New Methods of Evaluating Technology in Education

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 Abstract

This research seeks to enrich the quality of outcomes realized from applying and evaluating

technologies applied in education. The presence of technology in almost all sectors has been

helpful and supportive. Considering these technological advancements and applications, it

has become possible for individuals and sectors to achieve better and more compelling

outcomes because they can learn more and adjust their technology-based programs. There is a

gap in knowledge on the existing methods and approaches that can be employed in evaluating

technology applied in education in education. This gap has continued to create more

differences between the desired outcomes and the quality of remedies and inputs. The

research study takes an exploratory and qualitative methodological approach. There has been

extensive research work on the subject of technology use in education. The studies trace

several decades. Some take a pre-application approach, while some take a post-application

approach. The studies that take a pre-application approach were conducted when technology

in education was a new concept and thus needed more examination and studies before

implementing it. Much of the insights relating to the evaluation of technologies in education

are more hesitant to be conclusive and certain when comparing them to more recent ones.

The thesis is of the position that while there is a range of evaluation methods existing,

learning is the most compelling one because learning as an approach to evaluating technology

is wholly in tandem with learning as a function of education. The study argues that the

advantages and disadvantages of the methods used to evaluate technology in education can

best be examined and assessed by evaluating the universally acceptable principles of correct

learning.
Table of Contents

Abstract.....................................................................................................................................2

1.0 Chapter 1: Introduction and Background.......................................................................6

1.1 Introduction....................................................................................................................6

1.2 Problem Statement.........................................................................................................7

1.3 Research Objectives.......................................................................................................8

1.4 Research Questions........................................................................................................8

1.5 Significance of the Study...............................................................................................8

1.6 Theoretical Framework.................................................................................................9

2.0 Methodology................................................................................................................11

2.0.0 Introduction...............................................................................................................11

2.1 Selection of Relevant Literature.................................................................................12

2.2 Conducting the Study and Reporting its Findings....................................................13

3.0 Literature Review........................................................................................................14

3.1 Introduction..................................................................................................................14

3.2 Educational Technologies............................................................................................14

3.2.1 Learning.................................................................................................................15

3.2.2: Affective Elements...............................................................................................16

3.2.2a Behavior...............................................................................................................16

3.3 Distance Education Evaluation...................................................................................17

3.4 Interactive Media Evaluation......................................................................................21

3.5 Understanding Evaluations of Technology in Education.........................................26

3.5.1 Advantages of Evaluation of Technology in Education.....................................29

3.5.2 Disadvantages of Evaluating Technology in Education....................................31

4.0 Chapter 4: Findings.........................................................................................................33

4.1 Introduction..................................................................................................................33
 4.2 Role of Technology in Education................................................................................33

4.2.1 Effective Learning, Teaching, and Intensification of Education......................33

4.2.2 Student Creativities and Motivation...................................................................34

4.2.3 Instilling Students with the ability to be Independent when Conducting their
Studies.............................................................................................................................34

4.2.4 Improved Communication and Research...........................................................35

4.2.5 Bringing Large Volume of Tasks Into Earlier Completion Thus Saving Time
..........................................................................................................................................35

4.3 Risks of Using Technology in Education....................................................................36

4.4 Findings on RQ1: Existing Methods of Evaluating Technology used in Education

..............................................................................................................................................38

4.5 Findings on RQ2: Advantages and Disadvantages of Using Methods of Evaluating

Technology in Education...................................................................................................40

4.6 Challenges Limiting the Study....................................................................................41

5.0 Chapter 5: Conclusion and Further Research..............................................................44

5.1 Introduction..................................................................................................................44

5.2 Discussion......................................................................................................................44

References...............................................................................................................................47
 1.0 Chapter 1: Introduction and Background

1.1 Introduction

Throughout this decade, governments have made significant investments in various

technology instruments for use in school environments. Numerous instructors and learners

incorporate various advanced learning technologies in the teaching-learning process. The use

of technology to promote learning has already gained momentum, particularly with the

development of COVID-19 since the stringent rules to prevent the further spreading of the

virus. Various research studies have increased to assess education technology efficacy, as

investors in the education field integrate technology into many curricula. Attempts to show

the value and usefulness of technology in educational institutions have gained pace through

expanding conversations about technology's efficacy in education (Cruz et al. 2020). As a

result, the requirement for research to depict the impact of technology in education can play a

significant role in improving educational performance. Different research studies have been

performed to provide better guidance on technological application in education.

Different research studies have been performed to provide better guidance on

technological application in education. Lucas et al. (2017) indicated four major viewpoints

for the evaluation of educational technology. One role is focused on the defined aims and

goals of particular innovation in education. The second viewpoint contrasts with the other

education methods, while the third examines the costs and advantages predicted by

understanding advanced learning technology. The final position examines the requirements

for a specific philosophy of social and schooling. This research study evaluates the

effectiveness of the use of technology in education for high school students.

1.2 Problem Statement

Research study aim at identifying the effectiveness and quality of the use of

technology in education. The research study attempts to identify the challenges and

opportunities that prevail due to technology in education. As technology continues to evolve

in the education sector, the stakeholders continue to enact adequate strategies to conform to

the new learning environment (Lai & Bower, 2019). However, there have been inadequate

measures to evaluate the performance of the technology in education. The difficulties in

evaluating technology are due to the different objectives of the learning institutions.

The current evaluation methods lack adequacy in improving the quality of technology

in the education system (Chauhan, 2017). The differences in evaluation methods create a

significant gap in education standards established in various countries. In addition, the

different levels of education make it challenging to establish standardized evaluation methods

(Chauhan, 2017). The main issue is to determine the best and appropriate evaluation methods

that can enhance learners' performance. Cam & Tran (2017) argue that the differences in

educational programs such as subjects, topics, courses, and lessons make it challenging to

find a standardized evaluation of technology education to be applied across all schools.

Other researchers have evaluated new technology assessment techniques in the

education industry. Since various evaluation techniques have been developed for these

research projects, it is essential to evaluate current interactive media and distance education

regarding teaching, learning, and even behavior. Essentially, few research papers have tried

to determine the techniques utilized to assess technology in the educational sector. The

suggested study tries to overview the novel assessment methods offered by different

academics. In this way, the research will try to disclose the findings of various researchers

regarding the application of interactive media and distance learning in education.

1.3 Research Objectives

To ensure the successful completion of the study, the study needs to identify the

appropriate aims and objectives. The aims and objectives will guide the process of

conducting the research study. In this proposed study, the research will be guided by four

major goals and objectives, which are as follows.

1. Overview of all existing evaluations of technology in education (based on literature).

2. Overview of advantages and disadvantages (and risks) of methods of evaluation of

technology in education.

1.4 Research Questions

Based on the research objective, the study developed four main research questions

that are as follows.

1. What are the existing evaluation methods of technology in education?

2. What are the advantages and disadvantages of using different evaluations of

technology in education?

1.5 Significance of the Study

The study aims at investigating the education systems in education. The education

system in the current learning process lacks inadequate measures to determine how they

improve students' performance. The performance of students should not be based on

curriculum rather the academic performance. The study attempts to evaluate students'

performance to develop appropriate measures to improve the education system in the current

age of technological developments. The research study will achieve this by identifying the

new evaluation methods for education technology and comparing their effectiveness.

Furthermore, the study will attempt to identify the weaknesses and strengths

associated with each of the evaluation strategies of educational technology. Evaluating the
performance of the technology in education can take various forms that depend on the aims

and objectives of organizations (Vlachopoulos & Makri, 2017). It seems reasonable that since

educational technology intends to improve learning, the best and effective way to evaluate

technological impact is through the comparison of the test scores in classes, which can either

use or not use technology (Lai & Bower, 2019). However, this type of comparison is

normally done under specific conditions, which makes it impossible to attribute results that

are undesirable or desirable to apply to technology (Xiong, 2020).

Many researchers have indicated that there are no effects of technology use in

education. The evaluation of technology is based on its effects, which can have gross

underestimation of their effectiveness. Educational technology researchers have been

comparing the impacts of various media on classroom instructions (Scherer et al., 2019). The

results of those studies are normally invariably weak. The reviews of the past researchers

commonly discard about fifty percent of the studies due to the limitations of the

methodological approach, which makes the comparison uninterpretable.

1.6 Theoretical Framework

Constructivism theory argues that learners construct knowledge and information and

do not blindly depend on the teacher and randomly receive information and knowledge.

Every individual, including the learners, has unique interactions with their environment

(Hein, 1991). Each interaction experience prompts one to think through their experiences,

make their independent scrutiny of the environment and the information in it, assess the value

of these experiences on them, and eventually reflect at their capacities upon these

experiences. Eventually, information is assimilated and accommodated in the learners'

subsequent daily experiences.

 The theory of constructivism is of the argument that students or learners gain more

from the learning process when they are equally engaged in learning rather than when they

are offered ready-made information and knowledge and expected to take it all in without

questioning the validity and relevance of this information (Richardson, 2003). Unlike in the

conventional learning and teaching approaches, learning according to the constructivist

theory is socially established rather than formally regarded as conventionally known.

Therefore, learning under the constructivist approach is not primarily meant to teach but to

provide experiences to learners through which they can scrutinize and learn from. There is an

imminent relationship between this theoretical approach of learning and teaching with the

argument of this research study.

 2.1 Methodology

2.0.0 Introduction

In this section, the empirical part of the study will be presented. The study presented in

this paper uses an explanatory, deductive and qualitative approach for the data collection as

hypotheses are being tested. The research methodology takes the literature review design. It

considers the past literature review on the analysis of the literature on the past academic

system.

This literature review will follow the framework developed by Cam & Tran (2017). This

framework includes five steps selecting a review topic, searching the literature, analyzing and

synthesizing the literature, writing the review, and developing a list of relevant references.

The literature search will be performed using the following databases related to technology in

the education sector. The search terms that will be used include evaluation of education,

technology in education, methods of evaluation, and the learning process. The inclusion

criteria for the literature review required studies that used the technological tools and articles

written in English, studies that focused on educational evaluation and outcomes related to the

learning process. Also, the articles used should be published in peer-reviewed journals

(Kong, 2019). The researcher will read each of the potential abstracts and select appropriate

articles based on the inclusion or exclusion criteria. Each article included will be summarized

using data extraction sheets developed by the researcher. The researcher independently will

read and summarize data from the included papers. Each article will be assessed for its

quality after considering it as having met the inclusion criteria.

This tool was developed by teachers and education stakeholders and will help them

decide the general quality and completeness of study reports (Snyder, 2019). The

technological assessments of school performance have two parts that include evidence levels
and quality guides. The evidence levels used in the tool show the strength of the evidence in

an article. The levels of strength rank from level 1 to level 5. Each evidence level is based on

the methodology of a study and the completeness of the report of that study (Mohajan, 2018).

Following quality assessment, the researcher will evaluate each article and summarize

relevant data; during this process, themes will emerge. All of the articles included in this

literature review will be qualitative research studies conducted in various countries across the

world.

2.1 Selection of Relevant Literature

Searching for the review articles.

Google Scholar, Science Direct, and educational journals were the most used search

options for review materials in this research. Kahalke (2014) notes that conducting qualitative

research poses the dilemma for the researcher on whether they are to stick to the

methodology selected at the beginning or they can make deviations and integrate more

compelling literature that they pump into in the process. Like in the argument by Kahalke

(2014), there are instances when the research will leave an open option for extension beyond

the selected review materials. In this case, the snowballing approach was employed. Streeton,

Cooke & Campbell (2004) explain that snowballing technique is a non-probability sampling

approach that uses other research studies are incorporated in a specific research study based

on the fact that they possess attributes and values that are rare to find.

Integration Metrics

Before deciding to use particular study literature in this research, the previews,

introductions, and abstracts of the relevant research materials were read and compared to the

objectives and purpose of this study. The publication date was not a major consideration for

selection as long as the literature had the trajectory of meeting the same goals and objectives
as or relational to this study. However, the dates were of value when tracing the conclusion of

these studies and associating the various conclusions to the period of publication. Various

works of literature have a differing approach to studying the topic of evaluations of

technology used in education. Lai & Bower (2019) explain the dangers of bias in selecting

research literature and consequently advise against the use of editorials, book reviews, and

other opinion-based publications because they may not be reflective of the facts but the

biased position of the publisher. Their argument was upheld in the integration metrics since

all opinion-based publications were not used in this research.

2.2 Conducting the Study and Reporting its Findings

The research aims and research questions guided the process of conducting the actual

study. The first research question was seeking to assess the existing methods of evaluating

technology used in education. Research studies that had an analysis of these methods directly

were given priority. In contrast, those that covertly referred to these methods were considered

when such covert reference was identified. It is possible that some studies were left out even

when they had the methods analyzed in their studies, although covertly. They were left out

majorly because of identification challenges or when such analyses required intensive

understanding. The second research question sought to explain the advantages and

disadvantages of using the identified methods in RQ1 in evaluating technology. This second

question was researched the same way the first question was researched, meaning studies

overtly highlighting issues relating to the question from the selected pool were prioritized

while some that did so covertly were left out. The literature review section documents and

contextualizes this process.