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| Figure 1 |
In Focus
My pedagogy and content knowledge inform the experiences that I provide and for them to be beneficial, accessible, and meaningful requires me to be future-focused, because of this I am highly motivated to enhance these experiences by integrating technology. Universal design for learning (UDL), a model from within which to consider strategies, learning experiences and environments that meet the variable needs of all tamariki (Center for Applied Special Technology, 2008) has become the lens I use to assess digital technologies suitability for use during planned or spontaneous experiences. Any approach used to inform ‘future-focused’ learning should not be a fixed framework (Bolstad, Gilbert & McDowall, 2012) but one that creates opportunities to analyse and reflect with tamariki and colleagues on the effectiveness of any tool or application used to support learning, and then this data needs to be used to inform future planning.
My TPACK currently has a slightly underinflated ‘T’ as I am at the early stages of developing my digital literacy and knowledge of the tools and applications but value the unique avoidances that digital technology can provide. Digital technology can support differentiation (Bolstad, Gilbert & McDowall, 2012), especially when it provides access and extension to a learning experience that would otherwise be missed or result in exclusion. Assistive technology can also address issues of access, it also has the ability to reduce marginalisation and foster participation that may have otherwise been unobtainable (Koch, 2017). Creating an integrated e-learning environment can foster agency, whānau partnerships, be inclusive, responsive and collaborative (Beaumont-Bates, J. R. (2017), for example, Storypark an application that enables tamariki to share their work with whānau who are then able to comment, revisit, share, add video and celebrate learning in another context with tamariki (Goodman & Cherrington, 2015). This promotes cross-cultural, cross-context relationships, and creates a space where multiple perspectives can be considered and knowledge co-constructed.
Bicultural practice is not an add-on but integrated into every day experiences (Macfarlane & Macfarlane, 2012), the use of digital technology can however enhance the presentation of culture through the use of music, video, animation and creative tools. This has the power to maintain engagement and motivation making the experience meaningful. I also highly value the flexible and collaborative nature of applications like Google Docs the affordances of which enable easy colleague collaboration when planning or creating experiences. In my experience the application of digital technology in Early Childhood Education in Aotearoa New Zealand is at the beginning stages, the debate has just started (Mangen, 2010). Issues of online safety, digital citizenship and the developmental impacts of its use are current tensions in the sector. For me the affordances are many, it has the ability to provide global access to immeasurable amounts of knowledge and to break down barriers for additional language learners (for both whānau and tamariki), and for those with impairments and specific learning needs. Consequently, I consider its use thoughtfully, recognising and respecting that I need to be active in the progression of these debates to be considered a ‘future-focused’ teacher.
