Technology Review #1

I chose to review the journal article entitled " Measuring the Effectiveness of Educational Technology: What are we Attempting to Measure" by Jodie Jenkinson the article can be accessed at

http://scholar.googleusercontent.com/scholar?q=cache:mgUmu39PhzAJ:scholar.google.com/+"effectiveness+of+educational+technology+"&hl=en&as_sdt=1,43&as_ylo=2000&as_yhi=2012&as_subj=soc

The article for review was investigation into what is being measured when using technology in the classroom. In the article, the author speaks about the limitations of measuring student learning on a computer versus traditional learning. While using two groups of students, they are instructed using either 3D model on the computer or static images using the same information. Although there were some differences between the two groups, they are not significant enough to find an elaboration for the differences. “Neither experiment detected a significant difference between treatments (that isn’t to say that we didn’t see differences in the data; those differences were just not measurably significant). Interestingly, while the quantitative data failed to yield significant results, qualitative data (feedback forms and focus group evaluation) showed remarkable perceived differences in students’ perception of the effectiveness of the media with which they engaged.” Interestingly, the author states that perhaps there needs to be more flexibility in the measurement to ensure that the students thoughts about the learning are taken into consideration, as this may be as important as traditional testing to determine the effectiveness of technology based teaching and learning experiences.

I chose to do this article for my review because of my curiosity on the topic. In my classroom, I rely on technology to enhance my teaching, and see my student’s positive responses to the technology. The article demonstrated the same desire to find the answer that I would like to have about technology’s place in the classroom. In the conclusion of the article, it is stated that technology in the classroom is more powerful because of the opportunities for interaction and experiences. Yes, the students will learn regardless, but will they enjoy the learning, “Given the multimodal nature of interactive technology, it has a tremendous potential to support a variety of relationships and introduce new learning perspectives into students’ understanding of complex subject matter. Examining the nature of these interactions and the way in which they foster depth of understanding is crucial to an appreciation of the role educational technology plays in learning.” I think that this article is very beneficial for highlighting the students’ perceptions, and the importance of the experiences in the classroom.