Research Interests

Hector Escalante
Educ 352
10/17/2014
My research interest is to explore how educational technology could and does impact
adult education environment such as universities and workplace environments. I plan on
researching educational technologys history to gain a foundation upon which to build a better
understanding of current practices with higher education and staff development.
I especially want to explore educational technology and its usage and impact on adult
learners in university level teaching and learning, but I am also interested in how adults learn in
the workplace environment. Learning and development occurs in many companies and
universities; however, some higher level leaders in many organizations question the validity and
value of staff training. Consequently, Im interested in measuring how well adult learners learn in
training or staff development events, and how educational technology could impact learning.
I also would like to explore distributive learning in higher education and the workplace.
This is a broad area, so I will focus on how adults could and do learn using technology such as
MOOCs and other multi-media approaches to instructional delivery..
In short, my specific areas of interests are educational technologys history, current
practice and impact on adult learning environments, and future practices and possible impacts on
adult learning in both higher education and the workplace.
Questions That Will Drive My Research
The following is my first attempt at narrowing down questions that could and will drive my
research:
1. In what ways has and could hybrid approaches to instructional delivery, such as mobile apps,
web-based media, streaming video, and face-to-face classroom time, impact adult education and
staff development?
2. How has the use of educational technology in the classroom changed over the course of the last
100 years and what could this information tell me regarding current educational technology
practices?
3. How might I better understand educational technologys currently usage and impact in the
university classroom?