| The Hawthorne effect says that because you start | | | | different way. Now this is likely to have an effect on |
| experimenting that can change the behaviour of the | | | | the students, almost regardless of what the actual |
| people you are observing (see also the related | | | | technology is. |
| Pygmalion and halo effects) . It bedevils educational | | | | So generally researchers get sniffy about such |
| technology, because say you introduce podcasting on | | | | studies. But my point is that if it does have this |
| a course and then measure student performance or | | | | effect, then regardless of the cause - isn't that a |
| satisfaction then you can't be sure that any change is | | | | good thing? Introducing a new technology (or it could |
| really due to a pedagogic benefit of the podcasts, it | | | | be a new approach, doesn't have to be technology |
| could just as well be due to the novelty of having | | | | related) every couple of years keeps you on your |
| podcasts, or of being part of the experiment. There | | | | toes as an educator, makes you think about the |
| are ways of controlling it, but a lot of educational | | | | design of your course, your approach, the content. |
| technology research is quite small scale, done with | | | | It's rather like all those studies that show that |
| one teacher and a cohort, and this is particularly | | | | introducing new IT systems doesn't actually improve |
| prone to the effect. | | | | productivity, but you have to do it to keep up. If |
| The teacher effect is probably more significant, in | | | | you hadn't introduced them then the organisation |
| that if you are the teacher who introduces the | | | | wouldn't be able to compete. So maybe there isn't |
| technology then the very fact that you have done | | | | this great pedagogical motivation for using the new |
| so will modify your behaviour. It may make you | | | | technologies, but their incidental effects are more |
| more motivated (it's fun again!), it may change what | | | | significant. |
| or how you teach, it may make you more reflective. | | | | So rather than dismissing the Hawthorne effect |
| In short it can rejuvenate the way you are teaching | | | | maybe we should be actively pursuing it, and asking |
| a course because you have to think about it in a | | | | yourself 'How have I Hawthorned recently? |