Faculty perception of technological change & control

When I ask students (completely unscientifically) about technology and learning - their biggest source of frustrations are the ways in which their instructors use (or don't use) technology in the learning environment. Student have rarely talked about a frustration with any given technology. At least in part, I believe that this is due to students being more likely to look at technology as a "means to an end," so particular technologies can fade to the background.

New technologies present a much more complex environment for instructors to navigate. I think that this is less of a generational concern than it is a "full plate" concern. Instructors need to balance intense teaching, research and publishing loads with staying abreast of advancements in their respective fields. At least initially, any new technology is often "yet another thing" to have to find time for.

The findings below seem to support and expand these views:

"A report on the study, 'Technological Change and Professional Control in the Professoriate,' includes interviews with more than 40 professors at three universities. It suggests that professors often use such technologies for logistical purposes rather than to improve learning.

'There is little or no indication that innovative pedagogy motivates technological use in the classroom, which sort of flies in the face of how the use of information-based instructional technologies is usually presented,' said David R. Johnson, a Ph.D. candidate in sociology at the University of Georgia and the study’s author."

While the Chronicle article makes a more general statement, the study is focused on the perception of technology by instructors; not the practical application of technology in the learning environment. While perception is 99% of reality, it's an important distinction. It's also vital for academic IT professionals and administrators to understand and work with these perceptions to provide better service. I highly recommend reading the study if you have access to it.

The study often refers to instructors concerns about "loss of control," which reinforces the idea that various technological changes are imposed upon instructors without involving them in the process. It's a perception that I've heard from our own faculty for years. This perception of a lack of consultation and partnership creates an environment in which there is very little trust of IT & administration. The resulting environment exacerbates concerns over control and ownership.

In those instances when I've seen technology provide a truly transformative change in a course, the technology has acted as a catalyst that allowed the instructor to rethink the way that they teach; in a way that better communicates the curriculum to their students. If there is a perception that a teaching method (technology based or not) is being forced from outside, that perception will act as a barrier to transformative change... no matter how good the technology might be. Opportunities to better engage with students around the material are lost when instructors are inundated with changes that don't meet their needs or don't create those opportunities for transformational change. Especially while they're busy with the balancing act between teaching, research & publishing.

It's also important to recognize the academic potential of logistics (which the Chronicle article noted as a perceived positive value from technology). If technology is able to make logistics more efficient, it certainly helps to provide an environment in which more class time is devoted to critical thinking and application. That learning environment is very likely to have a positive impact on learning & should be encouraged.