Table Of ContentBest Practices for
Technology-Enhanced
Teaching and Learning
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Best Practices for
Technology-Enhanced
Teaching and Learning
Connecting to Psychology and the Social
Sciences
Edited by
Dana S. Dunn , Janie H. Wilson ,
James E. Freeman , Jeffrey R. Stowell
1
2 011
1
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Best practices for technology-enhanced teaching and learning :
connecting to psychology and the social sciences / edited by
Dana S. Dunn ... [et al.].
p. cm.
Includes index.
ISBN 978-0-19-973318-7 1. Internet in education. 2. Computer-assisted instruction.
3. Distance education. 4. Educational psychology. 5. Educational technology—Study and
teaching. 6. Science—Study and teaching. I. Dunn, Dana.
LB1051.B469 2011
371.33'44678—dc22
2010025249
9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Printed in the United States of America
on acid-free paper
For Bill Hill
Teacher, Leader, Friend
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Foreword
When I was invited to write the foreword for this book, I was fl attered
but perplexed. Never having written a foreword before and not being
especially prone to reading them, I wondered what, exactly, I had agreed to.
My fi rst action was to swivel in my desk chair and see what other people had
written in forewords to other books on my shelves. The only one I found, by
William Buskist in a previous book in this series (B est Practices for Teaching
Statistics and Research Methods in the Behavioral Sciences, 2007), gave me an
excellent model to follow, but I was uncomfortable with a single sample and
did not have other examples at my fi ngertips. Or did I? What if I searched the
Internet? A few words typed into the search engine and, as the French would
say, voilà . Examples, defi nitions, and how-to-write-one advice. Ah technol-
ogy! Some of us may be slow on the up-take, but we get there eventually.
If you see yourself in my example, thinking of technology only after
trying a strategy that has worked for you in the past, this book is for you. And
if you don’t see yourself in my example, being either less or more techno-
logically sophisticated than I, this book is still for you because it covers the
gamut. Some chapters have the novice (technophobe, Luddite) in mind, gently
urging dipping one’s toes in the ocean of features available. Others have more
adventurous and experienced users (technophiles, Geeks) in mind.
According to the Internet sources I consulted, it is not my job as fore-
word writer to point out which chapter is which–that’s a job for the editors
viii Foreword
in their Introduction. But it is my job to urge you to sample at least some of
the chapters. The book is not, after all, like a novel that must be read cover-
to-cover to make sense of the plot. You might pick and choose from the
Table of Contents based on the specifi c technological tools, such as presenta-
tion slides (AKA Microsoft PowerPoint ® ), “clickers,” YouTube videos, course
management systems (e.g., Blackboard Academic Suite™ , Moodle™ ), inter-
active whiteboards, and virtual worlds (e.g., Second Life ® ); you can choose
based on the type of course (hybrid, wholly on-line, wholly face-to-face) or
task you face (e.g., advising, encouraging student interaction or collabora-
tion, quizzing); or you can choose based on the authors, although I would
be hard pressed not to just read the book from cover to cover if authorship
were my criterion. Many of these authors are my dear colleagues. Some
I have met at an earlier Best Practices conference. Others have corresponded
concerning a manuscript they submitted to T eaching of Psychology or a
resource they submitted to the Offi ce of Teaching Resources in Psychology
(OTRP). They may have served as reviewers for OTRP resources. We may
have met over grading Advanced Placement tests or on the Executive
Committee of the Society for the Teaching of Psychology (STP, which has
sponsored this book). No matter the venue, I have come to respect their
energy, their enthusiasm for the enterprise of teaching that we share, and
most importantly, their expertise that they now share with you.
As I read their chapters, I was impressed by how down-to-earth these
authors are. Their advice is practical. They anticipate what questions you’ll
have and offer answers; they anticipate your problems and offer strategies for
problem-solving; they anticipate your reluctance to try something new and
offer encouragement. So let me do the same: Should you read this book?
Yes. It is often as important to know what does not appeal to you as to know
what does, so reading about the pros and cons of the particular advances in
technology these authors cover is useful information. How can you choose
from the vast array of suggestions they offer? Figure out what element of your
course is most in need of a fresh approach and start with chapters that
address your immediate concerns. Is it worth trying to learn to use a new
technology? Yes, in general, but perhaps No in a few instances, and authors
of this marvelous volume tell you which is which through their empirical
data and personal experiences. Both the faint of heart and the brave can
wade into the technology ocean and not fear drowning, and all can learn
something new from this volume. Enjoy!
Ruth L. Ault, Davidson College
Preface
The days of the mimeographed handout are over, and those of the
marked up transparencies are numbered. Laptops, cell phones, and
MP3 players abound. Technology is all around us and, as much as it is a
cliché, it’s quite true that it is always changing. Technology is also affecting
how educators teach. How can teachers keep up with new and ever more
recent advances? How should instructors use technology to improve teaching
and learning in their classes? What technological tools are appropriate for
different purposes? These and other pressing questions affect teachers in all
kinds of educational settings along the secondary to post-secondary spec-
trum. At some point, even the most technologically-cautious instructor must
take the leap and integrate some new technology into their teaching.
We developed this book to help teachers everywhere on the technology
of teaching continuum—from simple to savvy to sophisticated—think about
how current and emerging tools in our increasingly digital age can positively
impact their students, whether close at hand or in virtual communities. Thus,
this book discusses a variety of timely issues related to best practices for
teaching well with technological enhancements, including:
• How teachers who eschew technology can learn to use it wisely
• Ways that technology can foster collaboration among students,
as well as between students and faculty
