Technology Really Works… As Long as the Learning Design Does, Too

Augmented Reality Technology Brings Learning to Life: A Study Looks at the Power of Technology to Recapture the Attention of Middle and High School Students

FROM HGSE’S USABLE KNOWLEDGE (Deborah Blagg): This brief  article summarizes some of Christopher Dede and Patrick O’Shea’s studies on using augmented reality (AR) for teaching adolescents. It’s old, now, but still worth the read, for general purposes. I can nit-pick Dede’s statement that “Most kids at this age tend to become disengaged from learning,” since, in my experience, it’s the classroom they can become disengaged from, not the learning… and a great teacher can keep students engaged and learning, regardless of the subject… but I appreciate his point that technology can help teachers teach greatly.

The AR implementation was interesting but my takeaway is that their work demonstrated the real need for good instructional and content design (curriculum development) to make the technology deliver on its potential. The original design had unintended outcomes. “Both Dede and O’Shea agreed that curriculum development — not technology — is the key to augmented reality’s potential as a teaching tool. ‘If you don’t design a sound curriculum, then it doesn’t matter how good the technology is,’ O’Shea said.”

Well, sure, but it’s nice to hear it said, anyway.

And I can’t help but wonder what Lowell Monke would have to say about this. 🙂

You can read the article here.

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