Chapter 7

1. Evaluating Educational
Technology and Integration
Strategies
Chapter 7

2. Evaluating Educational Technology:
• Evaluating the appropriateness and effectiveness of educational
technology is an important aspects of integrating current technologies
into your classroom curriculum.
• To evaluate an item is to determine its value or judge its worth.
• Evaluating education technology involves determining if the technology is
appropriate and enhances the teaching and learning process.
• Always evaluate technology - before, during, and after instruction time
and use.
Sources of Information: Numerous resources and technologies to choose from:
School districts and state Departments of Education provide evaluations on software/apps:
• Lists of recommended software is very helpful.
Professional educational organizations:
• Local, state, regional, national, and international educational organizations
Colleague Recommendations:
• Discuss issues with other educators, provide information about how to use products.
• Unbiased, first-hand experience, recommends products to use and products to avoid.
Published evaluations:
• See company’s Web site
• Educational journals
Conferences:
• is a meeting dedicated to providing a vast array of information and resources for
educators.
Web sites for organizations:
• The web is the most comprehensive source of tools and resources to help you evaluate
educational technology. One of the larger listservs is EDTECH.

3. Evaluating Software Applications:
 A program for use should be evaluated for appropriateness, review the accuracy of the content, and
consider its relevance to the curriculum performance standards and related benchmarks.
 Free trial versions – are available to determine its suitability for the curriculum.
 A rubric is a great tool for evaluating software and apps. A rubric is detailed scoring guide for
assessment, based on state criteria.
Content:
• Valid means the software has well-grounded instructional properties, meets standards, provides
appropriate content, and teaches what is intended.
Documentation and Technical Support:
• Documentation is any printed or online information that provides assistance in installing, using,
maintaining, and updating the software.
• Technical support- is a service that hardware and software manufacturers and third-party service
companies offer to customers to provide answers to questions, repairs, and other assistance. Also
support is provided by telephone or web based.
• Ability level - refers to a student’s current competency level or the skill level that the student can
achieve for a specific learning objective.
• Academic level - is based on the grade level with the increments to determine if a student is
performing at the appropriate level.
• Technical quality – refers to how well the software or app presents itself and how well it works.
• Ease of use – refers to anything that makes the software or app easy to use.
• Student opinions also play in important role in successfully integrating any technology.

4. Affiliation – refers to the professional organization, school, school district, university, company or
government office with which a particular Web site is associated.
 Who is the Web site associated with?
 Examine the URL and domainname.
Purpose and Objectivity - Purpose is the reason the Web site was created or the intent of the Web
site. Objectivity – is the process of determining or interpreting the intent or purpose of the Web page
and if it is free of bias.
 Is the content provided as a service?
 Is the content unbiased?
 Typically avoid religious/ political affiliated sites.
 Content and Learning Process – Content process - is the information a Web page provides.
Learning process – is when the content engages students to use high-order thinking skills to go
beyond the simple acquisition of knowledge and become participatory learners.
 Is the content valid and appropriate, does the information relate to your needs?
 What topics are covered?
 For what level is the information written?
 Do the links within the site add value?
 Audience and currency – Audience – is the individual or group intended to view and use the
Web page. Currency – is the measure of how up to date, or timely, the Web page content is
and how often it is updated.
 Is the content suitable for your students?
 Is the content up to date and timely?
 Design – of a web site is the way it is arranged – that is, the way it uses instructional design
principles to deliver content to the user.
 Web effectiveness
 Web Evaluation Rubric
• Student Web Site Evaluation Form
Evaluating Web Resources
Authority – refers to the credibility of the person or persons who author and maintain the site.
 Is the author ororganizationclearly identified?
 Examine the credentials of the author or organization of the Web site.
 Has the author or organization listed experience, position, education, or other credentials?

5. Evaluating the Effectiveness of Technology Integration
• Integrating technology effectively into the curriculum requires planning, time,
dedication, and resources.
• Assessment Tools for Evaluating the Effectiveness of Technology Integration:
Assessment – is any method used to understand the current knowledge a student
possesses.
 Student performance – measure different evaluations and assessing students.
 Reliable assessment – accurately estimate student performance, permit
appropriate generalizations about the students skills and abilities, and enable
teachers or other decision makers to make appropriate decisions.
 Traditional assessment – include testing in the form of multiple choice, fill-in-the
blank, true/false, short answer, and essay questions.
 Alternative Assessment – uses nontraditional methods to determine whether
students have mastered the appropriate content and skill level.
• Authentic assessment – can be formal or informal and aims to present
students with tasks that mirror the objectives and challenges typical of their
instructional activities.
 Project-based assessment – is an innovative approach to assessment that
focuses on assessing student projects.
 Portfolio assessment – evaluates student assignments or projects over a
period of time.
 Checklist is a predetermined list of performance criteria used in project-
based and portfolio assessment.
 Rating scale – is a more complex form of a checklist that lists a numerical
value, or rating, for each criterion.
 Rubrics – helps students understand how teachers will evaluate their
projects by providing a range of criteria with information about how to meet
each one.
 Teacher observation – is the result of teachers actively observing their
students during the learning process.

6. Evaluating Technology-Based Student Projects
 Evaluating content – Content is an important part of the project.
 Based on your standards and benchmarks
 Review punctuation, grammar, spelling, coverage of material,
presentation of the material in a logical order, and specific
information about the author
 Evaluating planning – Effective presentations involve planning.
 How do you want your students to plan?
 What tools will the students use?
 Software tools (Inspiration)
 Visual learning techniques
 Flowcharts
 Concept map or story web
 Storyboard
 Evaluating creativity
 Evaluate originality, imaginative and innovative approach, and artistic abilities.
 Color, clip art, and artwork should strengthen content.

7. Putting it All Together - Evaluating Technology Integration
 Ms. Vicki Osborne’s classroom:
 One computer and 26 students.
 Block schedule.
 Ms. Vicki Osborne’s has 6 goals for the lesson:
 Students work in groups.
 Use reference materials and Web resources.
 Identify three major campaign issues.
 Provide personal facts about the candidate.
 Create a group digital media presentation.
 Use correct grammar, spelling, and punctuation.
 Ms. Vicki Osborne’s lesson also includes:
 Brainstorm to develop a concept map.
 Evaluation rubric.
 Flowchart or storyboard.
 Work in groups in 40-minute blocks.
 Each group presents their project in
the media center.

8. Integration Strategies:
 Teachers must become facilitators of learning.
 Use technology to enhance learning environment.
 Put technology at point of instruction.
 Many mixtures of technology.
 One-Computer Classroom:
 Use the computer for classroom presentations and demonstrations, and introduces new concepts.
 Students use to present assignments, projects, and research activities to the entire class.
 Maintain class records, create presentations and projects, do research, and communicate with other teachers.
 Internet access.
 Educational application software.
 Enhance lectures and presentations.
 Use the computer as a teaching assistant.
 Foster group and cooperative learning.
 Write an ongoing story.
 Create a class blog.
 Start a class newsletter.
 Maintain a student database.
 Teacher productivity tool.
 Optimize computer lab time.
 New emerging technologies.

9. Multicomputer Classroom
 Multiple learning centers.
 Integrate other technologies.
 Miss Julie Davis’ classroom has:
 Digital camera.
 Web research centers.
 Develop presentations.
 Microsoft Publisher.
 Computer Labs
 All students have hands-on experience.
 Often used to teach technology skills or subject-specific skills.
 Integrate computer-related skills into subject-directed curriculum areas.
• Example: Web scavenger hunt.
Integration Strategies (con’t):

10. Curriculum Integration Activities
 Curriculum Resource Pages:
 Strategy for implementing the Internet into the classroom.
 Teacher created document that contains hyperlinks to teacher-selected-and-evaluated sites that are content and age appropriate.
 Creating Lesson and Project Plans:
 Must integrate technology into lesson plans and activities.
 Educator’s Reference Desk.
 Lesson plans and activities can be found on the Web.
 Language arts integration – encompasses - Reading, writing, listening, viewing, speaking, and literature.
 Extra! Extra! Know All About It.
• Social studies integration – encompasses - History, geography, civics, and economics.
 What Wonderful Webs We Weave
 Mathematics integration – encompasses - Basic number concepts, measurements, geometry, algebra, calculus,
and data analysis.
 The Business of Professional Sports.
• Science integration – encompasses - Physical sciences, earth and space sciences, and life sciences.
 Let’s Think as a Scientist.
 Physical education and health integration – encompasses - Basic health and physical education literacy.
 Eating Healthy!
 Arts integration – encompasses - Visual and performing arts including drawing, painting, dance, music, and theater.
 The Theory of Color
 Exceptional education integration:
 All curriculum areas with adaptations made for students with special characteristics or special needs.
 Rain Forests Are in Trouble.
 Interdisciplinary Integration:
 Includes two or more academic disciplines or curriculum areas to form a cross-discipline or subject-integrated lesson.
 Natural Disasters Occur Everywhere.

11. Finding Funds to Support Classroom Technology Integration:
 Many school districts do not have sufficient funding for technology.
 If school cannot provide funds, turn to the public, industry, and the government.
 Fundraising Drives and Contests
 Partner with local businesses
 Small amounts of money can go a long way
 Enter contests to win equipment
 Involve parents and community
 Showcase students’ use of technology
 Volunteers - to donate computer repair services
 Grants – are funds provided by a funding source that transfers money, equipment, or services to the grantee.
 Grantee is the teacher, school, or organization that the grant funds or supports.
 Sources include:
 Department of Education.
 Federal Sources
 Foundations.
 Corporations.
• Request forproposal (RFP) – a document provided by the grant
source that details the information teachers and schools need to
provide in order to write a successful grant proposal.
• Grantproposal – is the document the potential grantee sends to the funding source.

12. Summary for Chapter Seven
• Technology will not make a difference in the quality of
students graduating from K-12 schools unless teachers
learn how to integrate the use of technology into their
curriculum and use it as a tool to enhance learning.
• We learn in this chapter various tools and resources
teachers use to evaluate the appropriateness of
educational technology and the effectiveness of
technology integration.
• A number of strategies were presented for integrating
technology into one-computer classrooms and other
K-12 instructional settings along with subject-specific
curriculum and technology integration activities.
• Information was provided on how to obtain funding to
increase the availability of technology in your
classroom.