated to innovation
and experimentation can be another great way to encourage faculty, staff, and
students to jump in and try new ideas. Of course, this may require a budget, so be
sure to give this consideration at budget development time.

8. Create a culture of innovation: Many of the above items combine to help create a
culture of innovation, but there is more that can be done to encourage and welcome
it. Administrators from the uppermost level down must message the acceptance
and/or expectation of a culture of innovation. This messaging should be supported
through marketing to get the message out discuss it in meetings, mention it in
newsletters and broadcast emails, bring it up in dialogue. Another essential element
in creating a welcoming culture of innovation is rewarding and celebrating
innovation efforts, including failures that deliver useful information as well as widely
adopted successful education and technology innovations.

These tips can help innovation become a part of the daily mind set of administrative
staff, teachers, and technologists across your institution. If you have some
examples of how ideas like these have helped bring about innovation in your school
or classroom, or some other tips to foster innovation, please comment and share
them.

Factors that Affect the Effective Use of Technology for

Teaching and Learning
Lessons Learned from the SEIR*TEC Intensive Site Schools
SEIR*TEC Home | About SEIR*TEC | Partners | SEIR*TEC Region |
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Over the past three years, SEIR*TEC has been providing substantial levels of technical
assistance and professional development to fourteen resource poor schools across the
Southeast and Islands. Typically, the on-site work entails a member of the SEIR*TEC
staff spending three or four days per month in a school, working on various aspects of
technology integration. The nature and extent of the staff development and technical
assistance are determined in large measure by the needs and exigencies of the local
teachers and administrators.
Our work in the intensive site schools has served as a rich opportunity to study the way
technology is, or is not, successfully integrated into teaching and learning. The
following narrative represents some of our observations and lessons learned thus far.
Table of Contents
1. Leadership is the key ingredient.
2. If you dont know where youre going, youll end up someplace else.
3. Technology integration is a s-l-o-w process.
4. No matter how many computers are available or how much training
teachers have had, there are still substantial numbers who are "talking the
talk" but not "walking the walk.
5. Effective use of technology requires changes in teaching, and the adoption
of a new teaching strategy can be a catalyst for technology integration.
6. Each school needs easy access to professionals with expertise in technology
and pedagogy.
7. While many of the barriers to using technology to support learning are the
same for all poor communities, some populations have some additional

issues.
8. In some schools, infrastructure remains a serious barrier to technology
adoption.
9. Educators can benefit from tools that help them gauge the progress of
technology integration over time.
1. Leadership is the key ingredient.
Our experiences in working with the intensive sites confirm what the research
literature says, that leadership is the single most important factor affecting the
successful integration of technology. This is true at the state level and at the
school level. For example, the states with the most successful technology
programs are those that have had visionary governors, legislators, and DOE staff
who are committed to the use of technology as a tool for teaching and learning.
Similarly, the schools who have made the most progress, including our intensive
sites, are those with energetic and committed leaders. Here are some more
specifics.
The Vision Thing - It is especially important at the school level for the principal
to have a vision of what is possible through the use of technology, and be able to
work with others to achieve the vision. Without this vision, and the translation of
the vision into action, lasting school improvement is almost impossible. We
notice time and time again that the schools in which we are having the greatest
impact, such as Booneville Middle School, are the ones with the strongest
leaders - leaders who are committed to helping their teachers and students use
technology effectively.
Leading by Example Effective principals lead by example. They have a clear
idea about how technology can support best practices in instruction and
assessment, they use technology fluently, and they participate actively in
professional development opportunities. The leader who expects to see
technology used in the classroom but does not know how to use e-mail sends, at
best, a mixed message.
Supporting the Faculty - In addition to modeling the use of technology,
supportive school principals highlight the efforts of teachers who attempt to use
technology to improve teaching and learning. Effective leaders also attend

professional development sessions with their teaching staff.

No Reform of the Month Clubs - Faculty who are bombarded with new
initiatives to be implemented each month quickly become overwhelmed and
resentful. Why invest much time and energy in this month's reform when a new
one will be unveiled in a few weeks?
Shared Leadership - School technology committees can serve an important role
in making decisions that reflect the needs of a total school community. School
leaders facilitate this happening by showing both interest and trust in decisions
that the group makes. Committee members should be those who are
representative of the total faculty and staff and selected by a method other than
principal-appointed. Committee meetings should not begin with the principal or
technology coordinator announcing his or her software decision and who will get
the new computers that just arrived. Shared input and decisions are critical for
committee members to feel that they serve a real role and to reduce the chances
that decisions will be sabotaged.
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2. If you dont know where youre going, youll end up someplace else.
Each organization, whether it be a district or an individual school, needs to spend
time developing and updating a comprehensive plan -- starting with its vision,
mission and goals. Every decision made should be one that supports the
organization's vision. The degree of success that a school has in implementing
technology will depend, in part, on the quality and maturity of its technology
plan. A technology plan that reads like a shopping list cannot guide a school in
making its hardest decisions. A useful plan reflects the ideas of an entire school
community and is connected to overall school goals. A look at school-level
technology plans reveals that many of our schools need assistance, not only in
writing a plan, but in learning how to carry out the process of developing one
that includes stakeholder buy-in.
As we have been helping schools implement their plans, we have noticed that
there tend to be three areas of weakness. The first is a tendency for one
individual or a few people to write the plan, a practice that flies in the face of the
notion of stakeholder buy-in and community involvement. A second is that many
plans lack a detailed component or plan for professional development that covers

the broad range of skills teachers and administrators need. The third common
problem is that most plans lack a component for evaluating the success and
effectiveness of the program. The omission of components usually stems not
from a lack of interest but perhaps from a lack of expertise in how to set up an
effective professional development program in technology or how to conduct an
evaluation that will yield meaningful and useful results.
Implementing the plans also requires working together in groups, devising new
patterns for staffing and many other organizational changes that are brought on
by the use of technology.
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Technology integration is a s-l-o-w process.

Truly integrating technology into teaching and learning is a slow, timeconsuming process that requires substantial levels of support and encouragement
for educators. The Apple Classroom of Tomorrow studies (Dwyer et. al, 1991) of
what happens in technology rich environments have shown that teachers go
through predictable stages in their use of technology and that this process takes
from three to five years. We have found that in technology poor schools, the
process takes even longer. In our intensive sites, we have also started to notice
that there seems to be a correlation between the amount and level of technical
assistance we provide and movement along the continuum of technology
integration; i.e., the schools that receive the most attention are making the most
progress.
Unfortunately, in most of the schools in the region, teachers have only had
access to the basic types of training in which they learned to use a single
application. Follow-up and support are the exception rather than the rule.
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No matter how many computers are available or how much training

teachers have had, there are still substantial numbers who are "talking the
talk" but not "walking the walk."
When you consider the fact that microcomputers have been in schools for almost
twenty years, and considering that most teachers have participated in some type

of professional development, it is still surprising to see how many teachers there

are who do not use technology at all. We know and appreciate that there are a
variety of reasons, some of which we cannot do anything about, and others that
we can do something about. For example, there are a few research studies (c.f.,
Macro, 1995), that indicate that some teachers have a natural proclivity toward
using technologies in general and computers in particular, while others do not.
And, like the general population, there are some teachers who embrace change,
while others resist it. On the other hand, there are some research-based practices
and common sense strategies we can implement that enhance the likelihood that
teachers will begin using technology.
a. Begin with teaching and learning, not with hardware and software.
As technology-oriented professionals, we have a tendency to frame professional
development and technical assistance around technology tools, such as word
processing and databases. We tell teachers, "Now what you need to do is
integrate word processing into your lesson plans," which can work with
motivated teachers, but not those who need a lot of support (or a gentle shove).
In short, teachers have a difficult time applying technology skills in the
classroom unless there is a direct linkage with the curriculum, teaching
strategies, or improvements in achievement.
Professional development tends to have a stronger impact when we frame it like
this - "Lets look at what students are learning this year and then see how
technology can make it more effective."
b. The training-of-trainers model means more than providing a workshop to a
few people and expecting them to train their colleagues on what they
learned.
The training-of-trainers model for professional development might just be the
most misunderstood or misrepresented model in education. Quite often it is
interpreted as one or two people delivering a workshop in which the participants
are supposed to acquire the content knowledge and training skills needed for
conducting turn-around training. Unfortunately, this seldom works because (a)
the content is too complex to be mastered in a one-shot workshop and there is no
follow-up accommodation for the wouldbe trainers to become proficient, (b)
there is no support for turn-around training, or (c) the would-be trainers are
inexperienced trainers. For the model to work, all three barriers must be
overcome.

c. Its a waste of time and energy to provide technology training when teachers
dont have the resources, opportunity, and support needed to apply their
new knowledge and skills.
It should go without saying that it makes absolutely no sense to provide training
on technology applications when teachers dont have access to appropriate
hardware and software. Unfortunately, however, some school leaders continue to
follow the tradition of sending teachers to workshops when its convenient rather
than when its logical, such as during the summer (even though they wont have
the resources or time to practice and experiment until January), or when a project
like SEIR*TEC is providing training for free.
Back to Contents

Effective use of technology requires changes in teaching, and the adoption

of a new teaching strategy can be a catalyst for technology integration.
While legislators often expect to see a direct correlation between the amount of
money spent on computers and students scores on standardized achievement
tests, we have observed that there is an intervening variable teacher behavior.
Effective use of technology requires improvements in teaching. Its the
combined effect of effective teaching and pedagogically sound technologies that
lead to improvements in learning.
We have found that when professional development and technical assistance
start with a particular teaching or learning strategy that the teachers believe will
benefit their students, such as cross-curricular thematic units, and then help
teachers discover ways technology is a tool that supports the strategy, teachers
are usually eager to try both the new instructional strategy and the technology.
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Each school needs easy access to professionals with expertise in technology

and pedagogy.
Our experiences in the field confirm the notion that teachers need on-site and ondemand technical assistance with both the technology and the integration of
technology into teaching and learning. Finding professionals who have expertise
in both areas is difficult, and few schools have professionals with both. Many

districts hire curriculum specialists and technology specialists and hope they
work together. Sometimes they do; sometimes they dont. Resource-poor schools
might have a curriculum specialist, but they seldom have access to anyone, inhouse or out, with the skills to assess their hardware requirements or
troubleshoot problems as they start using new hardware and software.
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While many of the barriers to using technology to support learning are the
same for all poor communities, some populations have some additional
issues.
We know that regional efforts make resources available to the widest number
and variety of programs and enable programs to build on each others work
rather than continuously reinvent wheels. Since the K-12 education community
has been exploring effective uses of technology for some time while, adult
educators can and do benefit from opportunities to work with and/or learn from
experienced, thoughtful K-12 educators. However, the adult literacy education
learners and settings are different enough from K-12 that the adult educators find
that they also need to take these learnings and resources and then rethink and
repurpose them to create methods and materials that can be effective in their own
instructional settings.
We also realize that educational software in Spanish, although abundant
throughout the Spanish speaking world, is just beginning to appear in the Puerto
Rico market. Until now, technology appeared for many teachers to be destined
for the English teachers only, and not for teachers of other subject matter which
are all taught in Spanish.
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8. In some schools, infrastructure remains a serious barrier to technology

adoption.
It is very difficult to focus on integrating technology to support learning if you
cannot overcome basic technological equipment and facilities issues. Schools
that serve students in economically disadvantaged areas typically have greater
barriers than schools in affluent communities in getting the basics in place. The

schools in Louisiana, the Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico are cases in point. In
some instances, the buildings are so old that establishing an infrastructure is very
difficult. For example, some schools in the Virgin Islands do not have access to
telephone lines; there are no T1 lines to the islands. In other places, a lack of
security is a problem; some of our schools will not put computers in classrooms
unless there are iron bars across the windows. And, living in the Southeast, we
are occasionally reminded of the impact that the weather has on schools in the
region, such as hurricanes that wipe out microwave communication towers or
destroy entire school facilities.
The schools in Puerto Rico also have severe access issues in part because basic
electricity is not sufficient. The electrical infrastructure of many schools is
unable to handle the additional load required by computer networks. These
schools require major infrastructure investments that in their system can only be
made by the Department of Education. There is a long waiting list of schools that
need major electrical upgrades. As we said under Lesson 1, schools with
effective leadership sometimes use their ingenuity and will to overcome these
barriers; schools without committed leaders do not.
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9. Educators can benefit from tools that help them gauge the progress of
technology integration over time.
One of our most recent observations originated not with the intensive sites, but
with some technical assistance SEIR*TEC staff provided to the North Carolina
Department of Public Instruction (NCDPI). The Department had asked for help
in developing a way of collecting comparable evaluation data from 44 diverse
Technology Literacy Challenge Fund (TLCF) grants. Working with DPI staff, we
developed an instrument that has been adopted across the state as well as in other
states. We have observed that the instrument not only serves its original purpose
but also provides a non-threatening framework for gauging a schools or
districts progress toward technology implementation. Administrators report that
it is a tool that helps educators reflect on where they are and where they need to
go with their technology initiatives.
In the belief that helping educators reflect on their progress could potentially
accelerate the rate of progress, we adapted the original instrument for use in the
intensive sites. Basically, the adaptation involved the identification of five

domains of technology integration, principles of good practice for each domain,

and indicators of progress for each principle. Staff also compared the domains
and principles with other instruments such as the CEO Forums STaR Chart and
the Milken Exchanges Frameworks for Technology Integration to ensure that
ours covered all the bases. We just completed the first round of implementing the
instrument in the intensive sites, and so far, the teachers and administrators have
reported that in addition to being a useful gauge for progress in general, the
instrument is a good basis for discussing specific technology initiatives across
the district. It also helps them see the bigger picture of technology integration by
showing principles of practice that they have not yet addressed. We will monitor
the use of the instrument over the next several months and see whether it does
indeed make a difference in program planning and implementation.
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