Brittany Bettes

ETEC 524
Educational Technology Philosophy Statement

Educational Technology Philosophy Statement

Technology and education are undoubtedly one in the same as
we progress forward into our interconnected world. In order to prepare
our students for this interconnected world, we must fervently search
for ways to introduce, teach, and make use of beneficial technologies
in our classrooms. To do anything less is a disservice to the students of
this technologically advanced era. Students must not only progress
academically, but must also continuously progress forward in terms of
their technology literacy skills.
Technology has played a huge role both in my academic and my
personal life. While I was not born with an Iphone in hand like some of
my students, I did have very early experiences with technology. From
the beginning of my journey with technology, I recall playing
educational games on the family computer, waiting for what seemed
like ages for the dial-up internet to work, and all-in-all, learning how to
function in an increasingly technological world. From then on,
technology has played a large role in my success as a student as well
as the development of my interests. In junior high and high school, I
familiarized myself with web-design, CSS, HTML, and Adobe Photoshop,
and began to learn the basics of coding a website. I am curious by
nature, and have been known to spend countless hours teaching
myself a new tool I find to be useful. That curiosity has spilled over into
my academic and professional life, and I now am finding myself
spending much of my time thinking about and exploring new ways for
my students to incorporate technology into their every-day lives.
Being an investigator of tools by nature, it is fitting that I believe
that incorporating technology should be very student-driven. I strive to

Brittany Bettes
ETEC 524
Educational Technology Philosophy Statement
connect what students know to the new concept, and value selfexploring. As the old proverb goes, Give a man a fish and you feed
him for a day; teach him to fish, and you feed him for a lifetime. My
educational technology philosophy aligns closely with the ideals of
constructivism, wherein the teacher develops and connects lessons to
students previous schema. The learning of any technological tool must
be student-centered, and there must always be a relevancy of the skill
that is obvious to the learner. What good does it do for a student to
learn a tool but see no application for that tool outside of the
classroom?
What Should Technology Do?
I believe technology should be integrated into the classroom with
ease; it should not be forced, and it should only enhance education,
never detract from it. Technology should do all of the following in the
classroom:
1. Make creation easier for the student
2. Be a tool they can use in many different situations, not only your
classroom
3. Be relevant
4. Enhance education beyond what was possible prior to the
technology
5. Become a natural part of the classroom, where all students are
proficient and comfortable with the using of the technology
6. Provide alternatives to diverse learners, and present information
in multiple ways that address differing learning styles

Brittany Bettes
ETEC 524
Educational Technology Philosophy Statement
What Shouldnt Technology Do?
While technology should do a number of things in the classroom,
there are also a number of things it should not do:
1.

Detract from the lesson, or remove the focus from the learning to

the technology
2.

Overcomplicate an otherwise simple task

3.

Be implemented just for the sake of implementation

In order to accomplish this goal, we must begin to view

technology as a tool and not a lesson plan or content objective. To

teach a student how to create a Prezi is one thing, but it is an entirely
different thing to require the student to use his or her resources to
create a presentation and learn the Prezi software in the process, then
apply that knowledge in their own creation. In my classroom, we often
work together to ask questions and teach ourselves through the
answering of our own questions. This same ideology holds true for the
technology I introduce in my classroom. I want my students to
investigate and understand the purposes of the tools I have given
them, which often occurs best through their own exploration and
questioning.
Functioning in the technologically dominated environment
requires that students not only see technology as a tool, but that they
are able to apply the thinking skills required to use that tool and solve
whatever problems that are thrown at the students. As a teacher, I
believe it is my duty to develop these real world situations that require
higher order thinking skills and problem solving tactics, and ask
students to expand and form their solutions. Technologies are born to
solve problems or simplify a process, and we need to teach our

Brittany Bettes
ETEC 524
Educational Technology Philosophy Statement
students how to do just that with the skills they develop in technology
literacy.
Technology is surrounding our students, and advances further
every day. We must prepare our students for that reality, and help
them to not only be capable of using a technology, but to also teach
themselves a new tool in our ever changing world. We must teach
them to question, to learn, and to apply new technologies to many
different situations, and use them effectively. For a generation that
may not have seen the creation of their future careers, it is critical that
they advance in their technology literacy knowledge, and be able to
apply those tools in order to be successful.