Now that you’ve seen examples of how digital transformation happens, explain why you believe education hasn’t been digitally transformed like other organizations. What will it take to truly digitally transform K-20 education?
Truth be told, there is no incentive for teachers to support digital transformation efforts within educational institutions. The administration has invested in technology to enhance student learning, but faculty have been reluctant to embrace and utilize the technology they have been gifted with. There are many reasons that faculty have been reluctant to change; however, knowing what we know now and all the advances that have been made, we cannot revert to the pre-pandemic way of teaching our students.
Practicing teachers were not taught how to teach using technology, and perhaps their reluctance is due to their technology ignorance. Teachers feel that they lack technical competence in implementing and maintaining new technology in the classroom (Tallvid, 2014). Additionally, Tallvid (2014) noted that teachers felt incompetent in troubleshooting technical issues when it appeared that their students were more tech-savvy than the teacher. Teachers of yesteryear find technology to be unnecessary. Lomba-Portela, et al. (2022) identified that teachers over 50 years of age are more reluctant to change and embrace new technology.
Yet, Ghory & Ghafory (2021), recognized the benefits of integrating modern technology into the teaching and learning process. Research showed that technology increased the students’ motivation to learn, and taught students digital skills that they may apply in the workforce in their future careers.
For education to truly embrace digital transformation, one must start with teacher education. Teacher education curricula must evolve to teach future educators how to impactfully use technology in and out of the classroom. Teachers much feel comfortable using the technology, as well as troubleshooting issues should they arise. Presently employed teachers should receive ongoing, professional development technology training to stay on top of new EdTech trends and understand how technology will benefit students of the future.
References:
Ghory, S., & Ghafory, H. (2021). The impact of modern technology in the teaching and learning process. International Journal of Innovative Research and Scientific Studies, 4(3), 168–173. https://doi.org/10.53894/ijirss.v4i3.73
Lomba-Portela, L., Domínguez-Lloria, S., & Pino-Juste, M. R. (2022). Resistances to educational change: Teachers’ perceptions. Education Sciences, 12(5), 359. https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci12050359
Tallvid, M. (2014). Understanding teachers’ reluctance to the pedagogical use of ICT in the 1:1 classroom. Education and Information Technologies, 21(3), 503–519. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10639-014-9335-7
