Abstract
As technology continues to provide new instructional options in the classroom, opportunities to embed new tools in their pedagogy are critical for teachers. One avenue that could encourage teachers to adopt new technologies in their classroom is professional development. This column outlines how a comprehensive program can be implemented to build teacher capacity for implementing new tools in their classrooms. Suggestions include developing a referral system that connects teachers to necessary supports, developing ongoing trainings that build teacher knowledge and skills for using technology, and creating site-based leaders for technology use through professional development and the creation of professional learning communities.
Keywords
Instructional technologies (IT), when well designed and thoughtfully applied during instruction, are key tools for teachers to use to meet the needs of students with learning disabilities (LD) in general education classrooms (Basham et al., 2016). The promise of IT has led to its inclusion in the National Education Technology Plan (U.S. Department of Education, 2017) and the Council for Exceptional Children’s (CEC) list of high-leverage practices (HLP; McLeskey et al., 2017). The efficacy of these tools for students with LD, however, is dependent on a teacher’s ability to use them to deliver specially designed instruction (Ertmer & Ottenbreit-Leftwich, 2010). Instructional technology refers to any multimedia tool designed to provide instruction, including web browsers, mobile device applications, and learning management systems (LMS), which can increase a teacher’s capacity to differentiate instruction (Edyburn, 2013). Such differentiation benefits students with disabilities (SWD) while allowing teachers to provide flexible learning opportunities to all students (Sailor, 2015). Increasingly, school districts are investing in technology (e.g., 1:1 initiatives) to support the learning needs of students by providing access to flexible learning materials, increased collaborative opportunities, and the transformation of a teacher’s role from instructional leader to a facilitator of student exploration of content (McKnight et al., 2017).
Despite the promise of IT, simply making technology available to teachers is unlikely to lead to improved student outcomes. It is the meaningful planning and integration of these tools in instruction and assessment that may enhance student learning (Karlin et al., 2018). Guiding the use of technology as an instructional tool for students with disabilities are the HLPs that suggest instruction be delivered in a direct and explicit manner with technology being used to modify and adapt content to meet diverse learning needs. However, initial evaluations of the roll out of large technology initiatives at multiple school districts have suggested that, without a strong vision and plan for supporting teachers in embedding technology in their pedagogy, the investment in technology alone does not improve student outcomes (Cole & Sauers, 2018). In addition to making tools available to teachers, professional development (PD) that supports teachers in understanding how to integrate the tools into their instruction is imperative (Liu, Ko, Willman & Fickert, 2018). This column provides practical steps that districts can follow in facilitating teacher adoption of new IT that are rooted in established conceptual frameworks and research.
Model of Professional Development
Research on teacher PD and adult learning indicates that effective PD should be “seamless, technology enabled, comprehensive, cohesive, and career spanning” (Rock et al., 2016, p. 98). One-time PD opportunities that treat teachers to sleek demonstrations of new technologies will rarely result in changes to instruction in the classroom if these sessions do not include the opportunity for teachers to directly apply the tool to their work or offer ongoing support for implementation (Darling-Hammond & Richardson, 2009). Districts should strive to develop models of PD that recognize educators’ expertise in instructional practices and allow them flexible access to training opportunities so that they understand how new and existing IT may be applicable to their ever-evolving professional responsibilities (Cook et al., 2017). It is important to realize, however, that districts, schools, and teachers have differing technological needs and resources for providing direct support for adopting and implementing IT. Although PD that effectively meets the needs of all stakeholders may look different between districts, it remains important that any support provided be flexible and sustainable.
Differentiated, Ongoing, and On-Demand Professional Development
With the ever-evolving professional responsibilities of classroom teachers, particularly special educators, access to PD sessions should be flexible (Rock et al., 2016). For districts that have differing resources (e.g., PD funds, technology experts), these sessions can take multiple forms (e.g., online, face-to-face). Regardless of the format, they should focus on building teacher knowledge of available tools and their uses in the classroom. In their analysis of exemplary technology use in classrooms, Courduff et al. (2016) highlighted two frameworks, the technology acceptance model (TAM) and technological pedagogical and content knowledge (TPACK) to capture the self-efficacy and skill sets required for the effective use of IT. The TAM is a measure of how users view technology in terms of its utility and ease of use; it, therefore, serves as a precursor to technology adoption (King & He, 2006). The TPACK framework looks to describe the intersections of pedagogical knowledge (i.e., instructional strategies), technology knowledge (i.e., knowledge and skills for using technology), and the combination of these areas where teachers define a clear role for IT to play in addressing a specific instructional task or objective (Swallow & Olofson, 2017). Moving beyond the adoption of new IT described by TAM, TPACK describes how well teachers make use of the IT in their classrooms.
Combined, these frameworks suggest areas for PD to address alignment of instruction with the HLPs and to increase teacher confidence in using technology with the ultimate goal of integration of technology in teacher pedagogy (Anderson & Putman, 2019; Courduff et al., 2016). Provided below is a description of how PD can support teachers in building technology knowledge and their perceptions of the benefits new IT will have in their classrooms, so that IT will ultimately be included in direct and explicit instructional cycles to address specific instructional tasks and objectives.
Opportunities to address technology acceptance model, and technological pedagogical and content knowledge
The procurement of tools for classroom use is typically made at the district level (Cole & Sauers, 2017). Although teachers may have some input into these decisions, it is unlikely that all teachers will have complete knowledge of the tools available to them in their classroom. Without requisite technology knowledge, it would be hard for teachers to view tools as useful in their pedagogy. In increasing teacher capacity for using technology, an initial strand of PD should be aimed at familiarizing teachers with the tools available to them and their functionalities. These activities are likely to increase acceptance of the tools (i.e., TAM) and should be a precursor to sessions that support TPACK by drawing connections between the IT and teachers’ existing pedagogy so that they are more likely to adopt the tools in their classrooms (Lamond & Cunningham, 2019). At this stage, districts may want to devise a rollout that includes these sessions during district-wide PD days, ensuring that those teachers who would benefit from it attend the PD.
As teachers begin to adopt IT, it is critical that they see a tool as (a) easy to use and (b) beneficial for instruction, to ensure continued use of the tool (Anderson & Putman, 2019). To develop a deeper understanding of each tool’s constraints and affordances (i.e., technology knowledge), teachers will need to understand how, when, where, and for whom a technology would be appropriate. To support the development of TPACK, follow-up, more individualized PD sessions should provide teachers with demonstrations and hands-on practice. These sessions should demonstrate (a) how to navigate and use specific tools, (b) the unique capabilities of the tool, (c) the way in which the tools interact with the existing technology infrastructure, and (d) the accessibility and differentiation options available in the tool. Each of these sessions should end with specific information about how teachers’ use of the tool can drive the learning of students with disabilities. These hands-on demonstrations can be scheduled on a regular basis (e.g., first Tuesday of the month) so teachers understand there is a regular time and place to get additional support with a specific technology. This type of ongoing PD may encourage teachers to persist in using a new IT; if they have options for planning PD into their schedules, they may seek help before discontinuing use of a specific tool. Regular hands-on sessions with various IT can increase teacher comfort with using new tools in the classroom, develop their understanding of where new tools fit in the existing technology infrastructure and, ultimately, increase the likelihood that technology becomes embedded in teacher pedagogy.
Integrating teacher planning for and evaluation of instructional technology in professional development
As teachers begin to adopt new IT into their instruction, PD should support teachers’ thoughtful planning of how to use the technology for instructional and assessment purposes within explicit instructional cycles. Training should be designed to deepen TPACK, allowing teachers to make connections between the capability of technology-based tools, the needs of students in their classrooms, and the curriculum they are tasked with covering so that teachers can systematically design and adapt instruction with embedded technology to support students in meeting specific curricular goals (Koehler et al., 2013). This support can include PD at the school, department, or individual level. Using more individualized strategies, technology support providers may consider ways of demonstrating how specific technology tools can be incorporated in a lesson, including joint planning sessions, modeling a lesson, or co-teaching a lesson.
As described in the TPACK framework, teachers should recognize the role IT plays in their instruction. In supporting teachers to plan for the use of IT, PD should include considerations for evaluating the effectiveness of these tools for students. Teachers will also need to develop skills to evaluate newly adopted tools, including evaluating their ease of use (i.e., do students use them as planned) and their impact on student learning. A comprehensive PD plan for IT should include consultative planning sessions where the role of teachers and technology are identified in detailed plans for individual lessons (Hughes et al., 2017). Specifically, teachers should be able to identify when to employ the technology during instruction and have systems in place to assess its effectiveness in increasing student knowledge and achievement. Technology support providers should assist in developing data collection systems to record frequency and duration of technology use by the teacher and the student in addition to data on student progress. When possible, teachers should monitor student achievement when different types of technology are used (Ault & Bausch, 2014). Having students keep a log of when they actually use a specific tool can be helpful in understanding how useful that tool is for the student. In addition, reflective comments and anecdotal notes can provide important information about how well specific technology is working and whether there are any specific challenges with implementation.
Building Teacher Capacity as Technology Leaders
A final consideration for districts is how to create a sustainable model of technology adoption to prevent limited resources from being overwhelmed by requests for training or consultations. Two models to consider adopting include professional learning communities (PLC; Stoll et al., 2006) and train-the-trainer (TTT) models (Pancucci, 2007). With PLCs, groups of teachers work together to learn about and share resources on a particular topic. An IT PLC could be developed so that teachers from different school sites using the same tools are able to delve deeper into the literature on the pedagogical impact of the tools while sharing practical suggestions for how to use the tool based on their experiences in their own classrooms (Cook et al., 2017). In TTT models, teachers would be trained to use a new tool with the expectation that they will train their colleagues. The PLC and TTT models can also be combined so that teacher trainers lead or participate in the IT PLC.
Districts have multiple options when building communities of practice and site-based leaders. An initial consideration would be how to create a central repository for materials that can be accessed district-wide. This can be built out through a school district website that allows teachers to share ideas across the district through forums, demonstration videos, and resource lists. Another option could include a compendium of shared documents (e.g., Google Drive) that allow teachers to share resources. District-sponsored platforms or social media groups can provide a helpful medium for teachers to collaborate as well. The resources teachers share and the questions they ask in these forums may help identify future avenues for PD on IT.
Conclusion
Effective PD that supports continued implementation of innovative pedagogy is a critical component for teacher and student success given the evolving professional responsibilities educators are asked to assume (Rock et al., 2016). Considering how IT continues to change and evolve, PD plays an important role in keeping teachers abreast of new technological tools available to them and increasing their ability to embed these tools in their instruction. The TAM and TPACK frameworks for technology integration suggest teachers need comprehensive support and training when adopting and implementing new tools. This should include building teacher knowledge, skills, and competency for embedding tools in their classrooms, while supporting teachers in becoming leaders at their own sites to create a sustainable model of PD and, ultimately, support the use of technology to drive student achievement.
Footnotes
Declaration of Conflicting Interests
The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.
Funding
The author(s) received no financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.