Need More Teeth? Dodging Another Techtastic Park Disaster Through Human-centered Pilots

Concurrent Session 8

Session Materials

Brief Abstract

So your institution was so preoccupied with whether or not they could, they didn’t think if they should. What’s a technologist to do? Welcome to Techtastic Park! In this session we’ll share about our adventures taming our tech through human-centered pilot strategies. Tech finds a way, so we did too.

Presenters

Lead Presenter: T. Adam Baldry, Pima Community College

Adam Baldry is an Instructional Technologist at Pima Community College. He holds an MA in East Asian Studies and is currently a Higher Education graduate student at the University of Arizona. Adam uses his 10+ years of in-person and online teaching experience to inform his approach to EdTech management and innovation. Taking a human-centered design thinking approach to EdTech implementation, Adam enjoys working with others to apply innovative tech solutions to pedagogical stumbling blocks. As a trained humanist, Asianist, technologist and teacher, he seeks to incorporate simplicity, humanity and mindfulness into his work.

Co-presenter: Bradley Butler, Pima Community College

Brad Butler serves as an Instructional Technologist at Pima Community College. He holds a Bachelor's degree in Secondary Education-Social Sciences and an MEd in Educational Technology. He has spent the last several years in higher education as an Instructional Technologist or a Course Design Specialist. Prior to making the move to higher education, Brad taught social studies at the high school level for 13 years in Tucson. He enjoys using his teaching background in tandem with the technology tools he supports to help solve the needs of faculty, staff, and learners. He is an advocate for the positive change that education can have on people and loves how technology can improve educational opportunities for everyone. In his spare time, he enjoys cooking and baking with his wife, trying to wear out their two Dachshund-mix rescue dogs, spinning, and playing board games.

Co-presenter: Tom Tenney

Extended Abstract

“‘Ooh, aah!’ That’s how [tech] always starts, but then later there’s running and screaming.” So your institution was so preoccupied with whether or not they could, they didn’t think if they should. What’s a technologist to do when they inherit new technology? Welcome to Techtastic Park! In this session we’ll share about our adventures taming our tech through human-centered pilot strategies that keep our people and systems safe. Tech finds a way, so we did too.

The presenter's institution has undergone massive digital transformation over the last few years. With the various initiatives across their college to expand online programs, this naturally required the need to broaden EdTech solutions. This need resulted in incorporating various educational technologies to create more immersive and engaging student experiences. However, chaos quickly ensued as tools were running rampant and unsupported across our campus. This expansion of educational technology created a strong need for dedicated support due to the limited oversight on their tools. This led to the acquisition of dedicated instructional technologists to tame their tech.   

Once a dedicated team was on board, they turned to taming the wild EdTech tools at yheir institution by bringing them into a controlled environment. This controlled pilot approach allowed them to holistically understand the tools and their impact on the institution. Based on observation, working with the tools, and feedback from a variety of voices, their EdTech team is now evaluating these technologies to determine the conditions of their being released back into our institution for wider usage.

In this session we will share more about our DX journey and our strategies for taming tech including how to advocate for pilot processes, creating human-centered pilots, and planning pilots around key data and resources. We believe these strategies will lead institutions towards more positive experiences in their own digital transformation.