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Technology practices and 21st century learning: a high school case study

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Technology practices and 21st century learning: a high school case study

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Content Running head: TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 1

TECHNOLOGY PRACTICES AND 21
ST
CENTURY LEARNING:
A HIGH SCHOOL CASE STUDY

by

Matthew P. Lambert

A Dissertation Presented to the
FACULTY OF THE USC ROSSIER SCHOOL OF EDUCATION
UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
In Partial Fulfillment of the
Requirements for the Degree
DOCTOR OF EDUCATION

May 2015

Copyright 2015 Matthew P. Lambert
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 2

Acknowledgements
This was by far the most time-consuming academic challenge I have undertaken. I’d like
to express my utmost appreciation and gratitude to all family and friends who supported me
through these past several years of my doctoral studies. First, I want to acknowledge my
beautiful and gracious wife, Kendra. Without your love, encouragement and support, I could not
have completed the doctoral program while simultaneously moving forward professionally and
personally. Not only did you fully support my academic efforts, but carried our family through a
very busy three years – including the birth of Hailey. To my daughters, Mackenzie and Hailey, I
look forward to all the fun we now get to have together. Although you will not likely remember
much of this time, know that you were my inspiration and joy throughout. Each time life and
school presented difficulties, the thought of having more time with you throughout your
formative years kept me pressing forward.
I would like to thank my dissertation committee members. Dr. Stuart Gothold, you have
been a masterful dissertation chair and encouragement. You helped make a monumental task
both meaningful and manageable. Dr. Dennis Hocevar, I appreciated your input in my
dissertation work and serving as a committee member. Dr. Roach, you are a gifted and
inspirational man. I learned from you how to be a well-rounded and intentional leader. Thank
you for being a transformative professor and serving on my dissertation committee.
I want to acknowledge my family for the many ways they supported me and my efforts
throughout the doctoral process. I want to thank my mom and dad, Mark and Evelyn, for your
encouragement and modeling for me a life of love and spiritual significance. My sister Martha
and cousin Joy planned periodic cousin game nights and helped with the final editing of this
dissertation. Don and Connie Olsby made great contributions to Kendra’s and my sanity
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 3

throughout the doctoral program. Thank you for watching Mackenzie and Hailey, helping with
household needs and yard work, and supporting Kendra throughout.
I would also like to acknowledge the administrative team I worked with and learned from
during the program. Denise Halstead, thank you for your direction and guidance as I developed
my leadership skills and style. Your mentorship will have lasting impact as I lead and mentor
others throughout my career. Ron Zajec and Loan Sriruksa, I could not have asked for a more
balanced and supportive administrative team. I learned more from the two of you than you will
ever know, and significant aspects of my administrative style are unabashedly stolen from you. I
also want to acknowledge Kelly McAmis for embodying what it means to be a servant leader.
Servant leadership seems to be often sought after, touted as an exemplary model, but rarely lived
out in practice. Thank you for your example and encouragement throughout my career.
Finally, I would like to thank a few of my USC colleagues and friends. I’ll be honest, I
didn’t expect to find friends in this program, but you all were an incredible source of support and
encouragement. I enjoyed going to class and learning alongside you. I know we will continue to
develop our personal and professional relationships into the future. Fight On!
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 4

Table of Contents
List of Tables 6
List of Figures 7
Abstract 8
Chapter One: Overview of the Study 9
Statement of the Problem 10
Purpose of the Study 10
Research Questions 11
Significance of the Study 11
Limitations, Delimitations, and Assumptions 12
Limitations 12
Delimitations 12
Assumptions 13
Definitions 13
Organization of the Study 17
Chapter Two: Literature Review 19
Background Information 19
Background 19
Technology in K-12 schools 21
Twenty-first century skills 23
Impact of Technology 25
Positive impact of technology integration 26
Potential pitfalls of technology integration 28
Barriers to technology integration 29
Funding, equity and access 29
Knowledge and skills of teachers 30
Constant evolution of technology 30
School climate and leadership 31
Teacher Ideology Affecting Technology Integration 32
Perceptions and beliefs 32
Constructivist pedagogy 34
Professional development experiences 35
Promising Practices and Models of Technology Use 37
Critique 39
Chapter Three: Methodology 41
Conceptual Model 42
Research Questions 44
Research Design 45
Population and Sample 46
Instrumentation 48
Data Collection 49
Process of getting consent 49
Document inventory 50
Interviews 50
Classroom observations 51
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 5

Staff survey 52
Validity and Reliability 53
Ethics 53
Data Analysis 54
Summary 55
Chapter Four: Results 56
Findings by Research Question 57
Research question number one 57
Types of technology available 59
Access to technology 59
Instructional technology practices and pedagogy 60
Research question number two 65
Teacher perceptions of technology impact 67
Research question number three 71
Teacher attitudes regarding technology 72
Administrative attitudes regarding technology 74
District support of technology integration 75
Discussion of Themes and Findings 76
Systemic and comprehensive approach to utilizing technology 77
District leadership support of a technology focus and utilization 78
Inherent challenges with technology 79
Limitless technology avenues follow systems and expectations 80
Transformative teaching practices and the TPACK framework 81
Summary 84
Chapter Five: Discussion 85
Implications for Education 85
Recommendations for the Education Field 90
Recommendations for Further Research 92
Conclusions 92
Final Thought 94
References 95
Appendix A: Teacher Interview Protocol 103
Appendix B: Administrator Interview Protocol 104
Appendix C: Classroom Observation Protocol 105
Appendix D: Staff Survey 108
Appendix E: Document Inventory 111

TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 6

List of Tables
Table 1: Survey Results for Research Question One – Part 1 58
Table 2: Survey Results for Research Question One – Part 2 58
Table 3: Survey Results for Research Question One – Part 3 58
Table 4: Survey Results for Research Question Two – Part 1 66
Table 5: Survey Results for Research Question Two – Part 2 66
Table 6: Survey Results for Research Question Three – Part 1 71
Table 7: Survey Results for Research Question Three – Part 2 72

TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 7

List of Figures
Figure A: TPACK Model 43
Figure B: Proposed Typical Socioeconomic Gap of Technology Knowledge 87

Figure C: Proposed Adjusted Socioeconomic Gap of Technology Knowledge 88

TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 8

Abstract
This qualitative case study applies the Technology, Pedagogy, and Content Knowledge
(TPACK) framework to understand the integration and perceived impact of technology on
teaching and learning. The purpose of this study was to identify practices that promote the use of
technology which transform teaching and learning in a 21
st
century K-12 school. This study also
sought to discover the roles school climate and leadership played in the orchestration of existing
and prospect technology initiatives at the school. The research questions focused on three key
areas: access and types of technology, instructional practices and pedagogy, and school climate
and leadership. The researcher studied a public high school in California which demonstrated
academic success and a commitment to meaningful technology integration. Data were collected
through a staff survey, interviews, observations, and document analysis. Findings from this
study indicate transformative teaching practices through the lens of the TPACK theoretical
framework include utilizing technology for student collaboration and formative assessments to
help teachers more accurately aid students in learning. Learning outcomes were perceived to
increase when technology was used for peer-to-peer collaboration, and when used for formative
feedback enabling instructors to immediately address gaps in student learning. A systematic and
comprehensive approach to utilizing technology was found including support from site and
district leadership. Implications from this study include socioeconomic and geographic factors
which effect students’ 21
st
Century Skills and their college and career readiness.

TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 9

CHAPTER ONE: OVERVIEW OF THE STUDY
To truly be college and career ready in the 21
st
century, students must be digitally literate
in addition to demonstrating academic competence. The role of technology in education systems
has varied over the course of history, but always seemed to lag behind the current technologies
of the day (Roberts, Foehr, & Rideout, 2005). Education must always remain relevant to society,
or education itself becomes irrelevant in vocational preparation (Dewey, 1916; 1990). All
students are entitled to a well-rounded education that will develop the needed skills and aptitude
to succeed in a 21
st
century marketplace. A significant facet to a well-rounded education is more
than a general familiarity with technology, but rather a true understanding of how to leverage the
use of technologies to solve practical problems (Beach & Baker, 2011).
In recent years the discourse around the value of technology in education has been
disputed by scholars, educators, and laypeople. The role of computing technology in education
has been debated since the 1960’s when computers began to emerge corporately. More than
sixty meta-analyses have appeared since 1980, each one attempting to scrutinize the
effectiveness of the latest technologies used in education at that time (Tamim, Bernard,
Borokhovski, Abrami, & Schmid, 2011). While there appeared to be a great deal of information
added to the literature by each meta-analysis, Tamim et al., did not find any one study capable of
defining the overall impact of technology on student achievement. Where technology has been
implemented, it has often functioned as a more expensive and trendy replacement device. When
the function of new technology merely replaced the role of previous tools, academic outcomes
were maintained but learning was not enhanced. Throughout the literature there have been
examples of technology used to advance learning outcomes and examples where there is little or
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 10

no effect on learning. This research study investigated how technology was infused into one
public high school to positively affect student learning.
Statement of the Problem
Students need skills and knowledge to succeed as global citizens in an ever-changing
world. Some schools have enhanced technology, yet there remains a need to understand the
impact of technology on teaching and learning.
Purpose of the study
The purpose of this study was to identify practices that promote the use of technology
which transform teaching and learning in a 21
st
century K-12 school. The research was
completed as a case study of a school that demonstrated academic success and a commitment to
technology integration. The researcher desired to ascertain how technology was used in the
classroom to further learning objectives. Additionally, the researcher sought to discover the
roles school climate and leadership played in the orchestration of existing and prospect
technology initiatives at the selected school.
The study desired to add new perspectives to the body of literature on technology
integration in education through several aspects. The study aimed to describe an example of how
technology was used well to advance student achievement; involved was the use of specific
technologies and how they were utilized for learning. An additional layer to this research was
how the teacher used these technologies in their instructional routines. The perceived impact of
the technology was measured and added perceptional data regarding whether technology was
responsible for gains in student outcomes. There were also data collected on school climate and
leadership relating to technology integration. Data from this case study furthered the growing
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 11

body of literature in an effort to better describe how technology can positively affect student
achievement.
Research Questions
The research questions were developed to focus on three key areas: access and type of
technology available at the school site, instructional practices and pedagogy, and school climate
and leadership. The three research questions which guided the case study investigation were as
follows:
1. What technology is present and how is it used as a tool of instruction in the classroom?
2. What is the perceived impact of technology on teaching and learning?
3. In what ways does the school climate support the integration of technology? Where does
the leadership come from?
Significance of the Study
Any student who graduated from a school without fluency in digital literacy skills was at
a significant disadvantage entering college or the workforce. These students were competing
with peers who have been trained in the full complement of technology-enhanced tools and
curriculum which help them access and solve problems with speed and innovation. The study
was significant to technology integration within our schools. Technology has been infused
within our schools with mixed results on student achievement. There remained a need for
greater study regarding the utilization of technology for greater student academic success and
preparation for 21
st
century citizenry. Furthermore, providing greater amounts of information
regarding successful use of technology in schools has been beneficial for students, parents, and
communities. As Parker (2002) claimed, society as a whole benefits when there are greater
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 12

percentages of people in each community prepared for the workforce and post-secondary
options.
Limitations, Delimitations, and Assumptions
Limitations
There were several limitations on this study which narrowed the scope and
generalizability of the findings. The limitations of this study included:
1. A small sample size of interviews and observations in relation to the faculty population as
a whole.
2. Only adults were interviewed and surveyed, and it was on a voluntary basis.
3. The time frame for the case study was only 6 weeks.
4. This was only a snapshot in time of technology being used in the classroom.
5. Findings cannot be generalized for another school; however, this is one of 11 studies that
when combined will provide an enhanced perspective.
6. Validity was limited to the reliability of instruments.
7. Technology studied at the school was limited to the technology utilized by the school.
Delimitations
The delimitations of the study were determined in part by the researcher and in part by
the members of the thematic dissertation group as a whole. The delimitations of the case study
included:
1. Only one high school was studied.
2. The TPACK framework utilized for the study.
3. The number of participants involved in the study.
4. How time at the site was utilized by the researcher to collect data.
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 13

5. The choice of criteria for the school selection.
6. The choice of instrumentation and instrument development.
Assumptions
There were certain assumptions made by the researcher through the process of this study.
Assumptions in this case study were:
1. Participant responses were honest (survey and interview).
2. Established criteria to identify school did indeed indicate a school in which technology
positively impacted student achievement.
3. Phenomena observed by researcher were indicative of daily practice at the school.
Definitions
The following terms were stated or discussed throughout the dissertation. Definitions are
provided to enhance clarity for the reader. Definitions for terms are as follows:
 21
st
Century Skills. Skills modern students need to engage the rapidly changing
technological world around them. These skills include: life and career skills, learning
and innovation skills (critical thinking, communication, collaboration, and creativity),
technology skills, and knowledge in the core subjects of reading, writing, and math.
 Academic Performance Index (API). The cornerstone of California’s Public Schools
Accountability Act of 1999; measures the academic performance and growth of schools
on a variety of academic measures on scale of 200 to 1000.
 Blended Learning. An instructional practice which uses a combination of face to face
and online learning environments.
 California Standards Test (CST). A range of assessments under the California STAR
umbrella testing students in 2
nd
-12
th
grade in a variety of academic areas.
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 14

 California Department of Education (CDE). The governing body for public education
in the state of California.
 Common Core State Standards (CCSS). A set of high-quality academic standards in
mathematics and English language arts/literacy developed by a consortium of national
representatives and adopted by the majority of states.
 Computer Adaptive Tests (CAT). Computer based tests that adapt the difficulty in real
time depending on the responses of the test taker.
 Constructivism. An approach to education based on experimental learning through real
life experience where students help construct knowledge for themselves as opposed to
having knowledge simply transferred from a teacher (Richardson, 2003).
 Critical Thinking, Communication, Collaboration, Creativity (4Cs). Four critical
skills developed by the Partnership for 21
st
Century Skills needed by 21
st
century students
in order for them to actively participate in the increasingly digital world.
 Digital Immigrant. An individual who was born before the existence of digital
technology and adopted it to some extent later in life.
 Digital Native. Someone born during or after the general introduction of digital
technologies and through interacting with digital technology from an early age, has a
greater understanding of its concepts.
 Distance Learning. Characterized almost solely through an online platform, students
have had the ability to virtually access classrooms, curriculum, and collaboration.
 Flipped Learning. An instructional practice in which academic content for students is
provided at home, usually via instructional video, while skill application and
collaboration take place in the classroom.
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 15

 Local Education Agency (LEA). An entity which operates primary or secondary
schools, often used synonymously with the term ‘school district’.
 No Child Left Behind (NCLB). The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 is a United
States Act of Congress that is a reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary
Education Act, which included Title I, the government's flagship aid program for
disadvantaged students. NCLB supports standards-based education reform based on the
premise that setting high standards and establishing measurable goals can improve
individual student outcomes.
 Partnership for 21
st
Century Skills (P21). The Partnership for 21st Century Skills
(P21) was founded in 2002 as a coalition bringing together the business community,
education leaders, and policymakers to position 21st century readiness at the center of US
K-12 education.
 Problem-Based Learning (PBL). A student-centered pedagogy for active learning
through the experience of problem solving. Students learn both thinking strategies and
domain knowledge by helping students develop flexible knowledge, effective problem
solving skills, self-directed learning, and effective collaboration skills.
 Project Based Learning (PBL). Project-based learning is a pedagogical approach
focused on teaching by engaging students in investigation. Within this framework,
students pursue solutions to nontrivial problems by asking and refining questions,
debating ideas, making predictions, designing plans and/or experiments, collecting and
analyzing data, drawing conclusions, communicating their ideas and findings to others,
asking new questions, and creating artifacts (Blumenfeld, 1991).
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 16

 School Accountability Report Card (SARC). California public schools annually
provide information about themselves to the community allowing the public to evaluate
and compare schools for student achievement, environment, resources and demographics.
 Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM). Content or project
based pedagogy that holistically incorporates science, technology, engineering, and
mathematics as a means of developing student interest and capacities in these areas.
 Single Plan for Student Achievement (SPSA). A comprehensive school document that
involves the collection and analysis of student performance data, setting goals for
program improvement, and ongoing monitoring of the goals and results.
 Second Level Digital Divide (SLDD). The SLDD describes the difference in how
technology is utilized as opposed to the “Digital Divide” which primarily was concerned
with differences in access to computer hardware.
 Self-Efficacy. The extent of a person's belief in their own ability to accomplish a task.
 Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium (SBAC). Smarter Balanced is a state-led
consortium developing assessments aligned to the Common Core State Standards in
English language arts/literacy and mathematics that are designed to help prepare all
students to graduate high school college- and career-ready.
 Standardized Testing and Reporting (STAR). The STAR Program looks at how well
schools and students are performing. Students take tests in math, reading, writing,
science, and history. Teachers and parents can use test results to improve student
learning.
 Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TPACK). A framework for
successful technology integration that states that ideal teaching and learning with
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 17

technology takes place when teachers possess the right content knowledge, utilize the
right pedagogical approaches, and select the right technology to meet their learning
objectives (Koehler & Mishra, 2009).
Organization of the Study
The dissertation was divided into five chapters, each with a specific focus. Chapter One
provides an introduction and overview of the case study and topic. This chapter included the
following: introduction to the study, statement of the problem, purpose of the study, research
questions and significance of the study, limitations, delimitations and assumptions, definitions to
key terms used in the study, and the organization of the dissertation.
Chapter Two is a review of literature which analyzed technology utilization in education.
The major topics or research addressed in this chapter were: background information on
technology in K-12 schools and 21
st
century skills, positive and potentially negative impacts of
technology integration in schools, teacher ideology affecting technology integration, promising
practices and models. Also included was a critique of the research and discussion of the focus
areas.
Chapter Three comprises the methodology of the study. The areas covered by this
chapter included the following: purpose of the study, conceptual model, research questions,
research design, population and sample, instrumentation, data collection, validity and reliability,
ethics, and data analysis methods.
Chapter Four contains the findings of the case study. The researcher presented the
findings, themes and data analysis for the study. The findings were presented according to the
study’s three research questions. Reflecting on the findings from this investigation and guided
by the research questions, the researcher then discussed effective teaching practices and themes
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 18

from the data. The chapter concluded with a discussion regarding the influence of school and
district leadership on school culture and technology use.
Chapter Five discussed the relevance of the findings from this case study and other
implications to the field of education. The chapter consists of a summary, implications for
education, recommendations for the field of education, recommendations for further research,
conclusions, and final thoughts regarding the study and technology for learning.

TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 19

CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW
The use of technology to advance student learning in schools has been identified as a
critical concern in modern education. The purpose of this study was to identify practices that
promote the use of technology which transform teaching and learning in a 21
st
century K-12
school. The review of the literature investigated the use of technology to advance student
learning in K-12 schools. Areas examined in this review were background information, the
impact of technology, teacher ideology affecting technology integration, and promising practices.
Background Information
The use of technology to advance student learning in schools has been discussed among
educators and academics consistently throughout history. The issue has been discussed with
greater urgency of late due to the swelling technological advances of the 21
st
century.
Technology has been utilized in schools and certain models demonstrated the capacity to further
student learning. With the dawn of 21
st
century skills becoming a focal point in education,
research was reviewed in relation to motivations and reasoning driving educators to significantly
alter the traditional classroom learning environment.
Background
In 1913 the New York Dramatic Mirror reported Thomas Edison’s prediction that,
“books will soon be obsolete in the schools… it is possible to teach every branch of human
knowledge with the motion picture. Our school system will be completely changed in ten years”
(quoted in Saettler, 1990, p. 98). History has proven Edison’s prediction about books incorrect;
however, sentiment about the potential impact of technology continues to be shared among
researchers regarding modern technologies. Technology has advanced a great deal since the
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 20

emergence of the motion picture, however, the format for teaching and learning has remained
relatively unchanged in the past one hundred years.
The role of computing technology in classrooms has been debated since the 1960’s when
computers began to emerge corporately. More than sixty meta-analyses have appeared since
1980, each one attempting to scrutinize the effectiveness of the latest technologies used in
education at that time (Tamim, Bernard, Borokhovski, Abrami, & Schmid, 2011). While there
appeared to be a great deal of information added to the literature by each meta-analysis, Tamim
et al., did not find any one study capable of defining the overall impact of technology on student
achievement. In recent years the discourse around the value of technology in education changed
to the impact of pedagogy on student learning results. In 1983, Richard Clark argued that,
“…media have no more effect on learning than a grocery truck has on the nutritional value of the
produce it brings to market.” (Tamim et al., 2011). Tamim et al. (2011), in their second-order
meta-analysis, further clarified the value of technology in the classroom. They determined
technology supporting instruction had marginally, but significantly, greater learning results than
not using computer technology. Even more enlightening was Tamim et al.’s (2011) assertion
there was greater learning through instructional design and pedagogy, than through the
technological tools themselves.
American philosopher and educational reformer, John Dewey (1916, 1990), argued that
education must remain relevant to the society in which it is embedded. Dewey described schools
as serving to prepare future citizens for active social participation in a democratic society. A
theme to his work was that schools should actively engage the current public discourse and
connect classroom learning to real life. Recent research has identified 21
st
century skills as a
necessary educational component which prepares students for college and vocational readiness
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 21

(Framework for 21
st
Century Learning, 2013; National Education Association, 2013). As
knowledge has grown exponentially, textbooks have grown thicker and thicker. It has become
difficult to cover all the important material in a course, so curricula have become very broad with
little depth (Collins & Halverson, 2009). Given this explosion of knowledge, students have been
unable to learn everything in school they will need to know later in life. With endless answers at
their fingertips through modern technology, Collins and Halverson contend schools have been
charged with the task of equipping young people with the skills to access this knowledge instead
of the traditional approach of transferring all knowledge directly to the student.
Technology in K-12 Schools
As new technology emerged, K-12 schools have made positive, but insufficient, efforts to
incorporate new technologies into the school system and classrooms. While national statistics
are touting the widespread use of technology in classrooms, not all technology has been used
meaningfully or to advance student achievement. Keengwe and Onchwari (2011) describe this
phenomenon in relation to teachers’ pedagogical frameworks. Technology may be incorporated
into classrooms, but the learning results will remain unchanged as a result of the technology
unless teachers utilize it to engage learners in the process of meaning and knowledge
construction (Keengwe & Onchwari, 2011). Noris and Soloway, (2003) and Hastie, (2007)
argued student to computer ratios greater than 1:1 will not produce real inroads to the desired
changes in instruction. Despite considerable investment in computer hardware and software,
ratios have hovered in the range of 5 students to 1 computer; the ratio drops to 9:1 in urban
districts highlighting equity and access concerns related to socioeconomic disadvantages (U.S.
Department of Education, 2010).
Technology in education has been used for many purposes, but recently three primary
roles have emerged. Musawi (2011) labeled the three roles as the medium/resource role,
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 22

management role, and delivery role. The medium resource role included e-books, mobile
devices, and technologies used to access information. The management role is utilized to
maximize productivity which included attendance systems, gradebook software, random student
calling applications, etc. The delivery role used technology as a platform or virtual learning
environment for schools to host classes, assign work, report grades, collaborate, and help
facilitate learning. Examples of the virtual learning environments were Blackboard and Moodle.
Most technology described by the studies in this literature review fell into one of these three
roles.
Computers, technology, and networking have become commonplace, but less so in
education. As described by Roberts, Foehr, and Rideout, (2005) kids spent over six hours per
day interacting with television, video games, the Internet, email, instant messaging, and other
media. That was more time than kids typically spent in school and almost as much as they slept
each night (Roberts, Foehr, & Rideout, 2005). The pressure to change classrooms with
technologies has largely come from sources outside education (Lawless & Pellegrino, 2007).
Lawless and Pellegrino, further described the increased demand for educators to integrate
technology but a lack of investment and clarity on what was needed to teach. The response from
most schools and districts has been the trivial implementation of new technologies to supplement
the existing educational system (Park & Ertmer, 2008). Examples were math homework sites,
online test prep, and increasingly complex projectors. Although computers were found to be
used commonly in students’ lives, Park and Ertmer, (2008) further clarified the same students
using technologies in their schooling was far less ordinary.
The lack of technology usage in schools is not for lack of desire to use technology
effectively. Ertmer and Ottenbreit-Leftwich, (2010) found teachers and school leaders’ desire
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 23

for technology to facilitate learning experiences well beyond procedural and direct instruction;
however, there remained a gap identified in teacher technological knowledge and their ability to
implement it. Even where there was aspiration to furthering student learning with technological
aid, teachers had difficulty with its implementation. It was suggested there could be more time
and resources dedicated to professional development of how technology complements effective
pedagogy, not supplants it (Ertmer & Ottenbreit-Leftwich, 2010). Technology adoption is
usually a modeled process with choices between costs and benefits of using it (Aldunate &
Nussbaum, 2013). Aldunate and Nussbaum added that even with the modeling of the
technology, teachers did not make effective use of the technology when they were faced with the
same cost/benefit decision points. Lawless & Pellegrino, (2007) described key missing
information as an understanding of how to guide teachers, and how to measure the
implementation and impact of learning technologies.
Twenty-first Century Skills
Technology has constantly evolved over time to make increasingly complex operations
accessible to the common man. Just as the industrial revolution bore machines and engines to
increase man’s muscle power, the current knowledge revolution has been fueled by computing
tools to empower the mind rather than body. Twenty-first century skills have been the focus of
many studies in efforts to prepare students for this knowledge revolution. The 21st century
learning framework included an emphasis on communication, collaboration, critical thinking,
and creativity; technological literacy was an additional area of focus for student learning in
efforts to prepare students to enter the work force (Framework for 21
st
Century Learning, 2013).
The Framework for 21
st
Century Learning (2013) also indicated a goal to prepare students for
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 24

future careers which will need technical expertise, but have yet to be identified; even so, students
in current classrooms will need technological preparation for these future occupations.
Twenty-first century skills was a broad term to describe attributes needed by individuals
to successfully compete in the American and global workplaces. These attributes are a
combination of content knowledge, specific skills, expertise, and literacies (Framework for 21
st

Century Learning, 2011). The skills and occupations for which schools have traditionally
prepared students are rapidly changing and outdated.
In today's rapidly changing world, people must continually come up with creative
solutions to unexpected problems. Success is based not only on what one knows or how
much one knows, but on one's ability to think and act creatively. In short, people are now
living in the Creative Society. Unfortunately, few of today's classrooms focus on helping
students develop as creative thinkers. In addition, the proliferation of new technologies is
quickening the pace of change, accentuating the need for creative thinking in all aspects
of people's lives. (Resnick, 2008, p.18)

Resnick described how students will be asked to think and communicate different from
preceding generations. Resnick was not alone in his assertions, there has been wide-spread
agreement among educators, parents, and policy-makers that technology must become an
integral part of the students’ educational experience (Rajala, 2003).
One of the more recent initiatives in support of the transition in educational goals to a
more technologically-focused curriculum was the development of the Common Core State
Standards (CCSS). With a goal of college and career readiness, CCSS implementation requires
students to demonstrate knowledge and application of technological skills to problem solve and
express content mastery. The Common Core State standards Initiative began in 2009 as a
collaborative effort among almost all states and territories, the National Governors Association,
and the Council of Chief State School Officers. The Common Core standards were designed to
identify the most essential skills and knowledge students needed to know as they progress
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 25

through the education system (Doorey, 2013). Officials called for the development of tools and
resources for educators to use in adjusting their classroom practices, instructional materials
aligned to the standards, and new assessments to measure and report on student progress (Porter,
McMaken, Hwang, & Yang, (2011).
State assessments also demonstrated a commitment to infusing 21
st
century skills into
curricula by developing a testing system which requires online response. The goal was to ensure
that the new assessment systems in 2014-2015 are the best possible starting point for this new
generation of assessments (Doorey, 2013). Beach and Baker (2011) described the need for
greater digital citizenship skills as follows:
Multiple studies have shown that many young people lack the media and information-
literacy skills they need to be competent communicators in the 21st century. Many don’t
venture beyond the top result when searching online and lack the critical skills to assess
the validity of online-search results and identify the sources of information from both
online and other media. (p.30)

The CCSS and accountability measures aimed to help students expand their skills in light of this
gap (Beach & Baker, 2011). Stakeholders all appeared to agree there was a significant shift in
education to truly prepare students for their adult lives in a 21
st
century marketplace.
Impact of Technology
Technology integration has made a significant impact on teaching and learning practices
in the classroom. While the effectiveness of technology as it directly enhances learning has
remained largely unconfirmed (Clark & Feldon, 2005), there is little argument that technology
has permeated the educational system and thus has changed the face of classroom teaching.
There were examples from the literature which touted great successes, while others claimed
technology had little to no impact on student outcomes. Research has shown there were a wide
range of factors which impacted technology integration and perceived success in K-12 schools.
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 26

Technology integration resulted in both positive and negative bearings revealed through the
literature. Positive impacts included increased student motivation, additional opportunities for
differentiated Instruction, and development of 21
st
century skills. Potential negative impacts
included loss of student socialization and teachers being replaced by technology.
Positive Impact of Technology Integration
While incorporating technology has not proven to categorically improve instruction or
learning results, there were several positive features of technology integration which research did
support. Examples of these positive aspects of technology integration were: student motivation,
differentiated instruction opportunities, and building 21
st
century skills. There were examples in
recent research that correlate technology with academic achievement when the treatments of
specific technologies were coupled with higher levels of cognition (Brady, Seli, & Rosenthal,
2013).
Student motivation is a key benefit touted by some of the literature for using technology
in the classroom. Mayer (2011) found that motivation was a prerequisite for meaningful
learning. Students needed a motivating reason to engage in the content and in appropriate
cognitive processes in order for meaningful learning to occur (Clark & Estes, 2008; Mayer,
2011; Rueda, 2011). Montelongo and Herter (2010) assert that using technology in the
classroom encourages student engagement and leads to greater student motivation. Brady, Seli,
and Rosenthal (2013) found that specific technologies were effective, tied to greater engagement,
and increased cognition when combined with higher-level thinking skills. Clark and Feldon
would add that using multimedia did not automatically translate into greater learning and
motivation, but that good pedagogy must be coupled with the technology in order to bring about
desired changes in student achievement.
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 27

When technology was used as a supplement to whole-class instruction, there were
distinct gains discovered in individual student achievement. Differentiated instruction, according
to Tomlinson (1999), is the process of “ensuring that what a student learns, how he or she learns
it, and how the student demonstrates what he or she has learned is a match for that student’s
readiness level, interests, and preferred mode of learning.” Technology can play a pivotal role in
the differentiated classroom by allowing students to access content at individual levels of
readiness and learning (Tomlinson, 1999). Technology has been used to differentiate instruction
as a mode of intervention within a typical classroom setting. Pearson, Ferdig, Blomeyer, and
Moran (2005) concluded that technology positively impacted reading comprehension when
utilized as an intervention treatment. Although technology can help tailor instruction to the
individual needs of learners, it is again pointed out by Clark and Feldon (2005) that teacher
beliefs and pedagogy have a greater impact on student achievement than the technology
application itself.
A common finding in the literature was the benefit of 21
st
century skill acquisition when
technology was utilized by students in learning efforts. Research supported student use of
technology to complete classroom assignments and activities as a mode of developing 21
st

century skills (Montelongo & Herter, 2010; Moersch, 1995; Bell, 2010). Bell (2010) went on to
say that educators must shift their thinking on assessments to include student performance using
21
st
century skills. To be productive members of a global society, students need to be prepared
in both inquiry and technological skills (Bell, 2010). As a representative of teachers and
educators, the National Education Association (NEA) agreed that technology must become an
integral part of teaching, and that parents and educators alike support its inclusion in
instructional practices (National Education Association, 2013). The NEA went on to say that
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 28

educators must shift their thinking on assessing student performance to include the use of 21
st

century skills.
Potential Pitfalls of Technology Integration
There has been a perception that technology categorically engages students and enhances
their learning (Clark & Feldon, 2005). Clark and Feldon contested that perception, and further
exposed several pitfalls technology could potentially bring to education settings. The areas
reviewed in the literature included the loss of socialization skills, the replacement of the teacher,
and the over-reliance on technology to teach students.
In this age of permeating social media and digitalization, there are widespread
perceptions that adolescents are losing fundamental social and communication skills.
Valkenburg and Peter (2009) discussed the literature regarding consequences of overutilization
of online communication technologies. While adolescents may feel a greater sense of
connectedness, their ability to interact in a personal or professional setting is stifled when the
interaction is solely dependent on in-person interactions (Valkenburg & Peter, 2009). As
educators focused on bringing 21
st
century skills to the curriculum, there was less attention
placed on individual social interaction (The Conference Board, 2006). While it was found that
students needed to improve upon their 21
st
century readiness to be workforce-ready, it was
equally important to recognize the need for students to develop targeted social skills, especially
where professional interaction and interviewing were concerned.
Another commonly held misperception is that technology will replace the need for a
teacher in a classroom. Research indicates there tends to be a shift in the role of teachers in a
digital curriculum, but not a replacement (Clark & Feldon, 2005; Park & Ertmer, 2008;
Thompson, 2013). Thompson (2013) asserts digital natives benefit from and need the scaffolds
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 29

teachers provide. Thompson includes the benefit of modeling provided by a teacher or expert in
ways to access the technology for leaning. Clark and Feldon (2005) add that multimedia did not
always translate into the control of learning by each student or their ability to discover pedagogy
to enhance self-directed learning. It was further cautioned that an over-reliance on technology to
teach students without teacher guidance negatively affected student learning (Clark & Feldon,
2005). One of the more promising outcomes technology helped facilitate was to shift teaching
practices from teacher-centered to student-centered, even when teacher beliefs about technology
did not significantly change (Park & Ertmer, 2008).
Barriers to Technology Integration
The literature circled around two types of barriers to integrating tech into a classroom: 1)
first order, which were barriers external to the teacher (ex. resources, instruction, context/culture,
assessment), and 2) second order, which were internal to the teacher (ex. attitudes and beliefs,
knowledge and skills). Ertmer, Ottenbreit-Leftwich, Sadik, Sendurer, and Sendurer, (2012)
claimed research has proven over the years that second order were the most critical; with current
access to tech, first order barriers have all but disappeared and second order are all that remain.
Funding, equity and access. Although some researchers assert that access to technology
is no longer a barrier to implementation, most academics contend that access to and the equity of
technology use is a significant barrier to effective implementation. Mouza’s (2011) research
found that technology was embedded in instruction at a multitude of ranges depending on the
teacher. Mouza stated that for many of the teachers studied, where technology was lacking, it
was due to lack of available resources. In order for technology to be effective, it must be present
in the school or classroom, which is not always the case. One of the fundamental areas Koehler
and Mishra (2009) addressed in their research was simply the presence or absence of necessary
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 30

technology in the hands of teachers; findings were that needed technology was often but not
always available for teachers. Ringstaff and Kelley (2002) emphasized the need for adequate
computer-to-student ratios where the technology was intended for student use. Park and Ertmer
(2008) agree that integration of computer technology is less ordinary than it should be; however,
they assert that access to these technologies was no longer considered a barrier, and their
attention shifted to the beliefs of teachers as a more significant barrier.
Knowledge and skills of teachers. Research has demonstrated a greater emphasis on
teacher preparation and skills was needed to effectively use technology to further student
learning. Peters and Slotta (2010) found that many teachers avoided the integration of
technology all together because they were personally uncomfortable with their level of technical
knowledge, and because pressure from state accountability measures kept them on an inflexible
pace that did not allow for additional experimenting with technology.
There has been increased demand for teachers to utilize technology in their classrooms,
but a significant lack of clarity regarding what is needed to teach (Lawless & Pellegrino, 2007).
This ambiguity is further illustrated in Ertmer and Ottenbreit-Leftwich’s (2010) research in
which they identified a gap in teacher technological knowledge and their ability to implement it.
Ertmer and Ottenbreit-Leftwich assert that teachers, not technology, should be the agents of
change, and that is why it is so crucial for educators to fill missing gaps in understanding.
Petriashvili (2012) stressed the need for greater technology training in teacher preparatory
programs to address the evident gaps in knowledge and efficacy.
Constant evolution of technology. Another complaint researchers found was that
technology changes so rapidly, and it is difficult, if not impossible, to keep up with. Classroom
technologies are quickly outdated and surpassed by technology available to students in their
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 31

homes (Hall, 2010). Hall indicates the short shelf-life undermines its usefulness and relevance,
as well as becomes increasingly difficult to justify the high monetary price of contemporary
technology. According to Hastie (2007), educators need greater assistance with innovative
instruction and pedagogy surrounding modern technology. The constantly changing software
and programs make it more difficult for educators to integrate (Hall, 2010; Hastie 2007; Musawi,
2011). Educators needed proper training in technology and time to acquaint themselves with its
appropriate use in the classroom in order for positive student outcomes to follow. Additionally,
Lei and Morrow (2010) revealed the need for teachers to see how the technology fits into long-
term plans so their efforts in changing instructional practices won’t be wasted.
School Climate and Leadership
The school technology climate and leadership appeared to have a significant impact on
technology integration for learning. Brinkerhoff (2006) described a variety of obstacles relating to
resources, institutional and administrative policies, skills development and attitudes which held a
strong impact on the effectiveness of technology assimilation. These obstacles were primarily
related to the technology environment and climate at each school. Professional development
leading to the integration of technological resources within instruction resulted in significant
gains of participants' self-assessed technology skills and computer self-efficacy (Brinkerhoff,
2006). Incorporating professional development and appropriately supporting the use of
technology has primarily been the purview of school leadership.
School leadership proved to be a pivotal factor in successful models of technology
integration (Brinkerhoff, 2006; Hargreaves & Fullan, 2013; Lei & Morrow, 2010). As
Hargreaves and Fullan (2013) articulated, principals and school leaders who successfully led
their schools in adopting a growth mindset related to technology and learning were frequently
present as learners themselves. Hargreaves and Fullan (2013) went on to assert that principals
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 32

who visibly struggled with technology but sought guidance and opportunities to learn from
teachers and students were respected for doing so, and positively promoted a school culture
which valued a growth mindset. Once this growth mind-set culture had been established,
technology was integrated naturally and was often demanded by teachers and staff who were
once apprehensive in the embrace of technology and change (Hargreaves & Fullan, 2013).
Teacher Ideology Affecting Technology Integration
Not surprisingly, research overwhelmingly evidenced the significance of the teacher and
their ideology on the effectiveness of technology integration to enhance learning. A common
pedagogical framework found to be positively correlated with technology integration was the
constructivist perspective. The extent to which teachers had adequate training in using
technology and how to integrate technology into instruction also had a significant impact on
effective implementation.
Perceptions and Beliefs
A theme throughout the literature was that teacher beliefs and efficacy regarding the use
of technology had more of an impact on student learning than the technology itself. Hernandez-
Ramos (2005) would augment sentiments that changes in student learning did not come directly
from technology, but from organizational changes, and from teachers’ beliefs and pedagogy. It
appeared that how technology was utilized within the teachers’ approach to instruction was of
the utmost value. Moersh (1995) determined that the instructional focus must shift from teacher
focused to learner focused. Technology is then the tool that supports and extends hands-on
learning and inquiry. It is important to note that teacher beliefs have been proven changeable.
Researchers found that teachers’ beliefs about technology changed as they were able to have a
first-hand experience with it (Hernandez-Ramos, 2005). Hernandez-Ramos also indicated a
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 33

significant percentage of the teachers began using technology in their lessons with little or no
support after their initial exposure and experience with it.
Another trend in the literature was that teachers’ self-efficacy in effective usage of
technology impacted whether or not technological tools were even employed for instruction.
Peters and Slotta, (2010) found teachers’ discomfort with various technologies kept them from
implementing them in the classroom. Researchers found teachers desired to use technology and
thought it was important to integrate; however, many teachers failed to incorporate technology in
the curriculum because of their low comfort level and pressure to perform on state accountability
policies (Peters & Slotta, 2010). Holden and Rada (2011), in their study, Understanding the
Influence of Perceived Usability and Technology Acceptance, found that teachers’ technology
self-efficacy did directly influence perceived ease of use and usability.
There has been an assumption that a teacher’s age was a significant factor in whether or
not technology would be actively utilized in their classroom. The classifications of “digital
native” versus “digital immigrant” indicated an assumption of those who use technology
naturally versus those who did not (Guo, Dobson, & Petrina, 2008). In their study, Guo,
Dobson, and Petrina, argued that age was not ultimately a significant factor in ITC (Information
and Communication Technology) literacy of digital natives versus digital immigrants.
Although research has indicated teacher perceptions and beliefs appear to be a key
baseline in utilizing technology to advance student learning, that is not always the case. Early
studies indicated teacher beliefs about using technology in their classrooms did not always
correlate to actual practice (Ertmer, Ottenbreit-Leftwich, Sadik, Sendurur, E., and Sendurur, P.,
2012). Ertmer et al. go on to explain where there was misalignment of teacher beliefs and
practice; it often had more to do with external barriers. These external barriers, such as access,
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 34

support, professional development, etc., acted as a trump card over beliefs. It was difficult to use
technology if it simply was not present or accessible for one reason or another. Additionally,
both teachers and students need to be aware of the operation and purpose of the used technology
for it to be valuable in learning (Davies, 2011).
Constructivist Pedagogy
Strewn through the literature was a consensus that teachers with constructivist pedagogy
were more likely to maintain dynamic student-centered classrooms where technology was a
powerful learning tool. Richardson (2003) described the constructivist theory as a perspective in
education based on experimental learning through real life experience where students help
construct knowledge for themselves as opposed to having knowledge simply transferred from a
teacher. It was a primarily problem-based, adaptive learning method which integrated new
knowledge with existing knowledge, and allowed for creation and processing of original work or
innovative ideas (Richardson, 2003). Constructivist style teachers more readily integrate
technology in their instruction (Hernandez-Ramos, 2005; Judson, 2006; Keengwe & Onchwari,
2011; Peters & Slotta, 2010). There was evidence to suggest a teacher’s belief in student-
centered instruction paralleled a teacher’s likelihood of incorporating technology in their lessons
(Judson, 2006). In addition to including technological tools, the constructivist teacher supports a
classroom environment and instruction that best leads to positive student learning (Keengwe &
Onchwari, 2011; Resnick, 1996). As far back as 1996, Resnick argued that the concept of
computer networks could be utilized for superior knowledge-building communities.
While national statistics are touting the widespread use of technology in classrooms, not
all technology has been used meaningfully or to progress student achievement. Keengwe and
Onchwari (2011) describe this phenomenon in relation to teachers’ pedagogical frameworks.
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 35

Technology can be incorporated into classrooms, but the learning results will remain unchanged
as a result of the technology unless teachers utilize it to engage learners in the process of
meaning and knowledge construction (Keengwe & Onchwari, 2011). Constructivist pedagogy is
based on the idea of the construction of knowledge rather than the transfer of knowledge (Pitsoe
& Maila, 2012; Richardson, 2003), and thus becomes a key factor when considering the use of
technology in the classroom.
Although constructivist pedagogy did appear to claim the strongest affiliation with
successful studies investigating technology and learning, some research exposed possible sources
of error. It appeared to Judson (2006) much of the research surrounding constructivist successes
may rely heavily on self-reported data from teachers. This kind of data does not automatically
negate the optimistic findings regarding constructivist theory; however, it does present
information which gives only a partial, or skewed view (Judson, 2006).
Professional Development Experiences
In efforts to modify teaching practices and pedagogy, purposeful and intensive
professional development (PD) and support were needed. Peters and Slotta (2010) describe the
embrace of technology as “promising”; however, teachers’ comfort with technology kept
teachers from implementing it. Though promising, teachers need to be provided the opportunity
to collaborate, practice, and master the ability to integrate technology into their teaching (Peters
& Slotta, 2010). In order to shift how teachers teach, current educators need purposeful,
transparent, and intensive training. Educators who were not trained in a constructivist, or
similar, pedagogical framework, will naturally default to their current teaching methods unless
there is an intentional shift in mindset combined with ample training in new pedagogy and
technology (Keengwe, & Onchwari, 2011). Because teachers use tools and technologies they are
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 36

comfortable with, professional development has been important for teachers to develop efficacy
in technologies desired for implementation. As Davis (2011) relates, “Teachers who have
technological pedagogical content knowledge use specific technology because they understand
the pedagogy for teaching specific content and know how the technology can facilitate
accomplishment of the intended learning goal.”
Although teachers considered early adopters of technology generally weave its use into
instruction, most technology on school campuses largely goes underutilized. Petriashvili (2012)
claimed successful use of technology is solely dependent on teachers’ tech savvy. Although this
predetermined success of technology utilization was a strong statement, Petriashvili was not
alone in identifying a teacher’s technical expertise as the paramount factor for success. Aldunate
and Nussbaum (2013) found teachers who are early technology adopters will commit significant
planning and instructional time to incorporating educational technology into their teaching.
Conversely, teachers who are not as comfortable with technology will only commit a small
portion of their time to integrating educational technology are less likely to adopt new
technology; They were also more prone to abandoning the adoption as soon as difficulties arose
(Aldunate & Nussbaum, 2013). Aldunate and Nussbaum further clarified educators as a whole
did not generally make effective use of technology in their teaching. Since teachers who were
naturally more comfortable with technology were more likely to use it in instruction, it stood to
reason professional development could aid in the familiarization of teachers with technology and
its utilization in the classroom.
Although not an easy task, professional development has been used to proactively, and
reactively address teacher implementation concerns with technology. Petriashvili (2012) found
reasons for unsuccessful use of technology included lack of technological skills, difficulty in
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 37

navigating online resources, cumbersome electronic platforms and lack of trainings or improper
tutorials. Professional development was needed to address these concerns for educators to use
technologies toward added student achievement (Petriashvili, 2012). Developing professional
development around technology has not been an easy task for educators. Brinkerhoff (2006)
found, “A variety of barriers relating to resources, institutional and administrative policies, skills
development and attitudes can hinder the effectiveness of technology professional development
resulting in underutilized technology resources and lack of integration of those resources within
instruction.”
In addition to simply addressing concerns about technology implementation, the literature
revealed the most productive outcomes manifested when PD focused on using technology
through good pedagogical instruction. Although to varying degrees, PD did appear to have a
positive impact on technology utilization regardless of PD instruction method (Cavanaugh,
Dawson & Ritzhaupt, 2011; Koehler & Mishra, 2009; Mills & Tincher, 2003; Mouza, 2011).
However, for teachers to best increase the use and effectiveness of technology in the classroom,
PD needed to target best practices for expert teaching and student learning. (Koehler & Mishra,
2009; Mills & Tincher, 2003). Grounding the professional development on solid pedagogy
appeared to produce greater achievement than focusing on technology training alone.
Promising Practices and Models of Technology Use
There are several models of technology integration in education which have emerged in
recent years. Many education organizations, including the National Education Association, have
called for technology to be integral to curriculum for our students to be competitive in 21
st

century marketplace. Three of the larger-scope practices for utilizing technology directly for
learning are: flipped learning, blended learning, and distance learning and cyber classrooms.
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 38

Each of these has been shown to support student learning when there is appropriate
implementation.
Flipped Learning is an instructional practice in which academic content for students is
provided at home, usually via instructional video, while skill application and collaboration take
place in the classroom. According to Tucker, (2012) the flipped roles of learning outside the
classroom and augmentation of content inside the classroom allowed teachers much more
flexibility in using class time to truly enhance student learning. Flipped learning allows teachers
to use more class time to monitor, guide, and adjust learning to the needs of their students
(Roehl, Reddy, & Shannon, 2013). Tucker (2012) acknowledged the success of the flipped
format had more dependency on teacher pedagogy, than it did on the quality of videos utilized
for outside-class content. The real advantage to this format of instruction is the time it creates
for teachers to enhance, supplement, and individualize learning for students during the in-class
portion of each lesson.
Blended Learning is an instructional practice which uses a combination of face to face
and online learning environments. One advantage found was the allowance for students to use
the device or mode of technology most familiar or available to them. In one example setting,
students used laptops or tablets, while others in the same classroom used a phone to access web
content (Raths, 2012). Because software varied on each device, the learning content utilized in
this blended model required a web-based platform. Behjat, Yamini, and Bagheri, (2012) found
learning was greatly enhanced in a blended model over the traditional environment. A reason for
the success was speculated to be the ready availability to endless resources and content available
to students online (Behjat, Yamini, & Bagheri, 2012). Another advantage to blended learning
according to Gonzalez and Vodicka, (2012) was the ability to augment a traditional classroom
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 39

environment with online experiences. Not surprisingly, studies have also shown the
effectiveness of blended learning is heavily influenced by the quality of online materials and the
balance of online and in-class experiences (Zaeri, 2013).
As opposed to blended learning, distance learning is characterized almost solely through
an online platform. Through contemporary technology, students have had the ability to virtually
access classrooms, curriculum, and collaboration. Distance learning and the use of cyber
classrooms can greatly enhance access to curricula where there are geographic or other physical
constraints on students. Hastie (2007) proved students using an engaged format of online
learning thrived with the incorporation of visual, auditory, and kinesthetic processes. Arinto
(2013) contended distance learning needed certain components to make it effective; distance
learning required an interaction between technology, content, pedagogy, and learners. Deng and
Tavares, (2013) added there needed to be a sense of camaraderie with other students for the
effectiveness of the online format to be generalizable. Despite the possible benefits, opponents
argue many web-based learning opportunities have been expensive, slow to develop, and time-
consuming to implement (Blanchard & Marshall, 2004).
Critique
Based on the research, technology can advance student learning if it is properly initiated
and supported. It was apparent that teacher pedagogy, access to technology, and effective
professional development and leadership practices were critical for the technological
enhancement of teaching and learning. Of these, teacher pedagogy appeared to be the most
significant factor in supporting the use of technology for student learning. There was a
consensus that teachers with constructivist pedagogy were more likely to maintain dynamic
student-centered classrooms where technology was a powerful learning tool. Also of significant
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 40

importance was the value of adequate and intentional professional development. The extent to
which teachers had adequate training in using technology and how to integrate technology into
instruction often added to the degree of successful implementation. The role of school
leadership to maintain a culture of learning and support with technology was crucial. Lastly,
although some researchers asserted access to technology is no longer a barrier to implementation,
most academics contended that access to and the equity of technology remained a significant
barrier to effective implementation. At a minimum, access to technological resources remains a
significant variable because students can only use technology to further their learning if it is
indeed present.
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 41

CHAPTER THREE: METHODOLOGY
The purpose of this study was to identify practices that promote the use of technology
which transform teaching and learning in a 21
st
century K-12 school. The use of technology to
advance student learning in schools has been identified as a critical concern in modern education.
This study examined successful technology integration practices at a high performing urban high
school known for its technology innovation. The specific practices examined by this study were
the school’s teaching, training, and leadership as they pertained to technology use.
The review of the literature in the previous chapter investigated the use of technology to
advance student learning in K-12 schools. Areas examined were background information, the
impact of technology, teacher ideology affecting technology integration, and promising
practices. It was apparent from the research teacher pedagogy, access to technology, and
effective professional development and leadership practices were critical for the technological
enhancement of teaching and learning. Of these, teacher pedagogy appeared to be the most
significant factor in supporting the use of technology for student learning. Also of significance
was the extent to which teachers had adequate training in using technology and how to integrate
technology into instruction. The presence of, and access to, technology also played an important
role as teachers and students utilized various technologies for learning.
This qualitative case study was designed to identify the effective practices of one school
as it used technology to elevate student achievement. This case study will add to the literature by
identifying how a public high school in southern California has managed to enhance the level of
student learning through the use of technology in its classrooms. This information will help
educators to identify and apply practices to successfully integrate technology into schools and
classrooms to positively affect student learning.
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 42

This case study was one of eleven in a thematic dissertation group addressing technology
use in K-12 public schools. The group members met regularly from August 2013 through May
2014 to discuss the current research and trends of technology use in education as well as develop
a common research design for parallel case studies to be conducted at different schools and grade
levels. Each case study was conducted independently at separate schools which all met the
agreed upon criteria and utilized identical protocols in data collection. Together these studies
have the potential to produce even greater insights and reliability relating to technology affecting
teaching and learning. A qualitative case study methodology was developed as Maxwell (2013)
and Merriam (2009) recommend to offer thick and rich descriptions of the phenomenon of
technology integration to enhance school curriculum and student learning.
Conceptual Model
It was imperative to ground the research of this study in a conceptual model to frame its
scope. This study used a modified version of Koehler and Mishra’s (2009) Technology,
Pedagogy, and Content Knowledge (TPACK) framework. This framework was intended for use
by teachers as a lesson planning system to support efforts to integrate technology into their
classrooms (Koehler & Mishra, 2009). Koehler and Mishra extended Shulman’s Pedagogy and
Content Knowledge (PCK) model developed in the 1980s to include a technology component.
The heart of the TPACK framework was the emphasis placed on the relationship of its three
component areas. In addition to the emphasized target blend of pedagogy, technology and
content knowledge, the framework highlighted the many ways in which technology could be
used in classrooms but failed to produce real learning gains with its incorporation.
The conceptual framework for this case study was an adaption of Koehler and Mishra’s
TPACK model. The three major areas of pedagogy, technology and content knowledge were
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 43

placed within an encompassing parameter determined to be a school’s culture and leadership (see
Figure A). Koehler and Mishra (2009) isolated technology, pedagogy, and content as individual
components of classroom planning and instruction. There are various combinations and
relationships between each of the three areas. Although learning can happen within a single area
or overlap of two areas, the optimal environment for learning with technology will include
content knowledge and good teaching pedagogy.

Figure A. TPACK Model

Figure A. Highlights various relationships of the TPACK model (Koehler & Mishra,
2009; http://www.tpack.org) within the context of a school culture and leadership. The
intersection of Technology, Pedagogy, and Content Knowledge represents optimal
teaching for learning with technology integration.
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 44

Koehler and Mishra (2009) also explained their framework would never describe or find
one correct way of integrating technology into a lesson. Since teaching at every school is
imbedded within the context of a distinct culture, and technology is evolving at a furious pace,
educators cannot isolate a correct or best way to integrate technology (Koehler & Mishra, 2009).
Koehler and Mishra designed the TPACK framework to highlight the big picture relationships in
teaching with technology rather than create a prescriptive method to plan lessons. The adapted
TPACK framework used in this case study merely added the school culture frame and
acknowledged how school or district leadership impacted the instruction and lesson planning of
its teachers. Therefore, the goal of this thematic dissertation team was to investigate how the use
of technology through the interaction of pedagogy and content knowledge within a specific
school culture impacted student learning. This intersection of pedagogy, content knowledge and
technology was a focus of this case study.
Research Questions
The research questions were developed by a thematic dissertation team that met over the
course of one year. The team collected research on the use of technology in schools to positively
affect learning, and narrowed their findings to the following three key areas: access and type of
technology available at the school site, instructional practices and pedagogy, and school climate
and leadership. The three research questions which guided the research were as follows:
1. What technology is present and how is it used as a tool of instruction in the classroom?
2. What is the perceived impact of technology on teaching and learning?
3. In what ways does the school climate support the integration of technology? Where does
the leadership come from?
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 45

These research questions aimed at examining details on how the school supported and
utilized technology to enhance the learning in content classes. Through these questions, there
were examples of various technologies and how they were used to promote student learning.
The school culture, as it related to technology, was also examined with particular attention paid
to the impact of leadership. These research questions led to a thorough examination of a
technologically successful school and how technology was utilized to increase student learning
outcomes.
Research Design
The best way to answer the research questions for this investigation was to conduct a case
study of a school which was successful at implementing technology to promote student
achievement. Through this case study, the selection of settings and individuals, method of data
collection, and method of data analysis was all best-suited for a qualitative design (Maxwell,
2013). To conduct this research, there was needed personal contact with individuals and their
environment, which is a key component of a qualitative study (Maxwell, 2013). To answer the
research questions, there needed to be interviews, surveys, and observations conducted. The
interpretive nature of the research instruments again steered the researcher toward a qualitative
study. Maxwell (2013) would also describe the researcher’s process of data collection and
analysis as an interpretive practice. According to Patton (2002), qualitative research is
appropriate to address questions that aim to understand and describe how a phenomenon is
occurring. A qualitative case study approach was suitable for this thematic dissertation.
The research design for this case study was developed through collaboration with ten
other doctoral students and a dissertation chair from the University of Southern California. This
group was chosen by Dr. Stuart Gothold to be part of a thematic dissertation team to investigate
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 46

the use of technology in K-12 schools. The team met for the first time and began to investigate
the topic in August of 2013. Throughout September and October of 2013, the group met to
discuss the current literature around successful models of technology use in K-12 schools.
Together, the group developed the purpose of the study and formulated the problem statement.
Additionally during this time, the group met with Dr. David Dwyer, founder of USC Hybrid
High, to discuss the evolution and current state of technology in education. The data collection
instruments, which included a survey, observation tool, interview questions, and a list of
documents for review, were finalized in November 2013. The criteria for selecting a school
were later established in January 2014. Additionally, the group met with a staff member of the
University of California’s Institutional Review Board (IRB) to complete the application for
approval of their study in February 2014. Each group member then selected a school which met
the accepted criteria for participation in the study and contacted the principal of the school to
gain access and permission to conduct the study at that location.
Population and Sample
For this thematic dissertation, each case study focused on an academically successful
school which used technology to enhance student outcomes. The criteria for choosing a school
were established using the findings from the literature review on best practices and identified
measures of “success”. To be considered, the school ought to have possessed at least 5 of the 7
following characteristics:
1. An API ranking of 7 or better, for 3 or more years (private and out-of-state schools
should present similar rationale)
2. Have a structured technology plan
3. Evidence of grants and partnerships to support technology efforts and/or P21 skills, etc.
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 47

4. Evidence of research-based practice in technology
5. A mission statement referencing technology
6. Minimum of 400 students
7. Recognition in technology – e.g., Apple Distinguished School, High Tech Network, CA
Distinguished School Tech Practice, etc.
In addition to these criteria, each group member was able to further determine if the
chosen school truly embodied a technologically prosperous school and was worthy of being
studied. The school chosen for this case study met 4 of the 7 criteria established by the
dissertation team. The criteria met were 1) evidence of partnerships to support technology
efforts and/or P21 skills, 2) had a structured technology plan, 3) evidence of research-based
practice in technology, and 4) had greater than 400 students. Despite only meeting 4 of 7
criteria, this high school was chosen and validated by the thematic dissertation team for the
following reasons: 1) it had met API criteria the last 2 years of rank reporting (had API rank of 6
the year before that), and it had an API Similar Schools rank of 9 all three years, 2) it
consistently improved student achievement over the last 6 years of tech initiatives, 3) it was a
public high school with diverse demographics which increased the probability it was actually
technology pushing student achievement, and 4) it was identified as a high school leading the
way in its use of instructional technology by the board of directors president of Computer-Using
Educators (CUE).
The chosen school was a high school in Southern California and so henceforth referred to
under the pseudonym “Southern California High School”. Southern California High School
(SCHS) was a 9-12 traditional high school in Orange County with a 2014-2015 enrollment of
2,304 students. The representative ethnicities of these students were, 73.4% Hispanic or Latino,
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 48

13.3% White, 7.4% Asian, 3.3% Black or African American, and 2.6% were ethnicities different
from the aforementioned. Furthermore, 69.6% of the students are classified as
socioeconomically disadvantaged, 18.5% were classified as English Learners, and 8.7% were
students with disabilities.
Instrumentation
The thematic dissertation group designed the data collection instruments, which included
an open-ended interview, survey, observation protocol, and document analysis. The interview,
survey, and observation protocols were designed to give detailed information for the research
questions, and were arranged to sort responses for each of the three research questions.
There were two interview protocols developed, the Teacher Interview Protocol (see
Appendix A) and the Administrator Interview Protocol (see Appendix B). Each of these
contained 14 open-ended questions aligned to the research questions. This allowed the
participants to respond to all questions without limitations. Like the interview instruments, the
observation protocol (Appendix C) also aligned to the research questions. It included a list of
what to monitor while observing the use of technology in the classroom. The chief aim of the
observation protocol was to record how technology was being utilized to further student learning.
The dissertation team also constructed a 20-question staff survey (see Appendix D) using
a variety of question types including closed and open-ended questions. This survey was
constructed to align with the three research questions and elicit general information from the
staff as a whole. In addition, the dissertation team also drafted a Document Inventory (see
Appendix E) to gather information about the school and technology utilization by its staff.
Again, this document inventory was also aligned to the researcher’s three research questions and
provided still another source of data.
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 49

Data Collection
The on-site collection of data took place over a period of four months. There were six
days the researcher was present on the SCHS campus. After that time frame, additional
information was retrieved via phone interviews, electronic mail, and document review. All data,
recordings and documents will be securely stored for at least three years. Digital files will be
stored on a flash drive and placed with all hardcopy documents in a fireproof safe. Participant
identification will be kept anonymous unless they self-identify their participation and/or
contributions.
Process of Getting Consent
In order to conduct the case study, the school administration and each individual
participant had to consent to participate in the study. The superintendent of the district and
principal of the school were contacted by the researcher for approval to study SCHS. After
explaining why SCHS was selected, and describing the breadth of interviews, observations, and
survey, both the superintendent and principal agreed to participate. The assistant principal
recommended several faculty candidates for interviews based on technology expertise and
position on campus related to technology. Each participant agreed to a thirty minute interview.
A time was set to meet each interviewee in either the office conference room or the teacher’s
classroom. Prior to the interviews, each respondent was asked to read and sign a consent form to
be interviewed and recorded. All four interviewees consented without objection.
In addition to interviews, appropriate teachers were identified for classroom observations.
The assistant principal helped identify teachers to be observed and also introduced the researcher
to the selected teachers. Through this introduction, the researcher was welcomed by each
potential teacher and each agreed to be observed for one period. The researcher offered several
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 50

possible observation dates, and let the teachers decide which date worked best for them. As
recommended by Brogdan and Biklen (2007), each teacher was told up front that the researcher
was interested in seeing how they incorporated technology into their teaching. They were all
asked to use technology as they would on a typical day. The researcher arrived early to each
observation and was set before students arrived.
Document Inventory
There were a total of 42 documents collected from the school beginning on August 5,
2014. These documents included the following: 2014-2015 School Accountability Report Card
(SARC), Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC) report, news articles, school site
plan, school technology plan, teacher handbook, district and school professional development
plans, school technology policies, parent/student technology documents, parent expectations and
information PowerPoint and video, technology brochures from the school and various
departments, bell schedule, school history, digital student newspaper, student Youtube news
broadcasts, school calendar, student laptop program FAQs, Student Laptop Distribution
Procedures, Acceptable Technology Use of Technology Agreement, Laptop Insurance
Agreement and Application, school mission and vision statements, district information on
technology bond and progress, and other online resources from the school and district websites.
Interviews
Interviews were conducted at SCHS throughout the week of October 20-24, 2014. The
respondents were selected on the following criteria: 1) they had been a member of school for at
least one year and were considered a leader in technology by their peers, 2) together with other
respondents they represented a diversity of roles on campus, and 3) they professed to using
technology daily in their instructional practices. It was important to have respondents who were
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 51

instrumental in the implementation of technology, and represented a diversified group to enhance
validity through triangulation of participants. Through these criteria, three teachers were
selected as respondents. In addition to the three teachers, the principal of the school was also
selected for an interview to add perspective on leadership and technology usage inside, and
outside, the classrooms.
Data were gathered through a digital voice recorder application on an iPad and by taking
notes. The digital recorder application was selected to capture the totality of each verbal
response. The researcher took notes to capture anything he felt was important but might not be
picked up through the recording (expressions, non-verbal cues, hand gestures). Through both
these data collecting tools, the researcher felt he was able to capture the essence of what each
respondent wanted to convey in their answers. The collection of data through a recorder also
allowed the researcher to transcribe and code the interview accurately.
Classroom Observations
Observations were conducted throughout the week of October 20-24, 2014. Appropriate
teachers were identified for observation and were selected on the following criteria: 1) they had
been using technology for the purpose of instruction for at least one year, 2) together with the
other observed teachers, they represented a variety of subjects taught, and 3) they taught a class
which fit into the researcher’s schedule. An assistant principal not interviewed helped the
researcher identify six teachers who met all of the above criteria. The locations for the
observations were decided to be in each teacher’s regular classroom. Each teacher’s classroom
was both the most practical location, as well as the most natural environment for teachers to use
technology as they normally would.
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 52

Data for the observations were gathered through researcher note-taking and informal
conversations with each teacher. Information was gathered by noting everything the researcher
noticed in each field of his observation protocol. The lesson sequence was logged through
general notes, with particular attention focused on how technology was used in the class. The
researcher also chose to capture with notes anything he felt was important but was not directly
related to an observation protocol field (expressions, non-verbal cues, hand gestures). Through
these data collecting strategies, the researcher felt he was able to capture the essence of how each
teacher used technology in their instructional practice.
Staff Survey
A survey of the Southern California High School staff was conducted on August 28 -
September 4, 2014. There were 80 respondents out of 82 total faculty to whom it was given. It
was presented to the faculty at their year-opening staff meeting along with a brief explanation of
the study. The survey was executed through SurveyMonkey, an online survey software service.
The survey remained open to respondents for one week to allow each participant the opportunity
to answer at their leisure. The researcher was careful not to lead the respondents in their
answering of survey questions. In order to increase the likelihood of one hundred percent faculty
participation, the survey was introduced during a staff meeting. Prior to the administration of the
survey, each participant received an explanation from the principal regarding the purpose of the
survey, and was informed that participation in the study was optional. Seventy-two of the
respondents were classroom teachers. Also included in the survey were Athletic Directors and
coaches, a district Digital Learning Coach TOSA, speech pathologist, cafeteria supervisor, and
counseling technician.

TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 53

Validity and Reliability
Validity and reliability are foundational factors in qualitative research. As Cresswell
(2009) asserts that the strength of a qualitative study hinges on its validity, the researcher paid
careful attention to the design, data collection and analysis of this case study to increase its
validity. The research questions and data collection instruments all aligned to current research
on qualitative research (Maxwell, 2013; Merriam, 2009). Steps were taken by the researcher to
build both the validity and reliability of the study. There was explicit confidentiality of the
interviews, which built the likelihood of respondent honesty (Maxwell, 2013). Triangulation
was used to build validity through confirmation of data accuracy (Maxwell, 2013; Merriam,
2009). Triangulating multiple sources of data through observations, interviews, surveys, and
document collection all led to greater accuracy and corroborated findings.
There were several possible sources of validity threat also identified. Teachers knew
ahead of time that they would be observed for the purpose of seeing technology in everyday use.
Teachers could have ‘put on a show’ and used the technology differently than they usually
would. The mere presence of the researcher in the classroom may have caused students to
behave differently than they normally would have. There also may have been validity and
reliability threat in my sample size. I observed eight full-length classes on a campus with a staff
of eighty-two teachers. A larger sample size would add strength on the extent to which
technology was actually used in classrooms.
Ethics
It was a focus of the investigator to add credibility to the study by conducting all aspects
of the research in an ethical manner (Merriam, 2009). This included presenting himself and the
purpose of the study in an honest and forthright manner. Creating and following a professional
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 54

sequence for data collection added to the reliability (Merriam, 2009) of the study. As described
by Merriam (2009), using a highly structured interview protocol supported the consistency of the
data collected and limited interviewer bias in the midst of questioning respondents. All
observations were conducted with the awareness of all who were being observed. Although
there may be certain validity threats to this practice, the integrity of the researcher was wholly
preserved with disclosure. Where possible, the researcher was open, honest, and conducted all
aspects of the study ethically.
Data Analysis
The researcher used Creswell’s (2009) six-step method to analyze the data. The
following six steps were used to guide the analysis of data throughout the collection process:
1. All data were organized and prepared for analysis. Interviews were transcribed, and
survey, observation and document review data were gathered.
2. The researcher read through all data to get a holistic sense of the gathered material and to
reflect on its meaning. Common ideas and themes found in the data were noted.
3. Within the themes, similar topics were grouped together and coded. The researcher used
color coding to organize the established categories.
4. Significant themes were refined from the broader themes previously established which
helped set the stage for the narrative.
5. The narrative was written according to each research question with the multiple
perspectives of the participants and data to support the themes.
6. Finally, the researcher addressed the research questions of this case study by interpreting
the data and articulating what was learned. The researcher then made connections to
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 55

current literature on technology in K-12 schools and provided suggestions for further
study.
The data from all interviews, observations, surveys and document collection were
gathered and disaggregated to establish meaning. The interviews were first transcribed. The
interview transcripts and observation notes were read and annotated regarding data relating to the
research questions. The use of sensitizing questions was used to tune the researcher into what
the data might be saying (Corbin & Stauss, 2008). Categories were formed from these
annotations. The researcher then went back through the transcripts and observation notes to
analyze and code all data points within these categories as Maxwell (2013) recommends. The
data in each category were then analyzed to establish themes and ultimately drive the meaning
behind the researcher’s findings.
Summary
This chapter described the methodology for this qualitative case study. It described in
detail the research questions, research design, instrumentation, and data collection and analysis
methods. The methodology was designed and applied within this case study to correspond with
the current literature on qualitative research. This case study carefully evaluated a high-
technology use school’s current practices using technology, training, and leadership. This will
be one of eleven studies at different school sites, but using similar methodology and research
instruments. Together, these studies should give key insights into how technologically
successful schools were able to leverage their technology into positively affecting student
achievement.

TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 56

CHAPTER FOUR: RESULTS
The purpose of this study was to identify practices that promote the use of technology
which transform teaching and learning in a 21
st
century K-12 school. The use of technology to
advance student learning in schools has been identified as a critical concern in modern education.
This study examined successful technology integration practices at a high performing urban high
school known for its technology innovation. The specific practices examined by this study were
the school’s teaching, training, and leadership as each pertained to technology use.
The findings from the analysis of data are presented below according to the three research
questions. The school culture, as it related to technology, was also examined with particular
attention paid to the impact of leadership. Themes were derived from triangulation and a
thorough examination of data from campus and classroom observations, staff interviews, staff
survey, and document analysis.
There were several points of interest from the staff survey which were helpful to frame
the context of the researcher’s observations. First, exactly half the staff was forty years old or
older, and 44% of staff has been teaching ten years or less. Thus there were quite a few teachers
relatively new to the profession, but there were even more teachers who have many years of
teaching experience. Second, although this was the first year implementing the one-to-one
student laptop initiative at SCHS, 51% of staff have been using technology four or more years
(see Table 2). Utilizing technology in the classroom was not a new idea to most staff; however,
the one-to-one initiative increased its access and availability. From the counter perspective,
almost half the staff was not using technology in their classes, or were still in the first few years
of classroom technology utilization. Finally, 71% of staff claimed to have a technological skill
level of proficient or advanced; only 8% tried to avoid it or considered themselves a novice.
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 57

Findings by Research Question
The findings from the analysis of data were presented according to the study’s three
research questions. The research questions were developed to focus on three key areas: access
and type of technology available at the school site, instructional practices and pedagogy, and
school climate and leadership. The three research questions which guided the research were as
follows:
1. What technology is present and how is it used as a tool of instruction in the classroom?
2. What is the perceived impact of technology on teaching and learning?
3. In what ways does the school climate support the integration of technology? Where does
the leadership come from?
These research questions aimed at examining details on how the school supported and
utilized technology to enhance the learning in content classes.
Research Question Number One
Data supporting research question one are presented below. Research question one was:
what technology is present and how is it used as a tool of instruction in the classroom? The
following were the three focal areas to support findings for research question one: types of
technology available, access to technology, and instructional technology practices and pedagogy.
In efforts to utilize technology for learning, the first inquiry was what technology was present to
support teaching and learning.
Several survey questions added perspective to which technologies were present and how
they were used as a tool of instruction in the classroom at SCHS. These questions are presented
with results in Tables 1, 2 and 3 below.

TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 58

Table 1
Survey Results for Research Question One – Part 1
Survey Question Open-ended Responses
5. What technology hardware do
you have in your classroom?
(computer, student tablets,
Smartboard, etc.).
one-to-one student laptop computers, teacher desktop
computers, iPads, teacher laptops, LCD projectors with
interactive technology, document cameras, teacher
wearable microphone connected to the classroom ceiling
speakers, student hand-held microphone in every
classroom connected to the classroom ceiling speakers,
graphing calculators, printers, 3D printers, microscope
cameras, scanners, TV/VCR, robotics circuit boards and
all supporting equipment
6. What technology software is
available for classroom use?
(Haiku, programs or learning
applications, etc.)
Haiku (learning management system), Aeries (online
grading, attendance, student information, parent
reporting), Shmoop, Illuminate, Nymbus, Discovery
videos, Microsoft Office Suite, TurnItIn, Accelerated
Reader, Google Tools, Socrative, Powtoons,
Educreations, Sphere, Kahoot, Remind 101, ABC-
CLIO, Kuta, ExamView, Camtasia Studio, various
electronic libraries, Adobe, Garage Band, Logic Pro,
Get-a-five, Prezi, Test Generators, Mathbits.com,
Apple TV

Table 2
Survey Results for Research Question One – Part 2
Survey Statement 0-1 years 2-3 years 4-5 years 5+ years
9. I have been integrating
technology into my daily lessons
for…
16
21.9%
20
27.4%
12
16.4%
25
34.3%

Table 3
Survey Results for Research Question One – Part 3
Survey Question
Significantly
enhanced
teaching
Somewhat
improved
teachers’ ability
to instruct and
manage
Slightly
negative
impact on
the teaching
profession
Proved
subversive to
the abilities
and missions
of teachers
19. Technology has impacted
teaching in what way?
42
58.3%
28
38.9%
2
2.8%
0
0.0%
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 59

Types of technology available. A necessary but not sufficient condition for tech-
supported success is the actual technology present at the school. When SCHS adopted a
technology-rich environment, teachers then had the freedom and ability to use any number of
resources. Some of the resources are district-adopted and paid for, others are utilized by
individual teachers as they see fit. Refer to Table 1 for a list of technology hardware and
software actively used at the school. It was easy to see that once sufficient hardware and
infrastructure were in place, teachers had a great variety of technologies at their disposal.
Access to technology. While having technology is necessary, it was the student access to
it which allowed teachers to use it consistently in their lessons, assignments and expectations.
Previously, teachers would share computer labs and laptop carts to utilize tech in their lessons
sporadically. According to interview statements, this sporadic use was effective but lacked the
consistency to really deepen learning. Students would get to dabble in the use of technology, but
not ‘live it’ while in the classroom. The transition to one-to-one student laptops was a game-
changer at SCHS. Teachers then were able incorporate technology into their instructional
routines every day. One teacher commented, “It's just a different layer of teaching. It allows us
to approach instruction from a different perspective.” Teachers could assign work and
homework with the confidence that each student had the equipment and software to complete
digital assignments even when away from school.
While the school’s one-to-one program helps provide a computer for each student, there
remained concerns of student equity in regard to technology access. The principal and a teacher
at SCHS pointed out the gap in user knowledge and interface with the technologies. To illustrate
the point, I will use data from several interviews and call it, ‘a tale of two students’. In one
student’s house she had multiple computers, iPads in each bathroom, and a smartphone
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 60

everywhere she went. Her parents were well-educated and helped her interface with technology
in her everyday life as well as school assignments. A second student only had the school-given
laptop and an early-model smartphone that could work on wi-fi, however, this family could not
afford wi-fi at their home. His parents did not come home from work until after eight each
evening and had little technology savvy to help their son with questions of interface and use.
The principal got to the heart of this when she shared the following:
When you are in a lower socioeconomic home where you do not have internet, you do
not have resources, your parents do not have a masters in technology to train their kids. I
hope that somehow and somewhere we are developing a system of closing the access
gap. I think the one-to-one will provide that for student self-discovery, but as a school
district should we do more?
The one-to-one program takes great strides at narrowing the socioeconomic gap in technology
access; however, there remain significant factors to consider in regard to the intellectual access
to technology use.
Instructional technology practices and pedagogy. Using technology in the classroom
was not the primary goal of SCHS, but rather using it to deepen and enhance learning was.
According to the principal and district material, instruction should be grounded on rigorous
standards, engaging strategies, and supported by technology. Through the class observations,
interviews and staff survey, there were six distinct trends in how technology was utilized for
instruction. These included the following: 1) direct instruction, 2) supplemental learning and
practice, 3) student collaboration and creativity, 4) enhanced student engagement, 5) class
management, and 6) simply to increase use and understanding of the technology itself. Each of
these trends will be described throughout this section.
The first trend in the use of technology for instruction was for direct instruction. This
trend was characterized by teachers in their classroom using various technologies to enhance
their instructional presentation of material and concepts. Based on observations by the
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 61

researcher, the average teacher at SCHS would use the teacher lapel microphone to speak in a
soft, understandable voice while providing instruction on the interactive board in front of the
class. Starting with links on their Haiku page, the teacher was able to launch into a PowerPoint
presentation, video clip, or other teaching tool embedded in their teacher page. At that point in
the instructional sequence, teaching looked similar to classrooms outside the school where
technology was not a significant focus. However, the use of an LMS like Haiku, enabled
teachers to transition their instruction and classes seamlessly because all the technologies needed
for instruction were linked to one central homepage.
The one-to-one initiative did allow teachers the option to truly alter the way instruction
took place in their classroom. In the example of one observation and interviewee, she “flipped”
her instruction so that the direct instruction would take place outside the classroom environment.
She recorded a lecture or PowerPoint with voiceover and assigned the watching of this
presentation as homework. This action freed her up to facilitate group discussions and activities
during class time instead of using it for direct instruction because all students had access to this
resource outside the classroom. The interactive projection technology also allowed teachers to
easily model how to use various technologies, like Google Draw, they expected students to use
for class assignments.
The second trend in the use of technology for instruction was for supplemental learning
and practice. Additional resources on teacher Haiku pages witnessed by the researcher in
classrooms included links to tutorial videos, outside vendor webpages, and extra worksheets. In
a math class, the teacher facilitated an exercise in which students completed a “math-caching”
assignment hosted by mathbits.com. This exercise only allowed students to move forward if
they gave the correct answer; thus the teacher was able to circulate among students and help
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 62

those whom were stuck and needed additional guidance to solve the problems. Several teachers
also touted using Skype to join with classrooms and college professors across the country. This
allowed teachers to increase their personal expertise and scope of their learning objectives.
Technology was also utilized to change how teachers conducted class. Using a program
called Socrative, one teacher gave a quick quiz at the beginning of class. He monitored the
results of each student and the class as a whole in real time. Using the quiz as a formative
assessment, he immediately knew where his class was strong and where they needed re-teaching
and support. The entire process of administering the quiz and reviewing the results was less than
five minutes. In another class, students were using Google Draw to demonstrate their
understanding of chemistry concepts. The teacher was able to view all student screens from his
computer and give real-time feedback to students which automatically showed up on their
screens. In this way he was able to monitor student progress, give immediate correctives, and
know which students needed his personal attention.
Not all technology use was transformative to teaching and learning. It was evident
through the observations, interviews, and surveys, teachers actively tried to replace simple paper
and pen assignments with a similar digital equivalent. An example was the use a Google Doc to
write an Opinion Editorial piece. All instructions and resources were available from the
teacher’s Haiku page and made for a streamlined process. Students were indeed learning from
the assignment and required to incorporate all aspects of writing a positional paper. Although
there was greater efficiency in the assignment, all parts could have been conducted with paper
and pen resources. This replacement of assignment format demonstrated the movement in
paradigm to a digital environment, but did not in itself deepen the learning expectations for the
content being studied.
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 63

The third trend in the use of technology for instruction was for student collaboration and
creativity. Staff reported through the survey collaboration and creativity were often impacted
positively (see Table 5). The use of Google tools allowed several teachers to infuse student
collaboration goals into their class assignments. Using Google Docs and Google Draw, two
teachers had students working on a group presentation. Although they could talk and work
together in the classroom environment, each student worked at his or her own computer and
helped complete the single document concurrently. Adding to the accountability of such an
assignment, each student’s contribution could be assigned a unique color so the teacher can
easily see each student’s involvement in the project at a glance. Depending on what restrictions
the teacher wanted to put in place, students had the ability to go onto the World Wide Web and
research or pull outside resources. One teacher allowed students to represent the assignment
objective in any format they chose; he gave the examples of a poster, video, PowerPoint with
voiceover, or other creative options.
The fourth trend in the use of technology for instruction was enhanced student
engagement. Teachers represented in the survey and shared technology had the ability to engage
students in the learning process to a greater degree than traditional teaching means. Through the
staff survey, 88% of staff reported the belief technology was relevant to both student engagement
and student achievement (see Table 4). Consider the afore-mentioned examples of Google
Draw, Google Doc and on-line “math-caching”. The researcher noted in his observations that
100% of the students were actively engaged and participating in the activity for the majority of
the class periods, with a combined total of six students off task for short stints of time throughout
all three of these particular class periods. The technology appeared to add a layer of motivation;
it was something new and more stimulating. However, each of the observations also confirmed
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 64

each teacher had built in accountability systems and ways to monitor student progress, so it is not
surprising students were on task regardless of which technologies were present.
The fifth trend in the use of technology for instruction was for class management.
Although survey data suggested most, but not all, teachers used technology daily (see Table 2),
observations and interviews validated the use of Haiku on daily basis in every class visited.
Haiku was the LMS supported by the district and provided a homepage for all teacher resources
and student assignments. Students knew the instructional routine of looking on the teacher’s
Haiku page for directions and assignments. Teachers posted notes, PowerPoint presentations and
additional resources to their homepage. This interface with technology allowed for teachers to
splinter their instruction into innumerable directions. As mentioned before with the example of
flipping the instruction, it allowed for a teacher to completely transform how they approached
and managed instruction. Utilizing online assessment tools, like Socrative, allowed one
observed teacher to instantly randomly order questions for every student in the class while
simultaneously providing real-time results directly to the teacher.
Technology was fully integrated in the management of attendance, grading, and student
information. The district to which SCHS belongs had partnered with two outside companies
which allowed it to have a fully integrated approach to student information and reporting. All
attendance was taken online and seamlessly by teachers in the first few minutes of each class.
Some teachers reported using a scanning technology linked to their gradebooks which would
scan tests and automatically enter the grades in the gradebook for the class. There is also a
student and parent “portal” to the gradebooks. As teachers create assignments and complete
grading, results are instantly viewable by students and parents from any computer with internet
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 65

access. Parents no longer needed to wait for progress reports to see how their students were
performing.
The sixth trend in the use of technology for instruction was simply to increase use and
understanding of the technology itself. Although the instructional objectives were mostly driven
by content standards, teachers reported using technology for the sake of learning technological
tools as well. Often this was described as building 21
st
century skills, and enhancing digital
citizenship. With the increasing dependency on technology and movement of high stake exams
to a digital format, the teachers and administrators at SCHS report a strong desire to help
students feel comfortable in a digital learning environment. In addition to survey data and
interviews, there were two observations which highlighted this point. One teacher gave an
assignment with detailed expectations, but then encouraged his students to go further than that.
He told students he would like to see something wholly original complete with a voiceover and
animation. He admitted to them he did not know how or if that was possible, but encouraged
them to stretch the limits of the assignment. Another teacher took the role of ‘teacher as learner’,
and he also encouraged students to represent their work in a manner he did not yet understand.
His plan was to have students productively struggle through the assignments and then teach him
how to utilize the technology. The researcher did not have the opportunity to observe the results
of this assignment; however, students in the class appeared to accept the challenge and moved to
completing the task with only a few clarifying questions asked. In both examples above, this
idea of building digital literacy was directly stated as a concurrent goal for the class assignments.
Research Question Number Two
Data supporting research question two are presented below. Research question two was:
what is the perceived impact of technology on teaching and learning? The focal area to support
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 66

findings for research question two was to look at the perceived impact of technology. In efforts
to utilize technology for teaching and learning, the next inquiry was how technology was
perceived to support teaching and learning.
There were several survey questions which added perspective to the perceived impact
technology had on instruction at SCHS. These questions were presented with results in Tables 4
and 5 below.
Table 4
Survey Results for Research Question Two – Part 1
Survey Statement Absolutely
For the
most part Somewhat Not at all
10. I believe that technology has
positively impacted the quality of
my instruction.
37
51.4%
20
27.8%
14
19.4%
1
1.4%
17. I believe that technology is
relevant for both student
engagement and student
achievement.
29
40.3%

31
43.1%
12
16.7%
0
0.0%
18. The school’s investment in
technology has proven worth its
cost.
23
31.9%
33
45.8%
16
22.2%
0
0.0%

Table 5
Survey Results for Research Question Two – Part 2
Survey Statement Never Sometimes
Most of the
time Always
15. I believe that technology
positively impacts student
creativity.
0
0.0%
15
20.3%
40
54.1%
19
25.7%
16. I believe that technology
integration requires student
collaboration.
0
0.0%
27
37.0%
37
50.7%
9
12.3%

TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 67

Teacher perceptions of technology impact. The overwhelming perception of teachers
and administrators at SCHS was that technology did indeed have a positive impact on teaching
and learning. This impact was perceived in the following four areas: positive impact on learning,
greater participation and engagement, increased skills and creativity, and utility with
management and access.
The first area of perceived technology impact was whether or not teachers thought
technology led to greater learning outcomes for their students. As reported by the staff survey,
79% of staff believed technology had positively impacted the quality of their instruction, with
only one respondent saying his or her instruction had been negatively impacted (see Table 4).
All interviewed teachers reported the same or greater content learning when they used
technology compared with non-technology methods. The daily use of an LMS, such as Haiku at
SCHS, was an important component expressed by teachers and observed in classroom use.
Haiku was a beneficial resource for students to help keep them organized and provide additional
resources. Not only did it give teachers the opportunity to post links to tutorials and outside
resources for students to access, but also provided a greater ability for students to self-monitor
their learning and class progress. Students had the opportunity to work from home if they were
absent or needed additional time to finish an assignment.
There were a few specific ways teachers found to enhance learning outcomes for their
students. One way was to use technology for quick formative assessments in order to better
target learning deficits and gauge the pace of their class. Using assessment tools, like Socrative,
allowed for quick formative assessments by teachers to monitor learning. They could use this
information to move on to the next learning objective, or offer additional remediation on a
subject if it was needed. The overall effect was greater options for teachers to differentiate their
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 68

instruction as determined by student needs. Two teachers stated using technology to fully flip
their instruction as a second method to enhance learning outcomes. These activities were
reported to be utilized at least weekly and allowed teachers time to work with students on
exploring deeper connections and learning of content standards.
An additional aspect to learning outcomes was the perception that regular use of
technology would also better prepare students for college and the real world after high school.
As one teacher related in her interview:
I think it gives our kids access to the world outside of our classroom, and because we're a
socioeconomically disadvantaged school, that's really important. It gives kids the
opportunity to see things beyond our school, but also, it's preparing them for college and
the workforce where they're going to need to have technology skills and there's not going
to be anyone there to help them, necessarily.
These thoughts were validated by all staff interviews. In every case, teachers and administrators
believed there was a dual purpose in using technology; technology helped students better learn
course standards and content, and it served to better prepare students for the technology needs of
college and career success.
The second area of perceived technology impact on teaching and learning was greater
participation and engagement. With teachers reporting the same or greater student learning when
they used technology, they expressed other added benefits with technology use, like greater
student participation and engagement. Eighty-three percent of the staff reported in the survey the
belief technology was relevant to both student engagement and student achievement (see Table
4). One specific example mentioned by multiple respondents was the ease of allowing students
more choice in their assignments. By having the assignments and links all accessible on their
Haiku page, students could choose from a few assignment options. Each option would lead
students to learning the desired material, but the format of the assignment could vary according
to student interest. Example options observed in this study included writing a paper, creating a
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 69

poster on Google Draw, developing a class presentation or video, etc. Staff interviews also
confirmed the belief that increasing engagement in activities appeared to positively motivate
students in their learning.
Another benefit of technology use was to students who previously may not have spoken
out in class, because technology allowed them to find a voice in class discussions. By using
online collaboration tools, students could add their thoughts to group or whole-class assignments.
As teachers read student entries, the teacher had the option to ask students further questions
about their comments or ask them to share aloud. Several interviewees shared that previously
they would not know what some of the quieter students were thinking until the completion of an
assignment or test. In this way it helped give a voice to students who would normally choose not
to openly participate in group conversations.
The third area of perceived technology impact on teaching and learning was increased
skills and creativity. As reported on the staff survey, 80% of staff believed technology positively
effects student creativity most of the time or always (see Table 5). A reoccurring statement
throughout the interviews was technology added an innate characteristic of creativity to most
assignments. This creativity allowed for both student and teacher learning. In particular was the
thought that as students demonstrated their knowledge of content through technology,
technology skills were inherently developed in the process. One teacher stated the following in
his interview:
You will get outcomes you don’t even know how to get or teach. I'm going to give stuff
to students that I don't even know how to do yet. Let them show me, and then I've now
learned a new skill. I've been trying to express that to my colleagues that are just starting
out in technology. When I started, a lot of times, the kids taught me half the stuff I was
trying to figure out. Because if one kid didn't know, another kid knew a part, then
another kid knew a part. They learned it from this teacher or that teacher, and then I was
able to, you know, learn it and apply it to other assignments.
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 70

In this way, technology impacted teaching by adding to each teacher’s skill set and how they
may approach future assignments.
Even while technology did not always work as planned by the teacher, there were
learning outcomes observed throughout this study. In one example, the majority of the class
could not log into their accounts on a specific website. Students began to trouble-shoot why this
was the case. They began asking around who had access and who did not. From there they were
looking for trends of what some students did and others did not have access. It was an
unintended delving into problem based learning. After ten minutes, the teacher diverted the class
to an alternative non-technology based assignment and continued with the class learning
objectives. After the alternate assignment was complete, the teacher and students continued with
their investigation of the technology ‘failure’. Through creative questioning and experimenting,
they did discover the cause. Students and the teacher learned something valuable that day in
terms of troubleshooting technology issues and applying creative deductive reasoning.
The fourth and final area of perceived technology impact on teaching and learning was
utility with management and access. The digital management of attendance, grading and
reporting increased efficiency and left teachers with more time to commit to actual instruction.
The use of an LMS was foundational in all observed lessons, and allowed teachers freedom in
how they managed their classes in terms of lesson design. One teacher simply stated, “Our
Haiku page makes our classroom exist outside our classroom, really.” With this perception,
teachers could approach teaching and learning from completely new viewpoints not previously
practical. Through the observations and interviews, it was clear technology allowed teachers to
more efficiently monitor student progress toward mastery and make adjustments to their teaching
and lessons along the way.
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 71

Research Question Number Three
Data supporting research question three are presented below. Research question three
was: in what ways does the school climate support the integration of technology, and where does
the leadership come from? The following were the three focal areas to support findings for
research question three: teacher attitudes regarding technology, administrative attitudes regarding
technology, and district support of technology integration. In efforts to utilize technology for
teaching and learning, the third inquiry was who or what influences technology use to support
teaching and learning.
There were several survey questions which added perspective to the school climate and
leadership regarding technology at SCHS. These questions are presented with results in Tables 6
and 7 below.
Table 6
Survey Results for Research Question Three – Part 1
Survey Statement Absolutely
For the
most part Somewhat Not at all
11. My professional development
prepared me to incorporate 21
st

century learning skills on a daily
basis in my classroom.
19
25.7%
28
37.8%
25
33.8%
2
2.7%
12. My professional development
prepared me for the use of
technology in my classroom.
12
16.2%
33
44.6%
28
37.8%
1
1.4%
20. I feel confident when
integrating technology into my
classroom instruction.
21
29.2%
37
51.4%
12
16.7%
2
2.8%

TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 72

Table 7
Survey Results for Research Question Three – Part 2
Survey Question/Statement Never Sometimes
Most of the
time Always
13. How often do you
incorporate technology into your
daily lessons?
3
4.1%
17
23.0%
41
55.4%
13
17.6%
14. The administrative team
actively supports the integration
of technology into the school’s
classrooms.
0
0.0%
2
2.8%
18
25.0%
52
72.2%

Teacher attitudes regarding technology. Overall, teachers’ attitudes regarding the
integration of technology in their classes were significantly positive. Almost 60% of the staff
responded technology has significantly enhanced teaching (see Table 3). Additionally, almost
80% indicated the school’s investment in technology has proven worth its cost (see Table 4).
The other 20% said it has “somewhat” proven worth its cost. None of the teachers observed or
interviewed considered themselves “techie”, nor did they have any formal training in technology
beyond a typical professional educator. Yet each of them was notably enthusiastic regarding
technology usage in his or her classes. According to all interviewed teachers, the school culture,
in regard to technology usage, is evolving and building. Teachers around the school are
appreciating more and more the way technology can engage, motivate, and help students learn.
All interviewed teachers admitted to it being more work in their transition to tech-based
teaching, but the benefits outweighed the constraints and challenges. One teacher stated it this
way, “I feel good about my practice when I'm trying to be on the cutting edge, it's exhausting, it's
a lot of tough sledding, but you've got to try it otherwise you don't realize the benefits of it.”
Although 81% of staff reported feeling confident in technology integration at least most
of the time (see Table 6), there were a few areas of apprehension when it came to integrating
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 73

technology in their classrooms. There were several challenges teachers shared and which were
observed. Internet connectivity seemed to be a concern of most teachers. It works well enough
to plan digitally-based lessons, however, it failed enough for most to always have a non-tech
“plan B” ready just in case. Interviewed teachers recounted differing experiences on the subject
of internet connectivity. One teacher has never had a problem with all her students getting
online. One teacher said she consistently gets at least half her students online if not all of them.
Yet another teacher quantified student online connectivity as seven out of ten lessons he plans
for internet use, which keeps him optimistic but apprehensive about wholly committing to
digitally-based lessons. In one observation, the connectivity worked just fine, but students had a
problem getting onto a specific website and the teacher was forced to go to her plan B lesson.
There were also perceived challenges in keeping students focused on instructional goals
when they had internet and other digital distractions at their fingertips throughout the lesson.
The answer seemed to lie more in teaching pedagogy than in the technology itself. Regarding
the constant presence of technology in the hands of his students, one teacher relates the challenge
in the following:
I decided early in my career, I could spend a lot of my time policing students and their
smartphones, or I could try to be really good from a pedagogical standpoint and distract
them by trying to engage them in U.S. History rather than Instagram or Twitter.
However, that challenge is an overwhelming challenge and it exists with any piece of
technology that we invite into the classroom. With the internet at their fingertips,
students can incredibly augment the lesson that I'm giving them or they could be wholly
distracted.
There was the feeling of great potential in bringing technology into the classroom, but at the
same time, an acknowledgement that a teacher must be ready to engage their students in
learning. Even with these challenges in mind, every teacher interviewed said the benefits
outweighed the drawbacks, and they have learned to circumvent or mitigate most of the
challenges through trial and error.
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 74

Administrative attitudes regarding technology. The principal of SCHS was seen as a
strong supporter of technology use in classrooms, and appeared to set realistic expectations for
her staff. Her philosophy on technology use in the classrooms was as a necessity and a tool we
need to have available and taught to kids. She confidently explained her belief technology will
not and cannot replace good teaching. She saw the school technology culture as “positive and
emerging”. She related her view candidly in the following:
I think there is an openness to it. I also think that there's some fear. I set the expectation
at the beginning of the year as one of our goals to work toward, not just looking back on
it at the end of this year, but being progressed towards every day in the classroom. Other
than a few outliers there aren’t teachers or parents against it or saying it’s evil.
In line with district initiatives, she set the goal of technology used in every classroom, every day,
and by every student. Revealed through the survey, 97% of staff felt the administrative team
actively supported the integration of technology into classes most of the time or always (see
Table 7).
With an “emerging” culture of technology use, the administrative team admitted to
pockets where technology was used exceptionally well and pockets which needed continued
support and prodding. This study highlighted several areas where technology has been used well
for learning. To illustrate where the culture had not yet evolved, the principal shared the
following example to highlight the dichotomy of perspectives present on campus:
As we walked into classrooms, we saw so many great uses of technology. Then you see
a teacher who is collecting hand-written essays from each student and says, “If you need
to staple your essay together, I do not trust you with my stapler yet so come up here and I
will staple it for you”. So you have that level of extreme, of where [technology] is being
used and utilized in the daily classroom. For example, “Here is a Dropbox, blog, or
Google Doc, and I have given you your feedback. Look over it and make your
revisions.” Whereas the “staple, here you go” strategy years ago would have been okay
because he is working on classroom procedures within his room. Versus now, you think
we are worried about your two-dollar stapler? They each have an eight hundred dollar
device in their bag!
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 75

The culture was “emerging” and the administration desired to support each teacher where they
were on the spectrum of technology use. The principal wanted teachers to feel freedom to
experiment without feeling judged while they are transitioning to daily technology use. Her
message to her staff was, “Try it. It’s okay if it fails. Try it and work through how to make it
work. We have to start somewhere.”
District support of technology integration. Throughout the study, there was a repeated
feeling of support from the district office in relation to the integration of technology in
classrooms. The district valued technology initiatives enough to put a measure on the ballot for
the community to support 135 million dollars in bonds primarily for the purpose of upgrading
instructional technology and infrastructure. That bond laid the groundwork for fully integrated
and networked classrooms, various hardware and software applications for teachers, and a one-
to-one laptop program for students.
The bond also provided a structured network of technology support through the use of
fifteen “Digital Learning Coaches” (DLC). Each DLC supports twelve to fifteen “Digital
Fellows” each year. The DLCs are teachers released from the classroom to help their fellows
utilize technology in the classroom for instruction. Each fellow had to apply to participate in the
program and agreed to help other teachers at his or her school site better use technology for
learning. At the time of this study, the DLC program was in its second year and there were
approximately 160 fellows (roughly one-third of the teaching staff in the district) who were in or
had completed their “fellowship”. One teacher interviewed had participated as a fellow in the
program and had this to say:
That process was huge because it was a weekly touch-base with somebody who was
encouraging, "Let's try this, let's do that. We tried that, it didn't work, so how could we
do it in the future?" We explored a lot of different things.
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 76

All teachers interviewed for this study credited this DLC program, whether directly or indirectly,
for greatly enhancing the scope and quality of their instructional technology usage.
The district also supported the school sites by providing some of the detailed components
which might be overlooked by an individual school site. The district provided parent and student
training, guidelines, and release of liability documents. Also supplied by the district with each
laptop was an internet filter for safe browsing whether a student was at school or at home.
Another key to successful implementation of technology used for instruction was the provision
of an LMS and the expectation for technology to be used in every class, every day, by every
student. Although, that vision has not been entirely fulfilled at SCHS, the culture appeared to be
moving in that direction. To help principals work with their teachers around technology, there
has been a commitment to train administrators with ongoing professional development around
technology initiatives.
Discussion of Themes and Findings
Reflecting on the findings from this investigation and guided by the research questions,
the researcher found five distinct themes supported by the triangulation of data. These five
themes which support technology use for teaching and learning at SCHS were the following:
1. There was a systematic and comprehensive approach to utilizing technology.
2. District leadership support of a technology focus and utilization was critical.
3. There were inherent challenges with technology.
4. Once systems, hardware, and expectations were in place, teachers utilized technology in
countless ways for teaching and learning.
5. Transformative teaching practices emerged through the lens of the TPACK theoretical
framework when technology was used for student collaboration and formative feedback.
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 77

These five themes are described below highlighting their influence on teaching and learning with
technology integration.
Systemic and Comprehensive Approach to Utilizing Technology
From the moment the researcher arrived at SCHS, there was a systematic integration of
technology apparent across the campus and through digital media. The infrastructure was in
place to support teacher, student and staff devices needing wireless internet access. There were
devices in the hands of every student, teacher and administrator to support management, teaching
and learning. Expectations of appropriate and frequent technology use were established and
could be articulated by teachers and administrators. While many teachers were still learning how
to efficiently transition to a digital teaching structure, there were clear expectations encouraging
the productive struggle of staff through this transition. The community financially supported the
technology efforts by passing a 135 million dollar bond measure. The district supported these
efforts through the provision of an LMS, training, universal documents, and setting the
expectation of daily technology use in classrooms.
Described through interviews and the staff survey, and confirmed through classroom
observations, the average SCHS teacher utilized technology in a comprehensive manner. In an
average classroom at SCHS, teachers used an instructional sequence integrating technology
throughout their lesson. After the bell, students were instructed to take out their laptops and
open up the teacher’s Haiku page. The teacher took and submitted attendance counts via Aeries,
while students settled in and opened their laptops. The teacher spoke softly using the lapel
microphone linked to the classroom speakers to review the objective or directions on the
interactive white board projection of their Haiku page. The teacher gave further instruction as
needed including touching links to brief videos or examples to discuss as a whole class. Students
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 78

were then released to work independently or in groups on their laptops. It was at this point the
endless ways to splinter assignments was utilized to best support the learning objectives. While
students worked, the teacher would monitor and comment on student progress either by walking
around the class or remotely from his or her computer. The grades for the assignment would be
recorded in an online gradebook where it could be viewed by students and parents. In this way,
using technology was not an isolated exchange, but rather an integrated approach to teaching.
District Leadership Support of a Technology Focus and Utilization
The school district SCHS belonged to was an integral partner supporting technology
efforts through several means. The first was securing the community funding of technology
initiatives through a bond measure. This revenue provided the overhaul of infrastructure,
hardware to execute a student one-to-one initiative, an LMS and software to support learning,
and a professional development program including mentorship from DLCs. The technology
used for daily learning could not have flourished without any one of the aforementioned
provisions. If any one of these items were not in place, teaching and learning through
technological tools would have become exponentially more difficult. The successes of
technology use by SCHS were in part a result of the time and financial resources invested by the
community and district. The fruits of their labor were being reaped at Southern California High
School, which was able to implement one-to-one technology for its students. Even with a new
principal, the school moved forward with its inaugural year of one-to-one.
Of particular significance was the function and support of the DLC program. This
program was a highly valued resource for the observed and interviewed teachers in this study.
Districtwide, these fifteen DLCs and the twelve to fifteen Fellows each supported with digital
instructional skills, comprised a vital system of support and propagation of digital expertise and
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 79

routines. All teachers interviewed for this study credited this DLC program, whether directly or
indirectly, for greatly enhancing the scope and quality of their instructional technology usage.
This mentorship professional development model appeared to be highly effective in both
building the technology skills of teachers, and building teacher confidence in planning and
evaluating how technology was used in their class routines.
Inherent Challenges with Technology
Although Southern California High School has experienced some great successes in its
use of technology for teaching and learning, there also emerged several challenges inherent with
a transition to technology utilization. Using an LMS and technology daily required changing the
way instruction had looked for decades. Even the management of students with the perception of
their devises being a distraction weighed on teachers. This required openness by teachers to
reinvent themselves and their lesson design. It was also mentioned multiple times by
interviewed teachers and in casual conversations around campus, the intentionality with which
teachers needed to approach lesson planning to ensure the content, not the technology, was the
center of student learning. Integral to the transition was also the support of administrators by
their encouragement of technology use and supporting the “messy” nature of learning
technology. Teachers needed to hear and feel it was okay to make mistakes and learn from those
mistakes along the way.
A tangible challenge for teachers was the ever-present reality that technology might not
perform as they had planned. Teachers needed to always have a non-tech-dependent “plan B”
lesson ready in case the planned technology did not perform as intended. These problems could
be realized in the form of no internet connectivity, limited internet connectivity, students who
lost, broke or forgot their laptops, laptop batteries running out of charge, projection bulbs burnt
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 80

out, user error or inexperience, etc. In addition to a “plan B”, there needed to be a system in
place for troubleshooting and quickly fixing the arising issues. Although SCHS had one
Computer Resource Assistant (CRA) available to help, it was not adequate considering every
student and teacher on campus had at least one device. A newly developed program to help with
this problem was the formation of the Student Electronics Assistance League (SEAL) program.
This program allowed students to ask for hardware or software support from fellow students.
The program alleviated some of the work volume placed on the CRA while simultaneously
helped build the technology skills of students participating in SEAL. Regardless, the solutions
observed or discussed were not able to rectify the problems in the timeframe needed to continue
the planned lesson that day in class.
Limitless Technology Avenues Follow Systems and Expectations
The researcher observed and heard about countless ways hardware and software were
used once technology infrastructure and expectations were established. This theme was
highlighted by the numerous ways the student laptops were used to access learning activities.
Teachers utilized the same laptops to perform functions of research, presentation, creation,
collaboration, assessment, formative feedback, monitoring student progress and accountability.
There were many different software applications and online resources used which were content-
specific. It became evident countless applications were available for just as many teaching and
learning purposes. Once the systems and infrastructure were in place to support instruction
through technology, teachers began to differentiate their digital teaching methods to best fit their
instructional goals. Thus, technology allowed for an expansion of possible teaching methods at
the disposal of each teacher.

TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 81

Transformative Teaching Practices and the TPACK Framework
It was vital to ground the research of this study in a conceptual model to frame its
direction and scope. This study used a modified version of Koehler and Mishra’s (2009)
Technology, Pedagogy, and Content Knowledge (TPACK) framework. This framework was
intended for use by teachers as a lesson planning system to support efforts to integrate
technology into their classrooms (Koehler & Mishra, 2009). The conceptual framework for this
case study took Koehler and Mishra’s three main areas of pedagogy, technology, and content
knowledge, and placed them within an encompassing context determined to be a school’s culture
and leadership (see Figure A). Although learning can happen within a single area or overlap of
two areas, the optimal environment for learning with technology will include content knowledge
and good teaching pedagogy.
There were two teaching practices observed at SCHS which incorporated all TPACK
areas and achieved the “sweet spot” of utilizing technology to build students’ content knowledge
through good teaching pedagogy. First, technology was utilized for student collaboration while
learning focused on a standards-based assignment. Second, technology was used for formative
assessments to help teachers more accurately aid students in further learning of content
knowledge. In accord with research on promising methods of technology usage, both practices
were grounded in Blended Learning, which involved a combination of face-to-face and digital
learning platforms. Also described below are additional ways in which the leadership and
culture influenced technology practice at the school.
There seemed to be a convergence of good teaching pedagogy and content learning, when
technology was used for student collaboration. Teachers utilized various Google tools to help
students collaborate on assignments. This collaboration allowed for students to learn from each
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other while maintaining individual accountability and teacher oversight. Not surprisingly, this
practice lent itself to a constructivist pedagogy, which appeared from research to claim the
strongest affiliation with successful practices of technology and learning. The teacher had
oversight of all projects with each student’s contribution highlighted in a different color. This
technology also made it easier for teachers to approach students and know exactly what they had,
or had not, completed. Thus, following up with students and giving further direction to help
their learning was more individualized and focused on any points of confusion.
A tangential but applicable observation was all students sitting in groups in every
classroom the researcher visited. The default student seating arrangement was in groups of four
or six. After a brief inquiry, sitting in groups was an expectation of the principal. This group
seating helped facilitate student discussions with each other as they each worked individually on
their joint Google project.
The use of technology by teachers for formative assessments and feedback appeared to
also hit the “sweet spot” of the TPACK framework. An example was when technology
facilitated a quick quiz at the beginning of class. The teacher had immediate results from this
quiz populate on his computer. What made this practice transformative was what the teacher
then did with that information. He was able to change the next five minutes of his instruction to
help the class with their specific points of confusion. This practice can be conducted by non-
digital means, however, it is usually time-consuming and labor intensive for the teacher to
extract learning trends or deficiencies. Technology also helps teachers with informal formative
assessments throughout a lesson sequence. In several examples observed during this study,
teachers would be observing ‘live feeds’ of Google projects while students simultaneously
worked on them. Teachers were able to accurately assess whether students understood the
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 83

content, directions, and tools to efficiently complete the learning task. After observing student
work, teachers were observed making instructional comments and compliments remotely from
their computer, walking over to have a more in depth discussion with specific students or groups,
and giving additional “bonus” tasks for students to go even farther in depth as was appropriate.
Thus, technology truly allows teachers to target instruction for their classes and individual
students.
School leadership and culture heavily influenced the use of technology at SCHS in
several ways. First, there was an expectation by school and district administration for
technology to be used by teachers for instruction. The principal stated this expectation as,
“…every student using technology every day, in every class.” Second, there was the expectation
of students sitting in groups which naturally led to greater collaboration and technology used for
collaborative purposes. Another influence was the investment and support of the district for
technology. The augmented infrastructure and the ongoing professional development and
coaching from DLCs led to greater technology usage. It was also noted by the researcher many
teachers said freely they would be much more hesitant to try new technology practices without
the encouragement and support of the DLCs. Finally, there was a murky message from
administration that teachers should be experimenting with technology in classes and it’s okay if
it fails a few times along the way. With a shared sentiment by district administration, the
principal was very clear in her message to teachers, “I think teachers should take it one step at a
time. Try it, fail, it’s okay to fail. That is how we often learn, by failing, take a risk!” The
researcher described this statement as “murky” because teachers were still unsure of how true
this sentiment from administration really was. Although this was the stated feeling of
administration, it had yet to be fully ingrained in the school culture. By several accounts in this
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study, the technology culture of the school was “emerging”. Teacher by teacher, lesson by
lesson, the technology culture was emerging.
Summary
The researcher presented the findings, themes and data analysis for the study. The
findings were presented according to the study’s three research questions. Findings from the
first research question included: types of technology available, access to technology, and
instructional technology practices and pedagogy. The focal area to support findings from the
second research question was to look at the perceived impact of technology. Findings from the
third research question included: teacher attitudes regarding technology, administrative attitudes
regarding technology, and district support of technology integration. All findings were discussed
in relation to the research question each supported or added perspective.
Reflecting on the findings from this investigation and guided by the research questions,
the researcher found five distinct themes supported by the triangulation of data. These five
themes which impacted technology use for teaching and learning at SCHS were the following:
1. There was a systematic and comprehensive approach to utilizing technology.
2. District leadership support of a technology focus and utilization was critical.
3. There were inherent challenges with technology.
4. Once systems, hardware, and expectations were in place, teachers utilized technology in
countless ways for teaching and learning.
5. Transformative teaching practices emerged through the lens of the TPACK theoretical
framework when technology was used for student collaboration and formative feedback.
These five themes were described, and the chapter concluded with a discussion regarding
the influence of school and district leadership on school culture and technology use.
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 85

CHAPTER FIVE: DISCUSSION
In recent years the discourse around the value of technology in education has been
disputed by scholars, educators, and laypeople. The role of computing technology in education
has been debated since the 1960’s when computers began to emerge corporately. This research
study investigated how technology was infused into one public high school to positively affect
student learning. The purpose of this study was to identify practices that promote the use of
technology which transform teaching and learning in a 21
st
century K-12 school. The research
was completed as a case study of a school that demonstrated academic success and a
commitment to technology integration. The researcher desired to ascertain how technology was
used in the classroom to further learning objectives. Additionally, the researcher sought to
discover the roles school climate and leadership played in the orchestration of existing and
prospect technology initiatives at the selected school.
Through the process of research and conducting this case study, the researcher desired to
share his conclusions and several considerations regarding the use of technology in K-12
schools. These considerations were categorized within the following three topics: implications
for education, recommendations for the educational field, and recommendations for further
research.
Implications for Education
The researcher is a practitioner in the educational field and has highlighted three
implications from this study where technology impacted students. These three related areas
were: socioeconomic divide with technology use, technology advantage or disadvantage
depending on the school or district, and preparing students for college and career readiness.
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 86

These three areas could potentially change a student’s college or career trajectory and thus
should be considered thoughtfully.
The first implication was the socioeconomic divide with technology use. This is the story
of the haves and the have-nots. Students in affluent areas with educated parents have a distinct
advantage in access, practice, tutelage, and expectations of technology usage. It is difficult for
socioeconomically disadvantaged students to initially perform at the same level as their peers
who have much more experience with various forms of technology. However, the more familiar
students become with technology, the smaller that gap also becomes. The observed one-to-one
program at SCHS made great strides to close the socioeconomic technology gap by giving every
student a laptop device and access to the internet. These students will have distinct advantages
over their peers in neighboring districts who share similar socioeconomic struggles, as they now
have increased technology access and practice.
To illustrate the concept of a one-to-one program reducing the socioeconomic technology
knowledge gap, refer to Figures B and C below. Both figures contain a proposed growth curve
of student learning and knowledge of technology. The curve has greater vertical rise and
demonstrates there is greater learning with items of access and tutelage. Although there is
continued growth with greater experience and practice, the learning increase is not as dramatic.
The “technologically proficient” standard was drawn at a probable point along a student’s
growth curve when they will have access to technology and enough time to become familiar with
it. This growth curve was developed with the understanding that access to technology is a
prerequisite for most areas of technology knowledge, and the learning curve is steepest closer to
initial exposure. Then, with more experience and practice with technology, students will
continue to increase their knowledge base and build on their initial learning.
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 87

Figure B demonstrates a proposed technology knowledge gap (blue shaded area) which exists
between the students who have access to technology throughout their day even when they are not
at school and students who only have access to technology sporadically and not at home. The
gap of technology knowledge is greater because with little or no access, students remain at the
initial stages of their technology growth and below the technologically proficient designation.
Meanwhile their counterparts who already have technology access continue to become more and
more advanced and are well above the technologically proficient designation.
Figure B: Proposed Typical Socioeconomic Gap of Technology Knowledge among Students

Figure B. Diagram of proposed technology knowledge gap (blue shaded area) which exists
between students who have access to technology throughout their day even when they are not
at school and students who only have access to technology sporadically and not at home.

TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 88

Figure C demonstrates the adjusted technology knowledge gap (blue shaded area) when all
students have access to technology. With the introduction of a one-to-one program introduced or
the availability of technology to go home with all students, the gap significantly shrinks.
Because the items of access are no longer a significant factor, the steepest part of the technology
growth curve is bypassed and the knowledge difference between the haves and the have-nots
shrinks. With a one-to-one program I would assert that all students’ technology knowledge will
increase, and there would remain a socioeconomic gap; however, the size of the gap would be
significantly reduced.
Figure C: Proposed Adjusted Socioeconomic Gap of Technology Knowledge among Students

Figure C. Diagram of proposed adjusted technology knowledge gap (blue shaded area) when
all students have access to technology. An example is with the introduction of a one-to-one
program or increased availability of technology to go home with all students.

TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 89

The second implication was the presence of a technology advantage or disadvantage
depending on the school or district in which a student enrolled. The district and community to
which SCHS belonged made a significant investment in technology. That level of investment for
infrastructure, hardware, software and professional development was above that of surrounding
districts. The level of technology present and expectations for use can impact the instructional
practices of teachers. Technology has the potential to better prepare students by instilling 21
st

Century Skills, but also can help teachers target specific learning objectives and individualize
instruction to a greater extent. With these distinctions, students have an advantage or
disadvantage simply based on which school or district they belong.
With just about every state in the nation adopting and considering new teaching standards
for education, there have been renewed efforts to adequately prepare students for their future.
Specifically, many states have backwards-planned their K-12 standards to specifically ensure
college and career readiness for students. These college and career readiness standards include
the principles of 21
st
Century Skills which can be taught with heightened learning through
various technologies. Technology is now pervasive in almost every aspect of commerce, and to
be career-ready students need to be both unintimidated by, and familiar with learning, new
technologies. Colleges are now moving to digital learning and management formats, and almost
all utilize an LMS for instructional purposes. Students who go to college already familiar with
utilizing technology for learning purposes will have a distinct advantage as they only need to be
focusing on content knowledge. Whereas, their peers who did not previously have access to
technologies must learn both the content knowledge and technology to access learning.

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Recommendations for the Education Field
Given the researcher’s knowledge and what was learned through conducting this study,
there were two large-scale recommendations for the educational field to consider. They were
concerning the creation of scope and sequence standards for technology, and whole-district
technology initiatives. Each of these items could be addressed by an individual district, or
possibly on a larger scale by a county or state.
The first of these recommendations was the introduction of a scope and sequence for
technology skills or standards through the progress of a K-12 education. The idea is the same as
scope and sequence models for other subjects like Math or English. Just as Math and English
standards build on themselves year-to-year, so too should technology skills. For example, all
third grade students could be expected to learn the use of a collaborative document program, like
Google Doc; then in the fourth grade, students would use the collaborative document program to
complete an advanced assignment and share it with others in their class. Thus, technology skills
would build and expand throughout a student’s education.
There would be several practical benefits realized by students including the progressive
building of technology skills. The principal of SCHS keyed into this idea during her interview
and mentioned the utility of such a system. Teachers at each grade level could expect students to
enter their classes with certain technology skills and know which skills they are responsible for
teaching the first time. This model would also ensure a breadth of technology skills and
experiences for each student regardless of teacher. In this way, a district or Local Education
Agency (LEA) could prepare all students for the technology components of true college and
career readiness.
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 91

The second recommendation was considering whole-system technology initiatives. One
main reason the researcher believed SCHS found success in their transition to one-to-one
technology was the influence and support of the district. For schools to effectively purchase,
maintain and implement a technology-rich learning environment, the intervention of district
resources becomes an essential partner. The amount of financial capital needed to initiate and
maintain technology hardware and infrastructure could be a deterrent to ever getting started for
individual schools. With district support, professional development can also be universal in its
implementation and can fund resources like DLCs to support solid teaching pedagogy.
In considering a district-wide implementation of technology initiatives, there are a few
ideas the researcher believes are keys to success. First, having a formalized coaching
professional development plan is the most significant mechanism leading to successful execution
while maintaining desired teaching pedagogical fidelity. Second, was establishing a culture of
learning through mistakes and ‘messiness’. Teachers need to feel it is okay to make mistakes,
and their efforts to use technology in new ways are celebrated even when lessons do not turn out
as planned or hoped. Third, infrastructure must be in place before devices are purchased or
delivered to school sites. Also, interested districts should consult similar LEAs which have
already applied necessary changes to infrastructure; common understanding at SCHS was it took
four times the amount of infrastructure investment originally thought was needed. Fourth, a
district must have all departments involved and articulate a clear plan for ongoing
communication. It will be a joint effort of a district Information Technology (IT) department,
educational services department, personnel department, business department, public relations
department, etc. An initiative of this magnitude will have effects and crossover into the whole
district system, not just working with the IT department. The fifth and final key to success was
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 92

early and often communication with the community or other primary source of support and
funding. If there has been significant outlay by the community, there needs to be good
communication with them regarding progress on their investment.
Recommendations for Further Research
Through the experience and knowledge gained from this study, there were several
recommendations for future research. Additional studies which could strengthen the research
around K-12 technology usage schools include:
 A study on how school size impacts the success of technology integration. Is there a
relationship between student population (number of students) and student academic
outcomes? Are successful methods scalable?
 A study which examines school or districtwide technology initiatives and the effect of
their various professional development models on student achievement.
 A comparative study to investigate actual benefits for students who participated in one-
to-one technology programs versus students in traditional educational environments. Are
there implications for college and career readiness?
 A study which examines the socioeconomic technology gap. Is this gap quantifiable?
What factors make the greatest impact in closing this gap?
Conclusions
Through the process of research and conducting this case study, the researcher drew
several conclusions regarding the use of technology in K-12 schools. Each conclusion was
drawn through the findings in regard to each research question. In efforts to utilize technology
for learning, the first inquiry was what technology was present to support teaching and learning.
Findings from the first research question included: types of technology available, access to
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 93

technology, and instructional technology practices and pedagogy. In efforts to utilize technology
for teaching and learning, the next inquiry was how technology was perceived to support
teaching and learning. The focal area to support findings from the second research question was
to look at the perceived impact of technology. In efforts to utilize technology for teaching and
learning, the third inquiry was who or what influences technology use to support teaching and
learning. Findings from the third research question included: teacher attitudes regarding
technology, administrative attitudes regarding technology, and district support of technology
integration.
Reflecting on the findings from this investigation and guided by the research questions,
the researcher found five distinct themes supported by the triangulation of data. These five
themes which impacted technology use for teaching and learning at SCHS were the following:
1. There was a systematic and comprehensive approach to utilizing technology.
2. District leadership support of a technology focus and utilization was critical.
3. There were inherent challenges with technology.
4. Once systems, hardware, and expectations were in place, teachers utilized technology in
countless ways for teaching and learning.
5. Transformative teaching practices emerged through the lens of the TPACK theoretical
framework when technology was used for student collaboration and formative feedback.
These five themes were described with the fifth theme highlighting findings of this study through
the TPACK conceptual framework model. There were two teaching practices observed at SCHS
which incorporated all TPACK areas and got to the “sweet spot” of utilizing technology to build
students’ content knowledge through good teaching pedagogy. First, technology was utilized
for student collaboration while learning focused on a standards-based assignment. Second,
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 94

technology was used for formative assessments to help teachers more accurately aid students in
further learning of content knowledge.
Final Thought
To be transformative, educators should strive to incorporate technology with some form
of Blended Learning through a constructivist teaching pedagogy. Although this is not the only
way to achieve learning results utilizing technology, it does appear to consistently produce
positive learning results. Both the research and data from this case study indicate positive
student outcomes from students utilizing technology to construct and build knowledge rather
than having teachers simply transfer knowledge. Teaching pedagogy has more of an impact on
teaching and learning than which technology is utilized.
This study has shaped my vision for classroom instruction. My instructional vision has
shifted to the following: “In every classroom, students are sitting in small groups engaged in
rigorous thought and dialogue while focused on learning. The teacher’s role has shifted from the
imparter of knowledge to the facilitator of learning.” Technology is not a necessary component
of this vision because great teaching and learning can be accomplished independent of
technology; however, adding technology can greatly enhance the efficiency, collaboration and
depth of learning outcomes in addition to augmenting students with 21
st
Century Skills.

TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 95

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TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 103

Appendix A
Teacher Interview Protocol

RQ1: What technology is present at the school?

1. What types of technology are being used in your classroom?

2. What kinds of personal experiences have provided the knowledge and motivation for you
to successfully integrate technology into your classroom?

3. What kinds of professional experiences have provided the knowledge and motivation for
you to successfully integrate technology into your classroom?

4. What impact has school leadership had on your use of technology?

5. How would you describe the technology culture at your school?

6. What challenges have you faced when integrating technology in your classroom?

RQ2: How is technology used as a tool of instruction in the classroom?

1. Who uses technology in your classroom? For what purpose?

2. What learning outcomes are associated with technology use and how might students
demonstrate mastery using technology?

3. Where (in what learning activities) do you integrate technology into daily classroom
practice?

RQ3: What is the impact of technology on teaching and learning?
What are educators’ (teachers and administrators) general attitudes and beliefs about the use
of technology in daily classroom practice?

1. What are your general feelings about the role of technology in education?
Probing questions:
a. In preparing students for higher education?
b. In promoting career readiness?

2. What do you consider to be the benefits and possible constraints of integrating
technology into your classroom?

3. Are there times when you choose not to use technology for instruction? When? Why?

4. What advice would you give to teachers as they begin to integrate technology into their
classroom?

5. How has technology enabled you to shift the responsibility of learning from you to your
students?
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 104

Appendix B
Administrator Interview Protocol

RQ1: What technology is present at the school?

1. What types of technology are being used in your school?

2. What kinds of personal experiences have provided the knowledge and motivation for you
to successfully integrate technology into your school?

3. What kinds of professional experiences have provided the knowledge and motivation for
you to successfully integrate technology into your school?

4. How would you describe the technology culture at your school?

5. What challenges have you faced when integrating technology in your school?

RQ2: How is technology used as a tool of instruction in the classroom?

1. Who uses technology in your classrooms? For what purpose?

2. What learning outcomes are associated with technology use?

3. Where (in what learning activities) is technology integrated into daily classroom
practice?

4. How do students demonstrate mastery using technology?

RQ3: What is the impact of technology on teaching and learning?
What are educators’ (teachers and administrators) general attitudes and beliefs about the use
of technology in daily classroom practice?

1. What are your general feelings about the role of technology in education?
Probing questions:
a. In preparing students for higher education?
b. In promoting career readiness?

2. What do you consider to be the benefits and possible constraints of integrating
technology into your school?

3. In what ways has your professional development enabled teachers to create student-
centered learning environments?

4. What advice would you give to teachers and administrators as they begin to integrate
technology?

TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 105

Appendix C
Classroom Observation Protocol

Teacher _______________________________ Date _______________________
School ________________________________ Grade/Subject: _______________
Observer _______________________________ Time: _______________________

Research Questions
1. What technology is present and how is it used as a tool of instruction in the classroom?
2. What is the perceived impact of technology on teaching and learning?
3. In what ways does the school climate support the integration of technology? Where does the
leadership come from?

Classroom Environment
Student Seating Arrangement
 Take a picture/video of classroom before students enter
Number of Students:
Teacher Proximity to Students:
Teacher in front of class, Teacher
moves around, Teacher works
with groups, Teacher behind
desk, etc.

Location of Technology:
Technology in front of classroom,
Technology at student desks

Use of wall space:
To display student work, To aid
in learning, etc.

Additional Classroom Environment Notes

TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 106

What technology tools available at the school are actually being used in the classroom?
Technology used Who is using
technology?
How and to what purpose is the technology being used?

__ Active Board
__ Clickers
__ IPods
__ IPads
__ Internet Videos
__ Power Points
___ Visuals
___ Audio
___ Internet
___Websites
___ Doc Cams
___ Other:
________________
________________

___ Teacher
___ Student
___ Both
___ Other

How are the technology tools used to aid student learning?
Learning Objective:

Desired Student
Outcome:

How is technology
being used to
accomplish learning
objective?
 Motivation
 Engagement
 CFU
 Communication
 Research
 Differentiation
 Creating project
 Assessment
 Other

Are the technology
tools as stated in
interviews and
survey being used in
classrooms?

TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 107

Observation Notes

TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 108

Appendix D
Staff Survey

Personal Demographics

1. Which of the following age groups are you?
24 years and younger
24-30 years old
30-40 years old
40+ years old

2. How long have you been teaching?
0-2 years
3-5 years
6-10 years
10+ years

3. What is your current skill level with technology?
“I avoid it” to novice
Somewhat proficient
Proficient
Advanced

4. What is your role at the school? Please check all that apply.
Teacher
Grade-level or Department Chair
Committee Chair (or equivalent)
Instructional Coach or Specialist
District Representative
Administrator
Site-based Technology Point Person
Other _______ (or text box)

Technology Access

5. What technology hardware do you have in your classroom?

6. What technology software is available for classroom use?

7. What is the structure in place at your school for your students to gain access to additional
technology outside of what is present in your classroom?

TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 109

Technology Policies

8. Please check all of the policies that are in place at your school site.
Acceptable use policy
Security policy
Etiquette policy (i.e. cyber-bullying, etc.)
Parent contract/agreement for take-home usage

Technology and Instruction

9. I have been integrating technology into my daily lessons for…
0-1 years
2-3 years
4-5 years
5+ years

10. I believe that technology has positively impacted the quality of my instruction.
Absolutely
For the most part
Somewhat
Not at all

11. My professional development prepared me to incorporate 21
st
century learning skills on a
daily basis in my classroom.
Absolutely
For the most part
Somewhat
Not at all

12. My professional development prepared me for the use of technology in my classroom.
Absolutely
For the most part
Somewhat
Not at all

13. How often do you incorporate technology into your daily lessons?
Never
Sometimes
Most of the time
Always

14. The administrative team actively supports the integration of technology into the school’s
classrooms.
Never
Sometimes
Most of the time
Always

TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 110

15. I believe that technology positively impacts student creativity.
Never
Sometimes
Most of the time
Always

16. I believe that technology integration requires student collaboration.
Never
Sometimes
Most of the time
Always

17. I believe that technology is relevant for both student engagement and student achievement.
Absolutely
For the most part
Somewhat
Not at all

18. The school’s investment in technology has proven worth its cost.
Absolutely
For the most part
Somewhat
Not at all

19. Technology has impacted teaching in what way?
Significantly enhanced teaching
Has somewhat improved teachers’ ability to instruct and manage
Has had a slightly negative impact on the teaching profession
Has proved subversive to the abilities and missions of teachers

20. I feel confident when integrating technology into my classroom instruction.
Absolutely
For the most part
Somewhat
Not at all

TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 111

Appendix E
Document Inventory

RQ 1: What technology is present at the school?
Data Needs
● What are the technology categories?
Hardware (comp, tablets; ancillary-extra
tech-LCD, Elmo, Smartboard, etc; web-
based curriculum (APEX), software
(programs),

● # of hardware available

Documents
❏ CDE-DataQuest
❏ WASC
❏ Title 1 inventory
❏ School websites
❏ News articles
❏ School site plan
❏ Common Core Technology
Expenditure Plans
❏ School Accountability Report
Card (SARC)
❏ Technology Plan

● Frequency of access to and use of
technology

Documents
❏ Schedule-sign-up sheets for
technology use
❏ Computer Lab or cart Sign ups
❏ AP/Tech Director tracking
forms

● Policies in place within the schools for
technology

Documents:
❏ School site plan
❏ Teacher Handbook
❏ WASC
❏ LEA/LCAP (local education
agency plan)

● PD’s – instructional strategies

Documents:
❏ District-wide PD Pacing plan
❏ School-wide PD Pacing plan
❏ LEA plan/LCAP
❏ Common Core Plans

● Obstacles and challenges the school has
overcome

Documents:
❏ WASC

TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 112

RQ 2: How is technology used as a tool of instruction in the classroom?
Data Needs

Understand models of technology
integration at the school

Documents:
❏ School Site Plan
❏ WASC
❏ School website
❏ Teacher-Student School Handbook
❏ PD plan
What technology tools available at the
school are actually being used in the
classroom?
Documents:
❏ School Accountability Report Card (SARC)
❏ Schedule-sign-up sheets for technology use
❏ Computer Lab or cart Sign ups
❏ AP/Tech Director tracking forms

How long has the technology been
available at the school?

Documents:
❏ WASC
❏ CDE
How long have the observed teachers
implemented the technology tools?

Documents:

How are the technology tools used to aid
student learning?

Documents: Student achievement data
❏ CST Data
❏ District benchmarks Data
❏ Classroom Grade Data
❏ Teacher Assessments
❏ Single Site Plan
What PD or training has impacted use of
technology tools?
Documents:
❏ PD/Training Teacher Evaluation Forms
❏ WASC
What are the district/school policies on
technology integration?
Documents:
❏ District-wide policy
❏ School-wide policy
❏ WASC
❏ SSPSA
❏ LCAP
Student achievement data Documents:
❏ CDE
❏ Data Quest
❏ CASHEE
Forms and observational tools Documents:
❏ Copy of observation form
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY 113

RQ 3: What is the perceived impact of technology on teaching and learning?
Data Needs
Admin, teachers, students and parents will all be data
sources.

Documents:
❏ Year End Evaluation Data
❏ WASC (perception data)
We’re looking for opinions, beliefs, values, and
efficacy
Documents:
❏ WASC (perception data)
The relationship between inputs and outputs on the
campus.

Documents:
❏ WASC
❏ School Site Plan
Sub-questions
● How is tech being used in the classrooms?
● Has tech impacted the quality of instruction?
● Has tech brought additional challenges to the
classroom?
● How has tech impacted teacher efficacy? Student
efficacy?
● Has the investment made in tech been worth the
cost?
Documents:
❏ WASC
❏ School Site Plan

Abstract (if available)

Abstract This qualitative case study applies the Technology, Pedagogy, and Content Knowledge (TPACK) framework to understand the integration and perceived impact of technology on teaching and learning. The purpose of this study was to identify practices that promote the use of technology which transform teaching and learning in a 21st century K-12 school. This study also sought to discover the roles school climate and leadership played in the orchestration of existing and prospect technology initiatives at the school. The research questions focused on three key areas: access and types of technology, instructional practices and pedagogy, and school climate and leadership. The researcher studied a public high school in California which demonstrated academic success and a commitment to meaningful technology integration. Data were collected through a staff survey, interviews, observations, and document analysis. Findings from this study indicate transformative teaching practices through the lens of the TPACK theoretical framework include utilizing technology for student collaboration and formative assessments to help teachers more accurately aid students in learning. Learning outcomes were perceived to increase when technology was used for peer‐to‐peer collaboration, and when used for formative feedback enabling instructors to immediately address gaps in student learning. A systematic and comprehensive approach to utilizing technology was found including support from site and district leadership. Implications from this study include socioeconomic and geographic factors which effect students’ 21st Century Skills and their college and career readiness.

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Asset Metadata

Creator Lambert, Matthew P. (author)

Core Title Technology practices and 21st century learning: a high school case study

School Rossier School of Education

Degree Doctor of Education

Degree Program Education (Leadership)

Publication Date 03/20/2015

Defense Date 03/02/2015

Publisher University of Southern California (original), University of Southern California. Libraries (digital)

Tag 21st century learning,Education,High School,Learning,OAI-PMH Harvest,tech,Technology,TPACK,transformative teaching

Format application/pdf (imt)

Language English

Contributor Electronically uploaded by the author (provenance)

Advisor Gothold, Stuart E. (committee chair), Hocevar, Dennis (committee member), Roach, John A. (committee member)

Creator Email lamb067@usc.edu,mlambert@ggusd.us

Permanent Link (DOI) https://doi.org/10.25549/usctheses-c3-540032

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Legacy Identifier etd-LambertMat-3237.pdf

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Document Type Dissertation

Format application/pdf (imt)

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