Current Barriers in Educational Technology

Hsu, P. (2016). Examining Current Beliefs, Practices and Barriers About Technology Integration: A Case Study. Techtrends: Linking Research & Practice To Improve Learning, 60(1), 30-40. doi:10.1007/s11528-015-0014-3


In education, there are always barriers stopping educators from completing everything they want to complete.   No school district has unlimited funds or the time to do everything they want to get done.  Throughout education, school districts have tried to keep up with the ever-improving world of technology.  According to Hsu (2016), there were four barriers that impeded implementation of technology (p.30). Among these were "students' lack of computer skills, teachers' lack of training in technology, teachers' lack of time to implementation of technology-integrated lessons, and teachers' lack of technical support" (Hsu, 2016, p. 31).   

Many educators feel that the integration of technology into the classroom will lead to increased student achievement, although there is little data to support this.  One of the main issues that has been found with implementing technology in schools is that teachers do not know how to effectively teach the technology.  However, a number of research studies (Ertmer 2005; H s u2012, 2013; Levin and Wadmany 2008) have reported that the majority of teachers limit their classroom technology uses to such low-level tasks as conducting practice drills and/or utilizing computers as a free-time or reward activity(Hsu. 2016, 32).   Obviously, low-level tasks are not going to improve student achievement.

Another major barrier to implementation is the lack of time to implement the technology integrated lessons.  Many young teachers struggle to find the time to find the time to complete everything they want to get done in the classroom and struggle to find more time to implement the technology correctly.  Also, to add to the barriers are classrooms that are not student-centered and rely on the teacher for all knowledge.  Unfortunately, there are still many classrooms that are teacher centered and in this type of learning, the focus is on rote memorization and not skill building.  

The main caveat to the issue of time is the fact that many teachers feel like they do not have the support in their school to implement the technology.  What if the technology fails?  Who should they go to to learn about the new application on the device?  Paid tech liaisons in each department would be a way to ensure success when implementing the technology.  Using SIP time, departments meetings and other staffed events would help teachers fully implement technology correct and with the support they deserve.

Fusing Creativity and Tech

Henriksen, D., Mishra, P., & Fisser, P. (2016). Infusing Creativity and Technology in 21st Century Education: A Systemic View for Change. Journal Of Educational Technology & Society, 19(3), 27-37.


Often in education, we as teachers think about everything from standards to our lessons, student growth and the technology we want to use.  Rarely, if ever do we consider how creativity fits into our teaching.  Where's there a standard for creativity?  One may ask.  The truth is that many apps and businesses today required an individual or group of people that decided to take a risk and develop something innovative.  According to Henriksen, Misher & Fisser (2016), the explosion in technologies  for content  sharing and  development is  transforming how  culture,  art, and knowledge emerge within disciplines" (p.31).

In the article," Infusing Creativity and Technology in 21st Century Education", Henriksen, Misha & Fisser (2016) delve into how 21st-century classrooms cannot just rely on technology for students to improve their achievement.

One theme I have continued to see pop up through my MAET courses is that students are no longer expected to simply be consumers of technology, but also be producers of material.

While this is a novel idea, many teachers would say it is difficult enough just to incorporate technology into the curriculum along with their content, and then there is the added challenge to get students to create technology that the teachers may not be comfortable teaching.  Mishra, Koehler, and Henriksen (2011) have argued that the best uses of educational technology must be  grounded in  a  creative mindset  that embraces  openness for  the new  and intellectual  risk-taking.  This is  a tremendous challenge for  any teacher, but especially  new teachers" (p.32).

Creative new technology can breed and spurn inspirational for new technology.  If we really want to teach kids 21st-century skills we need to allow students to test things out on their own, to take intellectual risks and to fail in order to ultimately help them reach their potential.

Making Virtual Reality a Reality

Foote, C. (2017). Mobile Technology Goes Virtual: Using Virtual Reality in Education. Internet@Schools, 24(3), 12-13.

Virtual Reality is coming to Education, and sooner than some may think. Although VR is a new device and needs to be researched for its effectiveness on achieving the results; it's impact in the classroom has already started paying dividends as teachers are starting to see the value in Virtual Reality field-trips.

In the article, "Mobile Technology goes Virtual, Carolyn Foote shows examples of how VR has been used in an Illinois Elementary School. According to Foote (2017), “Students were able to watch Syrian refugees come ashore by boat in Greece or be there to sit in on a class in a small village in an African nation. It truly helped our 7th graders in social studies understand what it’s like to be in someone else’s shoes”(p.12). The benefits of have already started to show as the Virtual Reality has helped promote empathy and civic responsibility in the students classroom. The Students from the middle school were so moved by the lesson that they took it upon themselves to have a refugee family in need (Ibid, 12). Virtual Reality allows for students to complete immerse themselves in a world they would never get a chance to visit.

Teachers may see Virtual Reality as the next fad to be replaced by the next big thing. Other teachers might think that it would take too much time to develop lesson plans. The good news for teachers is that companies such as Google, New York Times and Discovery Education have completed lesson plans that teachers can use on demand. The teacher can lead students through these expeditions as well.

Some educators are concerned that there is no educational benefit when it comes to student achievement or growth. According to Foote (2017), "VR content opportunities are only going to grow by leaps and bounds, but we don’t want students to just be consumers. We need to determine if immersive media requires some different abilities and sensitivities, and then help students to also learn to create their own content" (p.13).   Applications such as co-spaces allow students to create these spaces and edit them over time.  

While there are some possible barriers to Virtual Reality such as time, money and training-these virtual reality machines would give students opportunities to experience incredible things and change their lives.  If used correctly, these Virtual Reality machines could actually save a school district a lot of money by saving on field trips and giving the students an immersive educational experience.

Using screencasts to flip the classroom

GREEN, K. R., PINDER-GROVER, T., & MILLUNCHICK, J. M. (2012). Impact of Screencast Technology: Connecting the Perception of Usefulness and the Reality of Performance. Journal Of Engineering Education, 101(4), 717-737.


Although screencasting is not new in the world of education, teachers are beginning to use screencasts to "flip the classroom".  Flipping the classroom essentially means that students will view lectures at home before class.  This allows class time to be devoted to analysis, projects, simulations and more skill-based work.

In Katie Green's article, "Impact of Screencast Technology", she explores why students use screencasts as well as how the screencasts can impact student achievement(Green 1).  Green explains in her article that screencasts are generally used to take the form of recorded lectures, but can also be used for supplementary materials such as exam solutions (ibid 2).  The articles studies show that students perceive the screencasting as beneficial and convenient.  Screencasts can be downloaded and viewed on all technology including smartphones.  This allows students to watch the screencasts at their convenience.

Allowing students access to this information while devoting class time to skill work could be extremely beneficial for students. The studies showed that "nearly 90% of students viewed the homework solution screencast as helpful" (Ibid 7).  Students went on to share that further supplementary tools such as exam solutions helped students understand what they did wrong so that they could reflect on their mistakes and improve them for further assessments.

Green's research also showed that the screencast has a positive correlation between screencast use and performance overall. Students shared that watching the resources allowed them to obtain a deeper understanding of course content.

Through analysis, I believe that using screencasts as a way to "flip the classroom" will have a positive impact on my students.  Having short lectures will allow students to practice their skills in the classroom with teacher guidance and will give more opportunity for formative practice.

Using Tech as a Tool

Using Tech as a tool (podcast)

Using electronic rubrics for quick feedback (Goobric)

Blogging in the Classroom

Boyd, P. (2013). BLOGGING IN THE CLASSROOM: USING TECHNOLOGIES TO PROMOTE LEARNER-CENTERED PEDAGOGIES. Researcher: An Interdisciplinary Journal, 26(3), 85-113.

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Like most teachers I am constantly searching for new ways to bring relevant and engaging technology into my classes.  One such tool that has exploded in use over the past few years is the use of educational blogs.  In "Blogging in the Classroom",  Patricia Boyd addresses the many benefits and setbacks for using educational blogs.

Boyd begins her article by addressing the benefits of using educational blogs and that the primary benefit is that the common use of blogs leads to a truly student centered classroom environment. Boyd also explains that there is a benefit of using blogs over online discussion forums.   I, like many teachers, use online discussion boards, but I realize that this is not a student centered approach, as I control the learning experience.  Boyd states, "In discussion boards, the teacher takes much more control over posting the topics, monitoring the discussions, and setting the parameters of the discussion; in blogs, students and their peers take on these responsibilities to a much greater degree" (Boyd 2).  Students often feel ownership of the blog-from the ways to personalize their page to the content they put on their page.  

Blogs have benefits outside of the social-emotional sphere as well.  One of the main benefits of blog postings is the self-reflection aspect that comes with blogging.  "Reflection is considered to be "an active and deliberative cognitive process involving sequences of inter-connected ideas which take account of underlying beliefs and knowledge. Reflective thinking generally addresses practical problems, allowing for doubt and perplexity before possible solutions are reached" (Boyd 4).  This reflective thinking helps learners build their skills of analysis, synthesis and other critical thinking skills.  The blogs also allow teachers to have better overlap in cross curricular subjects and would allow for common themes and ideas to be addressed on their blog.

Blog use in the classroom leads to student centered learning in which students take ownership over their works while learning critical skills needed in the 21st century.

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Technology in Special Education

EDYBURN, D. L. (2013). Critical Issues in Advancing the Special Education Technology Evidence Base. Exceptional Children, 80(1), 7-24.

"The  field of special education technology  is devoted  to a  variety  of activities that ultimately serve to augment, bypass, or compensate for a disability"(Edyburn 1).  Like much of educational technology today, the question for educators is, "which technology should we purchase and how should we implement it?"  In the article by Dave Edburn he dives into this question as he considers the research, theory, practice, policy and development of technology in Special Education.

As with most educational technology, one of the main concerns is the evidence to determine if it helps improve student achievement.  Often new technology comes around so frequently that a school district will move on to the new device before determining if the old device was successful or not. According to Edyburn, "The entire work of the field of special education technology can be summarized  as searching,  trialing, selecting,  implementing,  and evaluating technologies that augment,  bypass,  or compensate for a disability"(Edyburn 2 ).

One aspect that is key for advances in educational technology in Special Education is innovation.  "It's really hard  to design products  by focus groups. A lot  of times, people don't know what they want until you show it to them.  The notion that  the benefits  of a  new technology may not  be  fully recognized until after  it is used. In practice, this causes some technologists  to have an insatiable appetite to chase what is new (Reinhart 1998).  Innovation can be difficult for educators because many schools want the "shiny new object" without truly determining how effective it can be in the classroom. Some good news for technology in the Special Education realm is that new innovations have made certain technologies cheaper. For example the Proloquo2go AAC device has dropped the cost from $7000 to $200 dollars (Edyburn 4).However, with this new technology does come with challenges.  Staff is often untrained with these new forms of technology and it is difficult for staff to be trained on all of these devices as they are implemented too frequently.

Evidence has shown that new technologies such as adjustable wheelchair seating and speech recognition software have had significant impacts for students with special needs.  The difficulty when purchasing and implementing much of this technology is that,  "The standard  of proof that  a new technology works  is very low. Proof that something works is generally obtained through  a demonstration that the object basically operates as intended" (Edyburn 7).  According to the research, there is often not enough time or case studies to determine how the technology will work for students in different circumstances.

The good news is that through advocacy groups, they have been able to directly impact public policy and make education more equitable for special education students.  Although not all educational technology has helped Special Education students there have been positive strides through evidence and trial and error.

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Journal #3-The benefits of Google Classroom

Introducing Classroom, a new tool in Google Apps for Education. (2014). District Administration, 50(8), 52-53.


The days of lugging paper home, handing back assignments and wasted paper may now be obsolete. The Learning Management system, Google Classroom, has been around for about 3 years now and has enabled teachers to engage their students in new ways.  

According to Maggie McCloud, a Google Education team member, one of the main reasons for creating google classroom was to ensure that educators could use the functionality of all the google apps and collect them in one space. McCloud states, "Assignments shouldn't be difficult to assign.  People had these large flow-charts on construction paper explaining how to create a google doc and turn it into the teacher, or they would create a google form and students would share the links (Introducing classroom).  She goes on to state that Google Classroom allows teachers to easily create assignments and communicate effectively with the class. Another awesome tool in classroom is the digital discussions where a teacher can post a question and the class can interact online.  This is helpful for students that may feel uncomfortable sharing their voice in front of the class.

Google Classroom allows for seamless connectivity with all google apps which allows students to easily edit any google application and turn this in as an assessment on Google Classroom. Nicole Marrinelo, an English Teacher from Fontbonne Hall Academy in New York explains that Google Classroom also fosters collaboration. Beyond the classroom discussion feature she goes on to explain that students can have Google+ Hangouts with schools from different areas in the country that will "start to make the world a little smaller" (Introducing classroom).

Google Classroom has an array of wonderful features that can be helpful in several areas:organization, reduction in waste, usability and collaboration.  Google Classroom allows teachers to stay organized and keep students informed on announcements and deadlines. Any deadlines posted on classroom will also automatically be added to Google Calendar to remind students of impending due dates as well.  Overall, Google Classroom is a highly efficient leaning management system for educators and students alike.

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Time saving tech!

"It often happens that when giving a talk, the audience is  looking at the slide instead of you!" (Pogue 2013).  As we often find out as teachers, the students are distracted by words, pictures or even the color on the screen!  As Pogue explains in his TED talk, using the "B" key blacks out the screen as a way to focus the attention on the speaker and off of the slide. Research has shown that the audience often retains more information when they are focused on the speaker.  As always, I will be using this in my classes to see if this is one time saving tech worth using!

What do you think?  What time saving technique would you use?  Share in the comment section below.

Future ready schools-Collaborative Leadership

As we look toward the future and what our schools will look like 5-10 years down the road-I often reflect on the successes and failures of technology in education.  In order to move forward, we must often look back to what worked and what didn't.  For me, the most important gear is the "collaborative leadership" in which the district must consider HOW to implement the technology.

 According to the framework, "Leaders have ensured that the district's policies are coherent with the philosophy underpinning the vision (e.g., personalizing professional learning for education professions, just as they personalize learning for students".  As stated in my last blog, districts need to avoid buying technology just for the sake of doing so.  Teachers need to be training, there must be purposefully planning for what technology is most effective so that students can learn to be innovators and create new products, not simply just research google or do remedial work.

Collaboration is essential when trying to achieve any successful new district initiative.  As educators, we can be effective at implementing technology by being students ourselves and continuing to learn and innovate our curriculum.

Journal #2-Using tech to achieve equity

ZIELEZINSKI M. What Research Tells Us About... Using Technology to Support Underserved Students. Education Digest [serial online]. November 2016;82(3):30-34. Available from: Academic Search Complete, Ipswich, MA. Accessed April 9, 2017.

Use of technology in classrooms has exploded over the past few decades, and with schools trying to determine what tech and how much tech to bring in their schools' many students are being left behind.  “Unacceptably low levels of minority, low income English Language Learners, and special education students are graduating from high school (Zielezenski, 2016).

In her article, “Using Technology to support underserved students”, Zielezinski illustrates that although technology is available to many students it is being used incorrectly.  

Zielezinski argues that the main issue with technology in schools is that it is being used for remediation.  She goes on to explain that, “students who are black, Hispanic, or low-income are more likely to use technology for drill and practice, whereas students who are white or high income are more likely to use computers for simulations or authentic applications” (Zielezenski, 2016).  This is one issue I have seen in many educational settings throughout my career as a teacher.  In some scenarios, the teachers are not comfortable with technology especially when it comes to teaching students how to use certain programs to create original content.  

In order to truly use technology effectively in our school's teachers must be trained on how to use and teach various forms of tech.  For technology to reach its potential and achieve equity for underserved students then we as educators must be able to pick digital tools that promote discovery and the ability to create.  “Content creation when done well allows students to communicate their own ideas creatively” (Zielezenski). This allows teachers to teach valuable skills to their students, engage them in their classes, and give students the opportunity to be creators rather than consumers of tech.  

Teachers, like students, need to be taught how to use these programs in order to make a lasting impression on underserved students.  Ultimately this needs to be a top-down approach with school districts offering courses to teach their teachers what programs they can use.  

As stated before, there is no going back with technology it is here to stay in our schools.  Although there is an increasing importance put on technology in the classes the teachers are just as vital.  As we navigate the landscape of the “blended format” and teachers introduce more technology in their classrooms it is essential that teachers use technology for authentic tasks that develop and engage students.

The struggle to keep up with technology

Webster, M. D. (2017). Philosophy of Technology Assumptions in Educational Technology Leadership. Journal Of Educational Technology & Society, 20(1), 25-36.

Technology in education is here to stay, that much is clear.  When it comes to technological use in education- many schools are often left with the question of how to incorporate the technology in the classrooms?  According to Mark Webster, "Technology leaders were guided by two main approaches to technology decision making..curriculum should drive technology, and Keep up with technology (or be left behind" (Webster, 2017).  

Today many school districts are often torn with how to keep up with technology, how to be fiscally responsible all while trying to determine what role the technology will play in how it will help drive student achievement. Although many of the participants in Webster's article were optimistic about technology in the classroom (28 of 31), there is disagreement in how to implement the technology (p.3).  Some technology leaders feel that technology is a tool that should assist students and that schools should not incorporate technology without further understanding how it will benefit students. According to one participant, " I'm not a fan of technology for its own sake, and as a decision maker I like to see reasons for implement technology"(p.6).  While some educational technology leaders feel that technology is a tool others believe that it is essential to keep up with technology to drive student engagement.  One technology specialist says, "I would like to say it is solid research that influences me, but I don't need research to see students get excited using response systems..The game has changes and research cannot keep up with the changing tide, and I don't want my student left behind (p.8)."


While there are merits of both the philosophies stated in Dr. Webster's article, using technology just for the sake of using technology is inefficient.  Technology is often a drain on a school's resources and if not implemented correctly will often lead to an inferior educational climate.  It is clear that technology can be extremely useful, but if the curriculum does not drive the technology then students will have learned very little in their k-12 years. Using curriculum to drive technology will ensure that students will be fluent with the skills in both content and technology needed for the rest of their lives.