She has contributed to the design and evaluation of multi-media programs that involve students in the collaborative process of scientific discovery. Currently she is helping educators reflect on and document their professional development as they integrate technology with their teaching. Teachers need to know how to use basic productivity and communication software. A teacher with this foundation is likely to be able to learn other tools, as there is a great deal of overlap with these essential tools. Given my premise that technology is shared minds made visible, then it is the collaboration that is changing and will continue to change education.
Education is a human activity.
It is about the way we interact with the shared products of our minds. Many of the changes in educational technology from chalk to pens, from primers to encyclopedic textbooks, from pictures to videos are accepted because the cost grows incrementally and the learning curve for use is relatively flat. Computer and communication technology is both complex and expensive. What research evidence shows conclusively is that students can learn to use technology, often engaging in more meaningful educational experiences, and still perform as well, or better on standardized tests than they have in the past. The lower the initial scores, the more effective technology is in raising test scores.