Faculty are divided on new educational technologies. How can you navigate conflicting opinions effectively?

Different perspectives on anything new in the organisation must be welcomed always. People come from different beliefs and mindset and not to forget the professional experiences they bring on the table. While it looks challenging to address these diverse viewpoints on adoption of new ideas or technology; it helps in critical analysis of the whole project and effective implementation at a later stage. Sometimes people need a little nudge to transition from one stage to another. Technology is an enabler and shouldn’t be introduced as a replacement in any organisation.

"To improve is to change; to be perfect is to change often." - Winston Churchill Change is inevitable, yet it's often met with resistance. Venturing into the unknown can trigger feelings of uncertainty, loss of control, and fear of failure. People may also be attached to familiar routines or worry about the effort required to adapt to new ways of doing things.

It's okay to feel uncomfortable or apprehensive about change. Recognizing and accepting these emotions is the first step towards managing them. Instead of dwelling on what you might lose, shift your focus to the potential positive outcomes of the change. Consider how it could improve your life, work, or learning experience. Acknowledge and celebrate your successes along the way, no matter how small they may seem. This positive reinforcement can help you stay motivated and keep moving forward.

Pilot programs give us a 360 degree view on the acceptance, challenges and outcomes of the program as it involves multiple stakeholders like students, management, parents and faculty. Any silhouettes that are troublesome can be ironed out with a mutual discussion and measuring the impact of the pilot program. It also saves you on making larger investments on technology that you may like it but the receivers are yet not ready to embrace it.

Remember, change can be a catalyst for growth and new opportunities. By embracing it with a positive attitude and open mind, you can turn resistance into resilience and thrive in the face of the unknown. "The only person you are destined to become is the person you decide to be." - Ralph Waldo Emerson

Incremental soft start adaptation Create pay-based incentives Create title positions for tech-trained staff Provide certificate training for resumes. Create events to recognize employee tech milestones. Have a training advocate to answer questions/support changes. Create mentorship program between tech and non-tech-savvy employees Make continuous development part of the culture by doing all of the above and adding it to the company mission statement. This last one involves cash investment: create/franchise a recognized certificate program open to outside teachers. So, you have an extra revenue stream. You raise your certificate's market value and company visibility. Finally, you have a steady stream of candidates for future hires.

As tecnologias são suportes fundamentais para potencializar nossa qualidade de vida. A Inteligência Artificial Generativa, que tem um grande impacto em diversas etapas do nosso trabalho e é de fácil acesso. Para discernir onde aplicá-la, é importante conhecer seus fundamentos, compreender sua dinâmica, avaliar suas respostas e utilizar seu conhecimento e repertório para decidir onde usá-la.

Comece ouvindo atentamente todas as perspectivas para entender as preocupações e expectativas de cada lado. Facilite um diálogo aberto, incentivando o compartilhamento de experiências e evidências sobre os benefícios e desafios das tecnologias. Proponha sessões de treinamento e workshops para capacitar os docentes, destacando como essas ferramentas podem ser integradas de forma eficaz no ensino. Mostre exemplos de sucesso e esteja disposto a ajustar a implementação com base no feedback recebido. Com uma abordagem colaborativa e informada, você pode construir um consenso e promover a adoção de tecnologias que beneficiem o aprendizado e o desenvolvimento profissional de todos.

Keeping up with changes is part of a faculty's position. However, having to learn new technologies or methods can be time-intensive. If it is a major shift, such as AI, then there may be pay incentives to encourage learning and implementing these new things. Also, with that payment needs to come the expectation of sharing what's learned and helping others incorporate it into their areas of expertise. If the leadership can take the first step, finding articles, websites, books on the topics, as well as possibly demonstrating how to incorporate it, that may be enough to give faculty a positive outlook and a willingness to take it on.

So, the faculty should start adopting Open Source tools and solutions for learning. There are various groups, projects, etc. available across the globe to facilitate education. For example, in India, we have the FOSSEE project to promote Open Source Software for Education and Spoken Tutorial videos for free learning. The faculty must stick to these, promote and contribute to them. Following such initiatives would help the faculty from various regions to keep themselves updated and also they will be united towards a particular goal without being divided on new educational technologies.