UD alumna uses Fulbright to further innovation in education
Photo courtesy of the Harvard
Graduate School of Education.
“Innovation” is a watchword in education
today as many schools and educators strive to implement
the newest technological resources and strategies to improve
their students’ learning.
But through research and experience, Jennifer
Groff, a 2005 UD
School of Education alumna, realized many school systems
don’t know how to effectively integrate emerging technology
into a lesson, and sometimes struggle simply to keep up.
When she was pursuing a master’s degree
in educational technology at the University of Delaware,
Groff designed a tool called the i5, which was based on
her graduate thesis about barriers to technology in education.
The i5 is an inventory to help identify potential barriers
to a technology-based project in the classroom, so that
educators can try to mitigate them in advance for a more
effective project outcome.
After receiving a Fulbright scholarship
in 2009, Groff continued her research at Futurelab
in Bristol, England where she expanded her work on
i5. Groff researched different approaches to education
in England, Wales and Scotland and has been comparing
them to the education system in the United States. “Both
countries describe ‘innovation’ as a critical component
to their respective education systems, but it is remarkable
to see the vast difference in the approaches and outcomes,”
she observed.
Ultimately, Groff says she’s hoping her
work produces tools and resources that help schools structure
innovative practices and knowledge management processes
into their work, and in the future, she wants to be directly
involved in supporting schools as they seek to do that.
Click here to watch an iChat interview with
Jennifer Groff about her research in Bristol, England.
