Intentional Innovation in Educational Technology and Media to Promote Students’ Holistic Development

Abstract

We consider how educational technology might promote students’ holistic development. Based on a new edited book in the Methods in Physiology series, we contextualize how far technology has taken bioscience education, and also speculate on where technology needs to go. Technology, in conjunction with innovations in pedagogy, has profoundly influenced the experience of teaching and learning biology, and examples are provided, some familiar (e.g., video lectures in flipped classroom), and some emerging. Compared to the personal changes technology has wrought in students' experiences, past innovations in technology and pedagogy have led to group outcomes more weighted toward inclusivity, opportunities, and participation rates. This is welcome progress. For the future, we propose an intentional development of educational technology and media that supports holistic development of students as individuals. This goes beyond design‐centered or market‐driven research and focuses on student competencies and skills known to play a role in learning and professional maturity: social, metacognitive, and non‐cognitive competencies such as team work skills, social behaviors, empathy, emotional regulation, and professionalism. The challenge is to use intentional innovation to achieve student learning of competencies, by leveraging what computers are particularly good at: timing, repetition, and vigilance. The expected result will probably involve learning with repetition, deeper learning with models, collaborative and cooperative learning, and self‐regulated learning. We engage in serious discussion on the challenges and obstacles inherent in re‐focusing media creation and educational technology innovation. We propose that intention should be the guiding approach toward a cohesive narrative of future developments.