Schedule: 2009-09-12 (12:00 - 12:45)
Parallel Session 4 (Room A-24)

Title: Supporting sustainable pedagogical change through developing teachers’ pedagogical understanding of ICTs
Authors: Ilona Laakkonen, Peppi Taalas
Abstract: With the increased rate of technology, social and economic changes, the challenges posed on the educational system are now addressing the very core of education, the way teachers teach (Hargreaves 2003). This kind of fundamental change calls for teachers to engage in developing new understandings on innovative approaches to teaching and learning (Fullan 2001). However, teachers cannot be expected to embrace ICTs unless they are able to see the benefits for the implementation of pedagogical goals. It is not surprising to see the technology training programs so often fail, as the strategies that are used to promote change are distant to the world of teachers (Fullan & Stiegelbauer 1991) and the training focuses on the development of specific skills without a broader context. Teachers need to be encouraged to develop agency and expertise in multimodal pedagogy, not so much in the use of specific technological applications or equipment.
This presentation reflects on the experiences and data gathered during the process of designing and piloting an online course for in-service language teachers on the integration of technology. The use of technology was regarded as a supportive element for a larger scope change in pedagogical practices. The course aim was to provide a variety of teachers with food for thought, to promote agency and ownership in technology use and to tie it soundly to pedagogical principles.
The motivation for the course stems from the research repeatedly suggesting that the heavy investments in educational technology seem not to have changed much in the classroom practices. Recent studies imply that as the everyday life of students has become multimodal and media-rich, school tends to rely on the textbook (Luukka & al. 2008). According to the Finnish SITES report (Kankaanranta & Puhakka 2008) the use of technology is still very rare especially in the language classroom – despite that in general teachers acknowledge that ICT is important to their work (Luukka & al. 2008).
The online course deals with a range of CALL issues from the concept of learning and pedagogical basis of integrating technology to the assessment of oral skills and the use of Web 2.0 tools. It also suggests practical solutions and applications for teachers to use in their own work. The practical outcome of the participants’ learning process was a technology integrating teaching plan that the teachers created to fit their specific contexts and pedagogical goals.
In this presentation we will discuss the design of the course and the challenges of finding the balance between language learning, ICTs and pedagogy. We will also present results from an international pilot with two groups of teachers. The first worked with the material during a period of 3-4 weeks, the second spent 3-4 hours of intense work on the material. Reactions of participants were registered through online surveys and later elaborated through e-mail interviews. The preliminary feedback from both groups was appreciative. Teachers in all levels of expertise in technology use reported to have found the contents and approach relevant to their own work.
Keywords: Teacher professional development, ICT integration, pedagogical change, online course

Main topic: Pedagogical change in technology integration

Biodata: Not provided
Type of presentation Paper presentation

Paper category Reflective Practice

Target educational sector Further education

Language of delivery English

EU-funded project Yes

Schedule:	2009-09-12 (12:00 - 12:45) Parallel Session 4 (Room A-24)
Title:	Supporting sustainable pedagogical change through developing teachers’ pedagogical understanding of ICTs
Authors:	Ilona Laakkonen, Peppi Taalas
Abstract:	With the increased rate of technology, social and economic changes, the challenges posed on the educational system are now addressing the very core of education, the way teachers teach (Hargreaves 2003). This kind of fundamental change calls for teachers to engage in developing new understandings on innovative approaches to teaching and learning (Fullan 2001). However, teachers cannot be expected to embrace ICTs unless they are able to see the benefits for the implementation of pedagogical goals. It is not surprising to see the technology training programs so often fail, as the strategies that are used to promote change are distant to the world of teachers (Fullan & Stiegelbauer 1991) and the training focuses on the development of specific skills without a broader context. Teachers need to be encouraged to develop agency and expertise in multimodal pedagogy, not so much in the use of specific technological applications or equipment. This presentation reflects on the experiences and data gathered during the process of designing and piloting an online course for in-service language teachers on the integration of technology. The use of technology was regarded as a supportive element for a larger scope change in pedagogical practices. The course aim was to provide a variety of teachers with food for thought, to promote agency and ownership in technology use and to tie it soundly to pedagogical principles. The motivation for the course stems from the research repeatedly suggesting that the heavy investments in educational technology seem not to have changed much in the classroom practices. Recent studies imply that as the everyday life of students has become multimodal and media-rich, school tends to rely on the textbook (Luukka & al. 2008). According to the Finnish SITES report (Kankaanranta & Puhakka 2008) the use of technology is still very rare especially in the language classroom – despite that in general teachers acknowledge that ICT is important to their work (Luukka & al. 2008). The online course deals with a range of CALL issues from the concept of learning and pedagogical basis of integrating technology to the assessment of oral skills and the use of Web 2.0 tools. It also suggests practical solutions and applications for teachers to use in their own work. The practical outcome of the participants’ learning process was a technology integrating teaching plan that the teachers created to fit their specific contexts and pedagogical goals. In this presentation we will discuss the design of the course and the challenges of finding the balance between language learning, ICTs and pedagogy. We will also present results from an international pilot with two groups of teachers. The first worked with the material during a period of 3-4 weeks, the second spent 3-4 hours of intense work on the material. Reactions of participants were registered through online surveys and later elaborated through e-mail interviews. The preliminary feedback from both groups was appreciative. Teachers in all levels of expertise in technology use reported to have found the contents and approach relevant to their own work.
Keywords:	Teacher professional development, ICT integration, pedagogical change, online course
Main topic:	Pedagogical change in technology integration
Biodata:	Not provided
Type of presentation	Paper presentation
Paper category	Reflective Practice
Target educational sector	Further education
Language of delivery	English
EU-funded project	Yes