Defining Educational Technology:

My personal definition of educational technology (ET) is, “any media, tools, equipment that is used to help an instructor teach a student to learn.” Which I think coincides with the first definition in the text book. My definition suggests that ET is an enhancement to help the teacher teach and the students to learn and it excludes teachers themselves as part of the ET movement. Different technology of the 21^st Century that I have been exposed to has helped me create this definition. For example: Internet, Activate White Boards, IPads, Laptops, Smartphones, & Apps (to list a few).  But the more I read in the text book the more I started to think that maybe teachers should be part of my definition. Teaches are the one presenting and teaching the information for students to learn. Our brains are the biggest technological tool that we own. Thinking about this has opened my eyes to how narrow my definition is or was…  I think this is the beauty or attraction of ET, that there is not one set definition to describe it. We as professional in the field of ET need to always be redefining, revision, and evolving ways to define educational technology. So my new definition for ET would be, “Educational technology is any media, tool, equipment, and/or instructor that supports and enhances a student to learn.”  

When I think of lessons I’ve developed and compare them to the six characteristics of instructional design, I find most all my lessons have characteristics 1-4 in them. The lessons are learner centered, goal oriented, focuses on meaningful performances and assumes outcomes can be measured in a reliable and valid way. Very few, if any of my lessons have characteristic 5 and 6 (empirical, iterative, and self-correction and typically a team effort) intertwined within them. I’m not sure why, maybe because I was unaware of these characteristics or maybe getting to that level of teaching requires more effort than I’ve been putting forth.  But now that I’ve been exposed to where my lesson should be, I’m going to make a conscious effort to include all six characteristics. I’ve typed out the six characteristics and taped them to my computer where I develop my weekly lesson plans so it will serve as a visual reminder to me of higher expectations of my lesson and self.

Before I read chapter 3, I’ve always thought of anything that had technology in the definition was something that had to be “plugged in” or required some source of electricity.  So with this mind set, teaches, chalkboards, and textbooks would be excluded from instructional media in my personal opinion.  But as I began to read chapter 3 and how instructional design/media was developed throughout the years, I tend to wonder if teaches, chalkboards and textbooks should be included.

Don’t they all contribute to each other? After looking online at a few sites about the topic, I find that it’s six one way and ½ a dozen the other. I think that as educators it’s important not to be so set in our ways that we don’t respect or have an open mind about others opinions. It’s good for us to develop our own opinion but not rule out the fact that we may be wrong or that we may need to change our views. On another note, I wonder if what generation you fall under determines what your views on instructional media/design are. Let’s say you were part of the generation that was brought up with “today’s technology” would you would agree with Reiser, or if you were part of the “older generation” would you disagree. Lots of food for thought…. After writing this reflection, I don’t really know what I think about teachers, chalkboards and textbooks. I suppose if I had to choose, I would say they should be included because they ultimately fall under the umbrella of my definition of educational technology.