Evaluation of Instructional Technology: A Case Study of Early Childhood Teacher Candidates

With the rise in technology use in early childhood classrooms, there is need to explore the strategies used to evaluate the effectiveness of such technology. Research indicates the proliferation of unvetted technology tools on the market and in online open source formats. Meaningful technology evaluation needs to be completed before, during, and after implementation in the lesson. Using a qualitative research design, data were collected from teacher candidates' post-practicum reflective essays and one-on-one interviews. Findings indicate that during practicum a few teacher candidates used sound pedagogical strategies to evaluate the appropriateness and effectiveness of instructional technology. Findings also reveal the need for cooperating teachers to have strong technology pedagogical strategies in order to help teacher candidates who may be struggling with technology integration and assessment strategies. Based on the findings it is recommended that early childhood teacher preparation and professional development programs address alternative ways to assess the effectiveness of instructional technology tools used in the classrooms.