Leveraging Technology Effectively: Part 5

Throughout the previous four articles in this series on the Leveraging Technology student competency, we looked at considerations for choosing technologies to use in teaching and learning and how to support learners to make progress toward that competency. In this fifth and final article, we are going to look at how to navigate changes in technology and integrate the competency at the program level.

Navigating Change

If you were at USask in 2020, you may remember that, as instructors and learners had to make the sudden change to remote teaching and learning, the University was transitioning from Blackboard to Canvas. The USask community had to face two major technological changes at one time, which was certainly not the plan when the move to a new learning management system (LMS) began more than a year earlier, with a request for proposals (RFP) from LMS vendors and faculty and staff consultations.

Most technology changes aren't as big as a shift to a new LMS or complicated by a global pandemic, though the growth of generative artificial intelligence, or GenAI, may seem that way. Transitioning to a new technology for teaching and learning (e.g. video conference and student response systems) is, however, inevitable. So, how do we prepare for such transitions?

Some considerations include:

• Actively engage in any consultations with instructors around a change in technologies at USask.
• Focus on the problem(s) you're trying to solve with that type of technology.
• Ask for help from the Gwenna Moss Centre for Teaching and Learning (GMCTL) on using any new technologies to solve the problem(s) in pedagogically sound ways.
• Discuss the change with learners, including any potential ethical issues, so they can be better prepared to use it. They may also be able to engage in consultations.

Leveraging Technology Across a Program

It can be frustrating for learners when there's a lack of consistency in what and how technologies are used across their courses. For example, one of their instructors has them create an eportfolio, but none of their other instructors make use of it.

Integrating an approach to supporting learners to meet the Leveraging Technology student competency across a program provides learners with the support and consistency they need. Such an approach also makes it easier for programs to map the use of technology for assessment and to get support for those technologies.

Let's return to the example about the use of eportfolios. The purpose of such portfolios is for both learners and instructors to see student growth throughout a course or program, and for potential employers to see evidence of student competency beyond university. Using eportfolios in one course shows only a limited amount of evidence of growth. Using them in multiple courses across a program provides far more evidence for all involved. The GMCTL can provide support to individuals or programs interested in integrating eportfolios into courses.

The GMCTL can also offer support to programs that would like to take a more deliberate approach to how the program provides support for learners to meet the Leveraging Technology student competency. Email for more information. 

----

See all articles in this series, Leveraging Technology Effectively:

• Part 1 - Determine the steps to take in choosing appropriate learning technologies
• Part 2 - Learn frequently used terms in technology that you may not know
• Part 3 - What students can do to develop competency in using technology
• Part 4 - Activities for developing student's skills in leveraging technology
• Part 5 - Navigate changes in technologies and integrate this competency accross your program

This resource is shared by the Gwenna Moss Centre for Teaching and Learning (GMCTL), University of Saskatchewan, under a CC BY-NC-SA license.