Changing Practices and Changing Perspectives: Pedagogical Technologists in Schools Abstract

POSTGRADUATE RESEARCH CONFERENCE ABSTRACT SUBMISSION Title: Changing Practices and Changing Perspectives: Pedagogical Technologists in SchoolsName: David James WooProgram: PhDEmail: [email protected] Key words: TPACK, pedagogical technologist, schools, case studiesMain text:

Main text: Pedagogical technologists are full-time coordinators of pedagogy and technology in schools. They are not teachers in a traditional sense nor do they focus predominantly on supporting the technical aspects of teaching with information technology (IT). Their primary duty is supporting the pedagogical aspects of teaching with and through IT and helping teachers and other school stakeholders use technology to best support student learning, taking into account technological, pedagogical, content knowledge. These pedagogical technologists are often drivers of school change through technology. The pedagogical technologist in schools may be emergent, due in part to the increasing presence of IT in schools and changes to the specific ways that schools think about IT in education; in addition, only a number of schools have appointed pedagogical technologists. This study explores the role of selected pedagogical technologists and examines what they do to influence schools’ ways of working with and through technology. This study adopts a multiple-case study research approach with the pedagogical technologist being the unit of analysis. This study examines five cases of pedagogical technologists in primary schools in Hong Kong, and develops some general principles about what makes pedagogical technologists successful in schools. Data was collected by observing, interviewing and interacting with pedagogical technologists, principals and teachers. Documents were collected and photographs were taken. Data was analyzed by following theoretical propositions for these pedagogical technologists’ ecologies. Patterns which lead to specific ways by which a pedagogical technologist influences his school’s ways of working with and through technology were identified and tabulated.