http://www.grunwald.com/pdfs/LUCAS-White-Paper-GRUNWALD.pdf
Jennifer Pip Clayton shared this article - it speaks to who were working with in the schools - are we making sure the correct "educator influencers" know about our programs and tools?
Any thoughts on how this article might inform our work?
One of the first things I noticed about this article was the publication date of 2004. I skimmed over a large portion of beginning related to specific years/spending as this data is at least 6 years old. I'm curious to see how the numbers may have changed during this time with the real estate boom and crash, stimulus money, unemployment, etc.
ReplyDeleteThe article states that school use of technology influences home use of technology. Again, I am wondering if this is still true or if education use is now influenced by home use. People have greater access to technology now than they did 6 or 7 years ago. Computers are much cheaper, Apple has changed the hand-held game (with iPod, iPhone, & iPad), many people have smartphones, more homes have internet access, and you can even get online with your game system. These things have definitely changed the EdTech game.
Okay, so those were the questions/concerns I had regarding the article in reference to the publication date.
That being said, I was struck by the demographic information provided regarding the Ed Influencers:
~64% are Women
~Average age is 49, with 61% being between 35 and 54.
~72% are married (not sure the significance of that, but I have some ideas)
~only 36% have children in the K12 classroom
Additional information was provided regarding income levels and purchasing decisions. It is safe to assume that these EdInfluencers are educated and who seek out information from a variety of resources.
The article goes on to provide additional information regarding buying habits and product research behavior. These influencers seem to gather information from a variety of sources, everything from word of mouth to conferences to web searches. These EdInfluencers spent more time in 2004 using online communication tools than teens 13-17. Many of these people used online bulletin boards to communicate.
I definitely think we need to figure out how to increase our online presence and encourage teachers to get online and talk about Mimio. (I can't speak on HeadSprout because I've never searched for info about it.) Perhaps a prize/contest type of thing? I say this because there is very little info regarding Mimio online when you search for it. SMART is everywhere!
Thank you for the thoughtful reply and I agree about the date it was published - things have changed and continue to change rapidly - hard to keep up.
DeleteI do think we have to continue to think about EdInfluencers and make sure we are connecting with them effectively and appropriately.
I also wonder when we talk about schools - are they really using all of the technology they have to improve instructional delivery or is some it just sitting in boxes. That speaks to our department - are we doing enough to change instructional practices?
Just this week - Blake, Travis, Janet and I discussed what our departments were all about anyways - we came up with a focus on increasing the ease, enjoyment and engagement of the Digital Natives (students and teachers) with instructional technology as a big goal for the department.
We know there is more than that but just a thought.
Again - thanks for sharing.