history of the future! sxswedu 2014 presentation

Rob Scordino Ph.D. Candidate, Learning Technologies Program, UT Austin

Research Associate, Meadows Center for Preventing Educational Risk

robscordino.com

the purpose of

history education

the impact of

technology on

history education

Because history and social studies are important, dammit.

Maybe you are a history teacher

Maybe you are a developer

Maybe you work for a museum and you would like to hire me (robscordino@utexas.edu)

Or maybe you don’t care

the purpose of history

education

• Learn about the past

• Make connections to the present

Coverage model:

Breadth over depth

Fixed narrative arc

Fact-driven

Lecture/Textbook

the purpose of history

education

• Learn about the past

• Make connections to the present• Interpret/analyze/defend

• Participate

• Develop critical thinking skills

The nature of

historical

knowledge

Historians do not begin their thinking in

discrete facts, but in the accounts of other

historians.1

(Seixas)Historians participate in a contested academic discourse in which

rival truth claims are subjected to scrutiny on the basis of

evidence drawn from the human past.2

(Sipress and Voelker)

Uncertain

Changing/flexible

Open to interpretation

“Historical problem solving” similar to the

scientific method in natural science.3

(Wineberg)Historical literacy involves not only knowing the story, but

engaging in the through participation.4

(Perfetti, Britt, and Georgi)

Active

Investigation

Analysis of resources

The approach to

historical

knowledge

the impact of

technology

• Supports constructivist learning

• Increases access to content

• Supports participation

• Decreases the need for rote

memorization

• Increases the need for critical

thinking skills

Platform for learning practical skills

Critical thinking

Analysis

Supporting claims with evidence

Research

Platform for developing technical skills

Media literacy

Participation/engagement

Teachers rely on Internet resources 5,6

No evidence that younger teachers use technology more 7,8

Teacher pedagogical preferences determine how tech is used 9,10

Technology is incorporated into teacher ed programs and PD 11

Media literacy is represented in SS standards

Teachers rely on Internet resources

No evidence that younger teachers use technology more

Teacher pedagogical preferences determine how tech is used

Technology is incorporated into teacher ed programs and PD

Media literacy is represented in SS standards

Internet archives learning environments

History is under-represented in mobile

Mobile stuff that is out there is meh.

Teachers:

Museums:

Developers:

• Talk, connect, etc.

• Think about how your resources will be used

• Support historical inquiry

• Don’t fear social studies

• Think about ways technology can support historical thinking

History should not be in a silo

Think about the pedagogy first

Talk to other people

rob@robscordino.com

@RScordino

robscordino.com

1. Seixas, P. (1996). Conceptualizing the growth of historical understanding. In D. Olson & N. Torrance (Eds.) The Handbook of Education and Human Development. Oxford, UK: Blackwell Publishers. p. 765-783.

2. Sipress, J. and Voelker, D. (2009). From learning history to doing history: Beyond the coverage model. In R. Gurung, N. Chick, & A. Haynie (Eds.) Exploring Signature Pedagogies: Approaches to Teaching Disciplinary Habits of Mind (1st ed., pp. 19-35). Sterling, VA: Stylus.

3. Wineburg, S. (1991). Historical problem solving: A study of the cognitive processes used in the evaluation of documentary and pictorial evidence. Journal of Educational Psychology, 83(1), 73-87.

4. Perfetti, C., Britt, M., and Georgi, M. (1995). Text-based learning and reasoning: Studies in history. Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.

5. Shiveley, J. and VanFossen, P. (2009). Toward assessing Internet use in the social studies classroom: Developing an inventory based on a review of relevant literature. Journal of Social Studies Research, 33(1), 1-32.

6. VanFossen, P. and Waterson, R. (2008). “It’s just easier to do what you did before…”: An update on Internet use in secondary social studies classrooms in Indiana. Theory and Research in Social Education, 36(2), 124-152.

7. VanFossen, P. and Jones, D. (2006). Indiana social studies teachers interest in receiving professional development by podcast. A technical report to the Indiana Department of Education, Indianapolis, IN.

8. VanFossen, p. (1999-2000). An analysis of the use of the Internet and World Wide Web by secondary social studies teachers in Indiana. The International Journal of Social Education, 14(2), 87-109.

9. Hughes, J. (2005). The role of teacher knowledge and learning experience in forming technology-integrated pedagogy. Journal of Technology and Teacher Education, 13(2), 277-302.

10. Ertmer, P. (2005). Teacher pedagogical beliefs: The final frontier in our quest for technology integration? Educational Technology Research and Development, 53(4), 25-39 .

11. Bolick, C., Berson, M., Friedman, A.., & Porfeli, E. (2007). Diffusion of technology innovation in the preservice social studies experience: Results of a national survey. Theory and Research in Social Education, 35(2), 174-195.

Diem, R. and Berson, M. (2010). Technology in retrospect: Social studies in the information age, 1984-2009. Charlotte, NC: Information Age Publishing.

VanSledright, B. (2002). In search of America’s past: Learning to read history in elementary school. New York, NY: Teachers College Press.

VanSledright, B. (2011). The challenge of rethinking history education: On practices, theory, and policy. New York, NY: Routledge Taylor/Francis Group.

Wineburg, S. (2001). Historical Thinking and Other Unnatural Acts: Charting the Future of Teaching the Past. Philadelphia, PA: Temple University Press.