Personal Philosophy of Technology in Education 1

Personal Philosophy of Technology in Education

Matthew Hummill

School of Education, Liberty University

Author Note

Matthew Hummill

I have no known conflict of interest to disclose.

Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Matthew Hummill

Email: [email protected]
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Personal Philosophy of Technology in Education

Technology and education, especially given current circumstances, have become

inextricably linked. While this link is clear, the purpose of the implemented technology is not as

easily determined. Upon a reflection of the connection between technology and education,

purposes of technology in education begin to arise. These purposes, while debatable, establish

that effective educational technology creates student centered learning, personalized education,

and quality feedback and communication.

Upon examination of technology’s role in education, the teacher’s obligation to utilizing

technology, and its impact on student learning it becomes clear that technology has a specific

purpose in education. Ever since the first computers were used in classrooms in the 1950s, the

technological developments that pervaded society began to pervade American education. This is

due, in part, to the need to prepare students for success in the world and, as was argued by

Andrew Molnar in the late 1970s, students who are not computer literate will not be able to

become successful adults and citizens (Roblyer & Hughes, 2019). This began the need to educate

students about technology where they already receive a majority of their education, schools.

However, while technology began to be incorporated into schools in the 1950s, it was not until

recently that the true need for technology in schools arose. Still based on the idea of computer

literacy, but combined with distance learning and 1:1 device and student ratios, technology

became a crucial ingredient to student success in a newer model of education focused on creating

employable graduates and digital citizens (Roblyer & Hughes, 2019). While this is certainly a

teacher’s obligation, the rise in technology suited for students and student learning caused a

teacher’s obligation to shift from ensuring students could use technology to ensuring a student’s

use of technology enabled them to better understand class material. The shift in how technology
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is utilized in schools created the three main purposes of technology in the form of student

centered learning, personalized education, and quality feedback.

The purposes of technology concerning education make it the teacher’s obligation to

incorporate technology in the curriculum as this incorporation positively impacts student

learning. The first purpose of technology in education is to make the learning student-focused

which, in addition to its implementation which can “lead to higher learning gains” also has its

roots in the Bible as Job 42:2 states “I know that thou canst do every thing, and that no thought

can be withholden from thee” (King James Bible, 1769/2017, Job 42:2; Roblyer & Hughes,

2019, p. 19). Student-focused learning places the control in the hands of the student and allows

them, especially through the use of technology, to have choice when it comes to learning and

assessment. For instance, game-based strategies for teaching persuasive writing were much more

effective for student achievement than teacher-led story-based activities (Roblyer & Hughes,

2019). Furthermore, the use of technology can better place the students first by allowing for

nonverbal students to complete a discussion board, shy students to submit a video presentation,

and any student to receive remediation at home through videos which can then be utilized to

launch the following day’s lesson (McKnight et. al.). Student-focused education allows

technology to be utilized for the benefit of the student which in turn allows the student to realize

that Job 42:2 is guiding the teacher who is insisting, through their student-focused style of

teaching, that the student is capable of achieving mastery of the content and that they, not the

teacher, are in charge of their individual purpose. Closely following student-focused education is

personalized learning. Where these two purposes differ is that personalized education entails

differentiating content for specific students rather than simply placing students first in terms of

educational and technology planning (Roblyer & Hughes, 2019). By appropriately aligning
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content and assessments to fit the needs of various students, the teacher’s obligation to

implementing technology according to Biblical principles becomes clear as Proverbs 22:6 states,

“Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it” (King

James Bible, 1769/2017, Proverbs 22:6). This passage is paramount to personalized instruction

as it uses the phrase “train up a child in the way he should go,” rather than lumping children

together and giving them all identical instruction (King James Bible, 1769/2017, Proverbs 22:6).

This type of instruction “capitalizes on technology’s affordances for varied instruction,

assessment” as it allows the teacher to design and implement content to specifically address the

needs of specific learners or their situation, may they be a full-time, hybrid, or distance learner

(McKnight et. al.; Roblyer & Hughes, 2019, p. 13). The final purpose of utilizing technology in

education is its ability to provide quality feedback. Feedback is especially important as education

is shifting to competency in terms of content mastery and formative assessments, which require

fast, accurate feedback, can assist teachers in ensuring students truly master the content

(McKnight et. al.; Roblyer & Hughes, 2019). Technology can assist in feedback through Google

and other student friendly applications which allow for teachers to provide this fast and accurate

feedback which increases student understanding of their mastery of the content and is evidenced

in Proverbs 3:13 which states, “Happy is the man that findeth wisdom, and the man that getteth

understanding” (King James Bible, 1769/2017, Proverbs 3:13). This verse reiterates the fact that

wisdom itself is not enough without the element of understanding, which is a crucial byproduct

of effective feedback. The obligation of the teacher to implement technology will increase

quality feedback which will, in turn, positively impact student learning.

The position outlined above concerning the purposes of technology in education is how

the teacher utilizes technology in his own classroom. The teacher places students first and
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utilizes technology that will allow them to be in charge of their own learning and provide them

with multiple mediums of content through which to best understand material. The teacher abides

by Job 42:2 by continuously reminding his students that they can achieve anything they put their

mind to and it is his job, through a student-focused philosophy, to give them the opportunity so

“that no thought can be withholden from thee” (King James Bible, 1769/2017, Job 42:2).

Furthermore, the teacher ensures that technology is utilized to fit student needs and is tailored to

student ability to ensure that the content they need to master can be mastered. Finally, the teacher

utilizes technology to provide feedback as it fits his biblical approach to education by

incorporating Proverbs 3:13 and ensures students get timely feedback so they can continue to

grow in their mastery of the content.

References

King James Bible. (2017). King James Bible Online. https://www.kingjamesbibleonline.org/

(Original work published 1769)

McKnight, K., O’Malley, K., Ruzic, R., Horsley, M. K., Franey, J. J., & Bassett, K. (2016).

Teaching in a digital age: How educators use technology to improve student learning.

Journal of Research on Technology in Education, 48(3), 194-211. https://doi-

org.ezproxy.liberty.edu/10.1080/15391523.2016.1175856

Roblyer, M. D., & Hughes, J. E. (2019). Integrating technology into teaching: Transforming

learning across disciplines. Pearson Education, Inc.