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When considering the impact of emerging technology on the future of

education it helps to focus on specific subjects as well as have access to a broad
base of research materials and academic publications to better inform ones
thinking. This weeks readings provided both a wealth of insight into emerging
educational trends as well as ways in which technology can improve current and
traditional instruction techniques. The selection of articles and videos I reviewed
gave me several ideas about the possible impact of emerging technology on the
future of education, as well informing personal reflections I have on its future, and
my role in it.
One aspect of the materials we reviewed that deeply resonated with me was
the concept of educational technology impacting the future of education through
improved, more effective and easier research. For graduate students or those who
aspire for administrative roles in higher education (I am both) better research
techniques, including access to materials, can be of paramount importance. Along
with the advent of high-powered internet servers like Google and Yahoo, universities
such as WMU also now feature many of their printed research journals and scholarly
publications in electronic mode, making research more easily accessible. The
article Educational Technology, Business and Community Scenarios by Adam
Sobieski illustrated forthcoming trends, techniques and applications yet to be fully
explored or even acknowledged in the educational arena that will be impacting
research of all kinds, including academic, in the near future. Interfacing
applications and quick interpretation of massive amounts of data will also be
utilized more and more, featuring expanded search APIs, including those of
desktop search, search engines and federated search, to increase the quality of
search results and provide search results that include learning objects (Sobieski,
2015). Other articles, including 5 Top Trends in Education Technology 2015 by
Aaron Skonnard, related statistics that suggest a movement toward not just
emerging educational technology in higher education but also increased spending
for research-based technology at both the learner and instructor level (Skonnard,
2015). As more and more universities offer online learning as an alternate or
supplement to traditional classroom/lecture hall settings the availability,
effectiveness and ease of use for technology-based research will become more and
more critically vital.
A second area of focus regarding the impact of emerging technology on the
future of education was overcoming objections to online learning environments from
instructors who feel they may diminish the impact of a traditional classroom or
lecture-hall setting. Many articles spoke to the effect on higher education this
transition is having, and the objections being raised as well as ways they are being
addressed. One example of this phenomenon is the arrival of gaming in the
classroom as an educational tool, and the commensurate objections, studies and
statistics that now accompany it. As more educators began to see the benefits of
student engagement in relation to gaming and other entertaining educational
technology applications that somewhat mirror actual video games, objections were
raised about their validity in the classroom and overall effectiveness. In response to

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the concern that new educational tools of this kind were turning classrooms into
gaming centers professional educators in the field were able to offer credible,
broad-based research that indicated otherwise (Franklin Jr., 2015). Another manner
in which objections to online learning environments are being addressed is by
embracing the advancements that allow for many people separated by hundreds or
thousands of miles, whether in the business arena or education, to confer, interact,
see and hear each other and fully participate in a classroom experience through
digital technology. These kinds of one-on-one, real-time technical advances could
be the catalyst for overcoming the commonly held notion that the online learning
environment cannot replicate the intimacy or effectiveness of a traditional
instructional environment.
In terms of my personal vision and how it has been informed by these same
readings, I believe that research fueled by the latest advanced technology as well
as applications and techniques that can be utilized to overcome instructor
objections to online learning opportunities will deeply impact my efforts as a
student and professional. Research is already the cornerstone of my academic and
professional work and as I move toward new career opportunities and my capstone
experience within my graduate program it will only become more important to my
goals. In the world of 21st century higher education not only accurate data, but
cutting-edge applications that allow one to both compile and interpret this data will
become indispensable. As trends in education evolve from traditional students
being the majority to contemporary student who are older, live off-campus, work,
and prefer online learning to previous modes and methods, research techniques and
applications must also swiftly evolve. Educational technology that can not only
radically improve compiling data but also serve as a means to offer new, different or
more effective interpretation of this data can only serve to shift the landscape of
higher education further and further away from the standard lecture hall. As the
modern student witnesses the addition of emerging research technologies as they
pursue their traditional academic goals, so too the administrators and designers of
these new applications will see them become more and more routinely called upon
to improve the effectiveness of their research. The key to this universities strategic
plan, particularly as it applies to student retention, is to better identify key
populations and demographics that could be better served or supported in the everchanging landscape of higher education. This effort would be futile, however,
without the most effective technology available to best curate and identify student
groups separated by common denominators such as age, gender and academic
background but also more vague indicators such as being potentially financially
disadvantaged or not receiving the proper support and encouragement after being
academically dismissed. It is these little indicators, often best tracked down by the
advanced applications of cutting edge research databases, that are informing the
broadest policy decisions and strategic planning of higher education right now.
Another facet of my personal vison that was informed heavily by our readings
was the concept of overcoming objections to online learning environments and
emerging educational technology. This is something that I have been acutely aware
of, not only from the time I started studying educational technology but as soon as I

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became a routine online student. Many instructors credible, trusted, long-serving,

forward-thinking instructors I have studied with and deeply respect have offered
frequent objections to teaching in an online learning environment. These are not
professors too set in their ways who are not open to evolving their time-honored
teaching approaches. Nor are they squeamish about incorporating new technology
like email, the Clicker, online video presentations in class or electronic assignment
submissions. They do, however, categorically feel that the online learning
environment falls short of the tactile, face-to-face lecture setting that is the
backbone of their instruction. How then do we as educational technology
professionals overcome their objections? Understanding is step one. As highly
effective, long-serving, respected members of our faculty their methodology is not
an issue, moreover it is how to translate that methodology, completely and to the
point of satisfaction of the individual instructor, into the online arena. What is
missing from the effectiveness of ones instruction when instead of a few feet away
from your learner you are on a computer screen from across the country? Several
of our readings or video presentations this week concentrated on the new, as of yet
fully understood impact and success of technology that creates full interactive
experiences with groups of learners working together in real-time while separated
by great distances. For some of our best professors who cling to old models when
challenged with these new methods by which remote students are united in
tangible, simultaneous education experiences online do they immediately think of
now outdated applications like Facetime or Skype? It is up to us as educational
technology professionals to be not only ready to respond to these uncertainties with
informed, relevant educational technology and applications, but also to be sensitive
to appropriately helping them translate their tested instruction techniques into the
21st century world.

Bibliography
Franklin Jr., C. (2015). 4 Education Technology Trends To Watch. Information Week.
Skonnard, A. (2015). 5 Top Trends in Education Technology 2015. Inc.Edu.
Sobieski, A. (2015). Educational Technology, Business and Community Scenarios.
W3C Community and Business Groups.