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tssN1449-6801

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logs,wikis,podcastsorustan LMS?what letter are we up to now? weembracede-learning,but now itseemswe haveto move into m-learningand i-learning. esthat'sdefiitelyan italic'i'!What is this new languagewehave all hadto learn?And what happenso those of us whohaveustmasteredastyear'svocabulary only tofind there'sanewsetorthisyear?Neverbeforehave we hadsuch an array oftechnologiesvailable o support eachingandlearning.But whichdoweuse,why, when, whereand how?The answer squitesimple theresonly onetechnologyto use-the RIGHT ne! But how dowe choose he right one and s one enough? s tthe latesthigh ech machine hatgoes'Bing!'?rcould t be assimoleas a CD?There are many ways of categorising earningtechnologies. For ourpurposeshere, I havedivided them into two categories:1.Distributed2. nteractiveDistributedimpliesone-way deliverywithno interaction between teacher andlearnersor among learners, or example,print,podcasts.(Althoughyoucanbuildinsomedelayed interaction aroundthese using othertechnologies.)Interactive refersto delivery modes thatprovidefor interaction among allparticipantsnvarious ways. nteractivecan be further dividedintotwo categories:1 Synchronousreal-time),orexample,audio,web and videoconferencing,nstantmessagingand chat.2. Asynchronousdelayedime), or example,email,bulletinboards,istservs,logsHow manytimeshaveyouheard about theintroduction of these technologies withgreatfanfare only to hear no more aboutthem?Spectacular failures have been rampantandone must ask,'Why?iSomequestionscomeimmediately o mind:Who madethe decisions?With whomdidthey consult?Onwhatbasiswashis echnologychosen?What wastheinputof those expectedto use t?

ChoosingTheRightTechnology

I see wo levelsat which technological decisionsare made inalearning organization.The firstis the initial decision topurchaseand haveavailable aparticulartechnology foruse byteachers.The second is the decision-makino

CHOOSINGEARNINGECHNOLOGIESS*FFIJVJAR****LEE&€F*EE

processengagedby the teacher foreachparticularearningexperience.There are a numberof issues o be consideredandanumberofpeopleo be consultedwhenconsidering a new technology.

Establishourneeds then choosethetechnology

Your needsshould alwaysdictatewhich(ifany)technologyshouldbe used.A common mistakeis tostartwiththe technology and then findause or it. Anytechnology should beustanotherdelivery oolFocus on the learnersand their nieds,the teachers and their needs.What areyourobjectives?Doyouneed to have high levelinteractionand the abilityto show movingimages?hequestiono asks:whichmediumwill BEST convey my message?For example,accountingprinciplescan be effectivelyaughtthrough text and diagrams,but brain surgerydefinitely eeds ome moving colour mages!lfyouneed a high level ofperson-to-personinteraction inyourcourse, then one of thesynchronousechnologieswill be needed.

Lookat therangeof technologies-do not be seducedyjust one.

Therearea numberof echnologies hat may suityourneeds.No singleechnology s superior oall he others. t is veryeasy o become entrancedbythelatest,whichhasflashinglights'andallsorts ofbellsand whistlesiLook carefullyatyourneeds and objectives.(Doyouhave needs andobjectives?Or areyoujustbuying into technology forthe sakeof it?)There are a seriesofquestionsto ask here:Do I needsound,colour and/or motion? Howavailable/ accessible sthistechnology?Willthe students have easyaccess toitand becomfortable using it? How much does itcost-andhowmuch money do I have?

Includehe users nyourselectionprocess

lfthe usersdo not like he technology hey willnot use it! lt's amazing how manygoodreasonsthey will find not to use it.Or theymaysimplyignore itandgotheir own way.I constantly work withorganisations thathave'imposed'a technologybecause theChief ExecutiveOfficer and/or the lnformationTechnologysection have decided that'this is heway togoiTheamountof time that it then takesto change the negative attitudes of teachersandstudentsistotally counterproductive. Insome cases, esistancehas beenso high thatthe implementationf thetechnologyhas ailedcompletely.Technologistsare verygoodat knowingthetechnology, butoften do not haveeducationalexperience.They shouldbepartofyourteam,but remember,hey are seeingthe technologywith a differentset ofvalues toeducators.Teachershould be includedon thepanelthat selects any newtechnology. Theyknowwhat they needin order toteach effectivelyand canevaluatehow a newtechnologycouldenhance heirteaching.After all,here is no useintroducinga new technology !fit is notgoingtoenhance he teaching/learningrocess.

Considerhe needsofyourearners

Learning sabout learners.ustas eachers aveto be comfortable withanewtechnology,so dothe learners.e sure thatyouare not limitingaccessby some students throughthe choiceofyourtechnology.For example,he introductionof videoconferencingwillprecludeany studentswhodo not have accesso broadband.Also considerthelearningstylesofyourstudents.Some willpreferlearningthroughinteraction with vision,while otherswill notrespondo this so well.

Whichwilllchoose?

Given that an organisation hasmade informeddecisions aboutthe technologiesthat areavailable,you,as teacher, face thetask ofincorporatingthese intoyourlearningprogram.In orderto make informed decisions,t isnecessaryo understand he technologiestheirootentialand imitations.

Whatare he technologies?

We do not haveenough space hereto take anin-depth ook at the availableechnologies,utifyouare not familiar withany of the following,lsuggestyoulook themup in wikipedia(www.wikipedia.org).ll ofthese are being usedto some degree or teachingand earning:.Email.Bulletin boards, iscussion ists, istservs.CDs,DVDs.InstantMessaging.SMS& MMS.Chat.Blogstext, audio andvideo.Wikis.LearnerManagementSystems.Audio,web,video conferencing.Audio and videostreaming