Considerations for Selection of Technology
Now that you understand PI more clearly, you are probably thinking about how difficult it is to find tools that adhere to these guidelines. You are right! These are challenging waters to navigate but we are here to help. Ideally, you will seek consultation on all your technology needs and limit your technology use to those tools offered by Teaching and Learning and Information Technology.
When you are preparing to bring a tool forward for consideration you should ask the following questions when evaluating technology and software:
- Do you and/or your students have to make an account in order to start using the software, platform, app? If so, do you have to provide personal information (email, name, age, DOB, Banner number, etc.)?
- What will you and your students be using this tool for and what additional PI will be disclosed during its use? In addition to other PI of students, does this include any PI of third parties?
- What does that tool facilitate that you cannot do without it and what pedagogical need does it address?
- Does the software, app, platform share information with others? What do they share? With who? (It should be in their privacy policy usually linked at the bottom of their website.)
- Does the software, app, platform collect additional information such as location or contacts?
When we select tools, some of our considerations include:
Data residency, where is the information collected being stored and how is it protected from hackers and other risks. It is important to note that the location of the organization does not necessarily guarantee the location of data storage. Some vendors offer us an option to select Canadian data residency and others do not. There are also vendors who may provide Canadian data residency at rest but utilize additional tools in the functioning of their platform where our data in transit occurs at a different location. This can be mitigated by data encryption in transit and or at rest and is sometimes negotiated during the contractual process.
With finite resources, we certainly need to consider cost, alignment to KPU’s academic plan and the teaching and learning strategic plan as well the skills and abilities needed to operate in the space and the technology support capacity of the IT and TL teams. In doing this we assess if the tool can meet a pedagogical purpose across multiple departments or programs and if we have another option that can meet the requested outcome.
Now we certainly don’t expect instructors to identify and navigate all these elements. I share these to help you understand why it’s important to consult with Teaching and Learning when selecting tools for use with your students. We do not endeavor to restrict your use but to identify use-cases across the institution to maximize the use of resources. Additionally, we can help identify the needs for review by IT security, legal and the privacy office to help identify and mitigate potential risks. If you can, choose platforms that do not require a login providing information to the vendor or Cloud service. Or choose one that permits students to use pseudonyms and non-identifying email addresses. Some tools allow an initial user with an account to send an access to link for use that does not require a log in. Be sure and read the privacy statement on the vendor website.
It is important to consider how many tools students are being asked to use in their studies at KPU. Remember they are taking courses across departments and Faculties and if we all use something different it increases their burden to access and learn new tools. Technology should support pedagogy and we have tried to ensure our ecosystem provides the core tools needed for content creation and sharing, conferencing, asynchronous connection, collaboration or peer review, as well as public and private sharing of work. If you would like to discuss a pedagogical need or a discipline-specific tool or resource, please connect with leeann.waddington@kpu.ca.
Leeann leads the Learning Technology and Educational Consultant teams in their efforts to support innovation in teaching and learning at KPU. Leeann oversees and advances existing KPU supported educational technologies and tools to align with institutional values and current best practices. Previously an experienced faculty member, Leeann holds a Post Masters Certificate in Curriculum Design and is a doctoral candidate in the Distance Education EdD at Athabasca University. Leeann is an advocate for the culture of folio thinking pedagogy and its potential to revolutionize KPU's learning landscape.
