1. Chapter 13
Technology in Education

2. The Information Age
A period in history characterized by:
• Growth of technology
• Information explosion

3. The Information Age
Impact on teachers and learners:
• Learning has become a shared
responsibility.
• Teacher has taken on the role of
facilitator.

4. The Information Age
Impact of Information Age technology on
education:
• Greater access to educational programs
• Access to a worldwide audience
• Interactive learning opportunities

5. The Information Age (cont’d)
Trends:
• Establishment of standards
– e-Health Code of Ethics
– Criteria for evaluating Web sites
• Development of new field of study
– Consumer Informatics

6. E-Health Code of Ethics
•
•
•
•
•
•
Candor
Honesty
Quality
Informed Consent
Privacy
Professionalism

7. E-Health Code of Ethics (cont’d)
• Responsible partnering
• Accountability

8. Consumer Informatics
• Analyzes consumer needs for information
• Studies/implements methods for making
information accessible
• Models/integrates consumer preferences
into medical information systems

9. On-line Healthcare Education
• World Wide Web (WWW)
• Internet

10. World Wide Web
(WWW)
•
•
•
•
“Virtual Space” for information
Component of the Internet
Contains billions of webpages
Text, graphics, audio, and video

11. Pew Report on Web Use
Approximately 60% of Americans have used Web
information to:
• Make decisions about how to treat an illness
• Decide whether to seek a healthcare provider
• Identify questions to be answered
• Decide to seek a second opinion

12. Nurse Educators and the WWW
Recognizing the influence of the WWW
nurses should:
• Assess client’s use of the WWW
• Clarify information found by clients
• Share resources
• Create Web-based resources
• Teach information literacy skills

13. Computer Literacy
The ability to use the computer hardware
and software necessary to accomplish
routine tasks

14. Information Literacy
The ability to:
• Access needed information
• Evaluate information found
• Organize information
• Use information from a variety of sources

15. Information Literacy Skills for Web
Use
The ability to:
• Reduce a problem to a searchable
command
• Categorize a Web page according to its
purpose
• Identify sources of potential bias
• Make judgments about the accuracy and
reliability of information found

16. Information Literacy Skills for Web
Use (cont’d)
The ability to:
• Make decisions about the
comprehensiveness of information found
• Determine currency
• Identify resources to answer questions or
verify assumptions about content of a
webpage

17. Criteria for Evaluating Web Sites
•
•
•
•
•
Accuracy
Design
Authors/Sponsors
Currency
Authority

18. Professional Education and the World
Wide Web
•
•
•
•
Bibliographic databases
Continuing education
Online journals
Resources for patient teaching and
professional practice

19. Social Media
• Blogs, Wikis
– Consumers may turn to these for healthrelated information
• Facebook, Twitter, YouTube
– Numerous advantages for health education
– Risks as well

20. Webcasts and Webinars
• Webcasts are live broadcasts over the
Internet.
– Growing in popularity as a training device
• Webinars are web-based conferencing
that allow for interaction.
– When well run, can be an effective teaching
strategy

21. Mobile Learning (m-Learning)
• Takes advantage of various wireless,
mobile, portable, and handheld devices.
• Great potential and growing use
• Smart phones capable of web access are
expensive.
– Those who cannot afford such a device can
use a computer.

22. Internet
• Global network of computers
• Designed to create and exchange
information
• World Wide Web is a small component of
the Internet

23. Internet-based Communication
•
•
•
•
E-mail
Electronic discussion groups
Mailing lists
Blogs, online forums, message boards,
bulletin boards
• Online chats
• Discussion Boards

24. E-Mail
Advantages:
• Easy to use
• Can be used any time, day or night
• Low cost
• World-wide access
• Provides a written record

25. E-Mail (cont’d)
Disadvantages:
• Messages lack context
• Takes time to complete an interaction
• Legal issues related to the written record
created
• Privacy cannot be assured

26. Electronic Discussion Groups
Broad category covering many formats of
on-line discussion.
Advantages:
• Means of networking
• Vehicle for information exchange
• Can be used to provide on-line support

27. Electronic Discussion Groups (cont’d)
Advantages:
• Easy to use
• Low cost
• Anonymity

28. Electronic Discussion Groups (cont’d)
Disadvantages:
• Few checks for accuracy
• Can be time-consuming
• May result in e-mail overload

29. Online Chats
Advantages:
• Allows for real-time discussion
• Widely accessible
• Provides a mechanism for information
exchange

30. Online Chats (cont’d)
Disadvantages:
• Moves very quickly
• May be difficult to follow
• Requires everyone to be on at the same
time

31. Digital Divide
• The gap between those individuals who
have access to information technology
resources and those who do not

32. Digital Divide (cont’d)
Risk Factors:
• Age (>65 years)
• Income (<$30,000/year household
income)
• Level of Education (<High School)

33. Interventions with
Older Adults
•
•
•
•
Teach principles of ergonomics
Provide access to resources
Use motivational strategies
Create nonthreatening teaching
environments

34. Promoting Digital Inclusion for People
with Disabilities
• Web page design
• Software selection
• Adaptive devices

35. Working with Groups
at Risk
• Recognize/assess risk factors.
• Be knowledgeable about resources.
• Create supportive environments.

36. Professional Education
• Degree programs for distance learners
are increasingly available.
• Continued education programs are
widely available in a variety of formats.
• Staff development and training via
technology is increasing.
– e-learning

37. Distance Education
• Degree programs are offered at all levels.
• Internet is primary vehicle for delivering
distance education.
• Standards for quality in distance
education have been developed.
• Still a relatively new way of educating
nurses.

38. State of the Evidence
• Large body of research investigating
effect of distance education
technologies on student outcomes.
• Growing body of research on use of
technology in patient education.

39. Summary
• Technology is a powerful tool to enhance
learning. However, technology is a means
to an end, not an end in and of itself. It
must be used with thought, careful
planning, and thorough evaluation.