How to integrate a new technology into a course
If you’ve been following news in America, you may have heard that the Iowa Democratic Party hasn’t had much luck with bringing technology into their nomination process. Problems are mostly revolving around a single-use app that would be used as part of the reporting process, causing a major delay in the results.
We all know that sometimes things fail, and there are often ways to workaround a mess, but let’s use this as an opportunity to prepare for when we’re deciding to add a piece of technology to a course.
Know the tool
When picking a technology for a course, you should make sure you know what the tool does. This means a dry-run yourself to make sure you’re happy with the results. Beyond that you want to know that it’ll perform for you. How many of your students can use it at one time? Does it rely on wireless access which can be a chokepoint for large classes? Do you know other faculty who have used it? You can also check out Dave Cormier’s New Tool Checklist for more considerations.
Lower the stakes
If you can introduce a tool that is a formative practice or as a choice of an assignment. There are few things more stressful than when a highly valued assignment with a tight deadline doesn’t work as it’s supposed to. So if it’s possible to introduce it as a lower stake activity as you and your students get familiar, it can reduce some of that stress if something goes awry.
Practice makes perfect
If you can’t lower the stakes, and even if you can, make sure to practice with the tool. The more familiar you are with the tool, the less time you’re likely to lose with missteps or issues. Knowing what the student side of the experience is (if students will be interacting with it) will make it easier to help students through any questions. And if you need some users to try out the technology with, you can always reach out to the E-Learning Office.
Where to turn when things go wrong
Implementing a new technology can be a tightrope walk, but knowing that you have a net below can make things easier. Do you know another instructor who has used the technology before, have they run into issues, how did they sort them out? Is this a tool that the instructional design team use frequently? Can they help you find articles or forums where the tool is supported?
What’s plan b?
What’s your plan if the technology just doesn’t work? Sometimes there are things that are just outside of our control (e.g. wireless being down on campus, a website server being down, etc). Is there a backup that you can run? Or even just a different lesson or activity that is ready to go just in case?
We work with faculty to try and help them use technology in their classes. Sometimes things work out great and sometimes there are lessons to be learned. If you’re thinking about adding a tool, consider our suggestions above and determine whether that technology will help you or your students. And remember, sometimes there’s really nothing better than the paper ballot.
