Using Technology in Teaching:
Sources to Explore
Compiled by Joy Kidwell, Garawyn McGill,
Below is an annotated
list of both digital and print sources that explore using technology in the
classroom. Click on the blue web addresses to link to websites.
Anson, Chris. Teaching Composition Home Page.
McGraw-Hill,
Jan. 2004.
http://www.mhhe.com/socscience/english/tc/
Publishers McGraw-Hill sponsor this website.
It has lots of articles written by many folks who are involved in teaching
freshman writing classes. The articles vary from helpful, hands-on suggestions
to theoretical discussions. My (Joy Kidwell’s) favorite is “Connecting Reading
and Writing: Inkshedding-to Learn” by Elizabeth Sargent from the University of Alberta. In fact, I was so
interested in what she’s doing I am adapting it to the E102 classes I’m
teaching this semester.
An ongoing inventory of publications in post-secondary composition,
rhetoric, ESL, and technical writing: 1939-1999. Full articles are not given,
only article title, author, publication, and publication date are provided.
A reference for using blogs (web logs) for
education purposes such as keeping an ongoing online journal that your students
can maintain and respond to one another.
This website frowns upon universities that aim to keep their advancements
in technology to themselves. It prides
itself on being an unaffiliated space for the exchange of ideas. One perk: you can join a listerv
on numerous topics, including “Teaching and Learning with Technology.” Their database is also easily accessible and
contains such gems as: “Voice Technologies: Raising the Level of Interaction in
Online Courses” and “Transforming the UDC Reading/Writing Lab through
Technology.”
Eyman,
Douglas Andrew. “Hypertextual Collaboration in the
Computer-
Assisted Composition
Classroom: An Introduction to Computer-Mediated Communication Pedagogy.”
http://localsonly.wilmington.net/~eymand/thesis.html
Eyman’s
thesis describes the slow
integration of computer technologies in the composition classroom, and it
explores the theoretical background, which “drives the movement toward a more
comprehensive computer-aided pedagogy at all levels of composition
instruction.” This thesis looks at how print-based communication technologies
(including multi-user domains, synchronous and asynchronous networking, and
hypertext) have helped composition pedagogy evolve from the current-traditional
model toward a process-oriented, more collaborative, less authority-centered
model, focusing on “an epistemology of socially constructed knowledge.”
Overall, the Eyman argues that computer-mediated
communication technologies create a focal point for community building and an
effective method of collaboration.
A peer-reviewed journal publishing theoretical articles on a variety
of topics related to rhetoric, writing, multiple literacies,
and the politics of education.
Kairos:
Rhetoric, Technology, and Pedagogy.
Kairos
is a refereed online journal that
publishes webtext articles about the “intersections
of rhetoric, technology, and pedagogy.”
For its Fall 2003 issue, the journal features an interview with Andrea
Lunsford and Michael Leff titled “The Alliance for
Rhetoric Society.” The issue also covers
topics such as flash media, teaching online composition courses, and service
learning. The journal seems to be aimed
at not only university instructors but at any teacher with an interest in
technology and composition pedagogy.
Kairos
also offers readers a free account to their weblog, Kairosnews.
Readers can peruse the news, join in a discussion forum, submit articles, and
receive a daily email update (if so desired).
For more information, please see the following website:
http://kairosnews.org
Kent, Todd and Robert McNergeney. Will
Technology Really Change Education? From
Blackboard to the Web. Corwin Press,
1999.
This book is a short read. It
aims to enlighten educators on the issues we’re likely to encounter as computer
technology becomes more integrated into the classroom. The book focuses particularly on the ways
this change might affect the teacher-student relationship. It also examines the historical context of
these classroom innovations.
http://www.nvcc.edu/home/ataormina/presentations/techped.htm
This is a series of 13 slides outlining the potential and the
problems with using Eportfolios.
Ragan, Patricia, et. al. “Web-Based Learning and Teacher Preparation:
Stumbling
Blocks and Stepping Stones.” U of
http://www.uwsa.edu/ttt/articles/ragan.htm
This online article examines the successes and
difficulties of converting to an online classroom environment by both students
and teachers.
Rings, Sally. “The Role of
Computer Technology in Teaching Critical
http://realgar.mcli.dist.maricopa.edu/critR/#PROB
In this article, Rings addresses the
unrealistic expectation that a freshman entering college is prepared to
participate in academic discourse through reading, because in reality, many
students are unprepared to read critically. She calls for a pedagogy that
engages readers using a variety of strategies that allow a reader to
thoughtfully consider the author’s message and purpose. After listing numerous
approaches to accomplish this, Rings argues for the use of computer technology
in the teaching of critical reading skills, citing three characteristics of
computer software in support of her argument:
·
software demands a high level of interactivity;
·
software demands strategies used by effective
readers
·
software demands
comprehension in “real” context.
The website’s primary audience is k-12, although there is college-
specific material presented. It provides a multitude of technological resources
available for teachers such as downloadable PowerPoint presentations, current
articles on technology in the classroom, and more. This site can be difficult
to navigate unless the user has a specific keyword search in mind.
Wood, Eileen, et al. “An
Examination of How a Cross-Section of
Academics
Use Computer Technology When Writing Academic Papers.” Computers
& Education 38.1-3 (
This print article outlines the results of a survey of 361 faculty,
graduate and undergraduate students. The survey assessed computer availability,
experience, attitudes toward computers, and use of computers by academic
writers. While undergraduates in the math and computer science areas were more
at ease with computers than users in other disciplines, computer savvy
increased with academic level no matter the discipline. This suggests that
academics have been using computers throughout their careers—and continue to
use them. Furthermore, those surveyed cited different reasons for using a PC as
opposed to written/hard copies. Responses indicate that these two formats may
facilitate the writing process in unique ways, and suggests that “rather than
viewing continued use of hard copy as a transitional period to more extensive
computer use, it may be that hard copy offers cognitive supports that may not
be available in computer writing software.”