Stratosphere: Integrating Technology, Pedagogy, and Change Knowledge

by Michael Fullan

In Stratosphere, Michael Fullan takes a close look at the fast-paced world of emerging technologies and argues that the inevitable influence of technology on teaching and learning must not be resisted, but rather embraced and applied in meaningful ways to positively impact school classrooms.

Genres: Education, Nonfiction, Professional Development, Technology

112 pages, Paperback

First published March 21, 2013

Reviews

[Marc · Rating 3 out of 5]

Educational reform = pedagogy+technology+change knowledge. The problem is that Fullan offers no clear solutions or role for technology. I agree completely that technology must serve pedagogy and in that role, it can accelerate education. The problem is that his writing about technology is as vague as how we use technology in education now. We try stuff. We wander. There is rarely a clear vision for HOW technology will serve pedagogy. He points out that the one "industry" that has been least affected by technology is education.

Having said that, this is a thought provoking read with plenty of references to other material for further exploration. His concept of the stratosphere will resonate with me and will affect my practice. This short read is worth the price of admission.

[Kate · Rating 3 out of 5]

More academics should confine themselves to 100ish pages! I would never have done more than skim this book if it were longer. Helps cut through the confusion of trendy concepts, buzzwords, and the constantly changing technologies of the moment.

[Seán Mchugh · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's about time someone put together a succinct summary of pretty much everything you need to know about the 'skinny' on technology enhanced learning. I kind of think he's stolen TPACK's thunder a bit, but it would be a shame to pit them against each other, they are very compatible models, I'd liked to have seen this framework mentioned though.

All in all a great way to out the package together, and coming from such a respected author really seals the deal. A great length, a great read, and a magnificent vision for the future of learning.

[Barb Middleton · Rating 3 out of 5]

A quick read that focuses on the pedagogy of integrating technology with education. Michael Fullan reveals that best practices are student-centered where technology is a tool to deepen learning. It had some interesting parts but is already fading in my memory.

[Cherie Lebron · Rating 4 out of 5]

Introduction
In Michael Fullan’s text, Stratosphere Integrating Technology, Pedagogy, and Change Knowledge a notion of change is coming in the form of education and technology. The author suggests that educators need to focus on three components which will allow students to enjoy school and become actively engaged in learning. These three components consist of technology, pedagogy, and change knowledge which can be simply defined as the “stratosphere” according to Fullan (Fullan, M. 2013). With technology on the cutting edge in education, Fullan examines the current uses of technology and also focuses on the future of technology in schools. Throughout Fullan’s text, he encourages educators to know their students, implement technology with good teaching practices, and design a simple plan that will provide teachers and students with desired outcomes with regards to teaching and learning. Fullan also outlines how educators need to begin to flip the role of the teacher and the student. A concept that evidences the teacher and the student sharing learning experiences and the teacher acts a facilitator during the process. Fullan believes this change must be made soon and that “whole-system reform” is the only way to close achievement gaps across the country (Fullan, 2013).

Summary
According to Fullan, the “stratosphere” is the change we need in our school systems worldwide in order to close achievement gaps for all students. He attributes this need for change as a result of technological advances occurring at a rapid rate. Fullan states, “ The current system is too costly, too expensive, and as any kid will tell you, deadly boring” (Fullan, 2013, p.5). Fullan is suggesting that educators are wasting too much time on meaningless teaching that isn’t pedagogy driven which excludes the utilization of the effective uses of technology. Educators must realize that the 21-century student demands meaningful teaching that is centered around technology, personal connections, peer-to-peer learning, real-life problem solving, active engagement, and research learning to create exciting and innovative learning practices.
In focusing on technology, we must concentrate on how it correlates with pedagogy. Fullan explains that technology has its pros and cons, but in the case of its educational uses as long as educators implement technology appropriately, it can cause an uproar of academic success. He mentions the “Stratosphere is about opening our eyes to both the dark side and the of technology and to its virtually unlimited enlightenment side--no powerful tool is ever neutral to its use” (Fullan, 2013, p. 7). As we all know, technology can be very addicting when using social media and participating in gaming which is okay for a period of time, but while in school the focus should have a more educational approach. Good thing researchers have found ways to incorporate social media and gaming with educational purposes. Fullan suggests that technology in the classroom should foster STEM with hands-on learning, inquiry-based lessons, and peer collaboration where students have to demonstrate mastery. Fullan adds, “...good technology under the direction of a great pedagogue can do wonders” (Fullan, 2013, p. 59).
Educators also need to emphasize change knowledge, better known as, implementation. Fullan states that, “Change knowledge is about implementation, which is putting something new into place...quality implementation is key” (Fullan, 2013, p. 65). Fullan discusses that this change needs to be done on a large scale. In order for this to be done, educators should motivate other teachers to engage in the meaningful change, be prepared to handle setbacks, and network to learn from others. In conclusion, it is pedagogical teachers along with technology who implement an effective plan to maximize student achievement that will change the game for 21st-century learners.

Critique
I enjoyed reading this book as it gave me insight on ways to integrate technology in the classroom in a meaningful manner. I recommend that all current and aspiring teachers read this book as its content fosters new age education. The new age education that we are facing today with 21st-century learners that sit in our very classrooms today. This book is very precise and its straightforwardness makes it an enjoyable read. The author does a great job of focusing on what technology is today and where technology should be forefronted in the near future. Throughout the text, the reader can appreciate Fullan’s theories backed by many research studies administered across the world. To become engaged in the emerging tech world from an educator's standpoint immerse yourself within this text.

About the Author
Michael Fullan is an author, speaker, and an educational consultant. To date, he has written thirty-four books with an emphasis on educational leadership and whole system change in education. Fullan was born Toronto, Ontario in 1940. He earned a doctorate degree in sociology in 1969 from the University of Toronto. Later he worked as a graduate professor, researcher, and leader of in-service programs. In 1988, Fullan was granted the position of dean University of Toronto's Faculty of Education. From 2004-2013, he served as served Special Policy Advisor in Education to the Premier of Ontario. He has earned honorary doctorates from Nipissing University of Canada and the University of Edinburgh in Scotland.


References
Fullan, M. (2013). Stratosphere: integrating technology, pedagogy, and change knowledge. Toronto, ON: Pearson
Information retrieved from http://michaelfullan.ca/
Information retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael...

[Kirstin Brie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a great read for anyone struggling with how to balance pedagogy and technology. Michael Fullan outlines how he sees the future of education and what the profession needs to do to move into the 21st century. Innovation needs to harness both pedagogy and technology (it tends to only focus on one or the other), with change knowledge leading the way, while engaging in continuous learning.

At the time of reading, this book is almost 10 years old. It would be fascinating to see where education and technology is now, and what the literature says about how to continue to innovate and integrate technology and education in a smart way.

[Megan McKellar · Rating 3 out of 5]

This very short book shows how ahead of his time Michael Fullan is. This book was published around 2013, and echoes a lot of the current thought around technology, pedagogy and change management. He also combines this with snippets of his previous work on change leadership. A good succinct book, and on the shorter side for those looking for a snapshot of his thinking. I gave it 3 stars (average) because it didn’t really introduce anything new for me, but I have also read a lot of Fullan’s work.

[Cindy Jacobsen · Rating 5 out of 5]

This short book (less than 100 pages) should be studied by every educator; Fullan shows us the future of education; how to reform a tired old system that isn't working. In his words, "We are at the early stages of a potentially powerful confluence of factors that could transform education." The three components are: pedagogy, change, and technology. Read this book alongside his report, "A Rich Seam: How New Pedagogies Find Deep Learning."

[Nancy Wilson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Stratosphere is an enormous word. When used in the context of education, it exceeds most expectations for comprehension. It it almost too big to contemplate. Yet the future is here, we are living it; the stratosphere is just the tip of the iceberg, so to speak, in terms of potential for education and change. The integration of technology is at the forefront of educational focus. Without direction, or pedagogy, education is meaningless. Technology is similar; without instruction or meaningful guidance, it is ineffective. To implement change in education in the 21st Century, we must have knowledge of both technology and the methods with which to implement it.
The author has taken three big ideas that have needed each other for the past 40 years and merged them into what he calls the Stratosphere (Fullan, M., 2013). “Stratosphere is bigger than the cloud” according to the author, with a physical location unknown, and internet resources limited only by imagination and imaginable change. But it is important to know how technology, pedagogy, and change knowledge must work together to reach this distant location within the universe.
Technology is wonderful, but there is a dark side. Distractions exist, and to deny this is to deny the existence of entertainment and its availability through the internet. With this said, is the information extracted by companies on the internet what you wish the powers to be to know? Is it true that, “If you are a young person who lives in a poor neighborhood, you are far more likely to see ads for trade schools than colleges” as Michael Fullan states? The author calls for improved and committed action as well as focus and immersion for multi-taskers. He also mentions Larry Rosen who feels that technology is not necessarily bad, but can enable dysfunction to flourish (Fullan, M., 2013).
As an example, in the 1990s, the focus on increasing sales of milkshakes by McDonald's Corporation was initially looked at with how to make a better milkshake. But after studying consumer data, the availability of the milkshake was dubbed the issue; if a milkshake at 8am is required, then it should be available (Fullan, M., 2013). A friend recently shared with me how McDonald's now serves breakfast all day, giving her the joy of having a hash-brown with her burger instead of fries (Padilla, M., 2016). I do not eat there, but am now curious about ordering a shake for breakfast.
Several basic themes for improving education are in common with the Common Core State Standards. The author has a call for student engagement, including that 20 minutes a day of time spent with a student can make a significant change in his/her life. He feels that teacher and student roles should be flipped, and that content presented must be “steeped in higher-order skills” (Fullan, M., 2013).
Some of the qualities of this book that impressed me are the 70+ references in the bibliography as well as an index of technology terms. For the just entering the 21st Century person similar to myself, this is a helpful way to find details for quick review.
Technology is truly incredible. It is part of everyday life. I concur with how the author states to not focus on technology but to “focus on it’s use” (Fullan, M. 2013). His qualifications go beyond the realms of the cloud. Mr. Fullan is a professor at the University of Toronto. His life work is to progress education reform on a grand scale. He has received many honorary doctorates. His website, www.michaelfullan.ca, is easy to locate and includes a blog, great photographs, free resources, and the extensive list of education-themed books that he has written. In addition, there is a section devoted to his dedication to education specifically in the state of California. Stratosphere is written so concisely, with a simple theme broken down and visited with details and examples in just a few chapters, that I am eager to read more of his other publications aimed at improving education.

[Peter Atkinson · Rating 3 out of 5]

In Stratosphere, Michael Fullan outlines his solution for the current inertia in schools today: “The solution consists of the integration of advances in pedagogy (especially built on how we learn), in technology (especially around engagement), and in change knowledge (especially around making change easier).”

Pointing to studies that suggest alarming levels of both student and teacher dissatisfaction and disengagement with learning in schools, Fullan argues that current approaches such as “tell and test” are to blame for this general malaise. He further states that only through the proper integration of pedagogy and technology will schools become effective institutions for learning in the 21st century. The four criteria for new developments in learning he states must “irresistibly engaging, elegantly efficient and easy to use, technologically ubiquitous 24/7, and steeped in real-life problem solving.”

In his chapter on technology, Fullan begins by acknowledging technology’s “dark side” – phenomena like cyberbullying, sexting, and gaming addiction. He suggests, though, that the undisciplined use of technology by young people is due, in part, to the fact that “the digital world of students is largely outside of schools”. Although his message with respect to technology is for school districts and teachers to “get in there”, experiment, and allow the gadgets to come to school, he also warns against simply loading up on technology in schools, which he calls a “wrong driver”. Instead, he argues for a proper integration of technology involving a focus on pedagogy with teachers becoming comfortable “with not being the tech expert in the room” and practicing good classroom management skills.

Along with this increased focus on technology, Fullan calls for a new pedagogy that is centred on meaningful projects that focus on real-life problem solving and include the following elements:

- Teamwork
- Risk taking and experimentation
- Frequent and purposeful feedback
- Personalization

More than anything else, the new pedagogy calls for a focus on the subjective experiences of students, allowing students, as Sir Kenneth Robinson says, to “be creative in one’s area of interest”.

Fullan concludes Stratosphere on an optimistic note, predicting that an explosion of innovations that integrate technology and the new pedagogy are just around the corner.

[Carolyn Kost · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fullan packs this pithy 80 page volume with his own vast experience with system-wide turnaround projects (his team raised the high school graduation rate in Toronto by 20%), intriguing studies that support his thesis, and a literature review of books about innovation and other compelling themes not ostensibly related to education. He convincingly demonstrates that technology alone is not the answer and can, in fact, be part of the problem when not implemented well. Rather, technology must be integrated with the New [project- and inquiry-based and student-centered] Pedagogy and with effective and collaborative ways of implementing change. The synergy these three create together will transform education and lead to "twice the learning at half the price."

[Chris · Rating 2 out of 5]

Mr.Fullan has many great ideas about reforming education through pedagogy, technology, and changed knowledge (what he calls the stratosphere). He pulls ideas and examples from many resources and explains how school districts in Ontario improved student achievement during this process. Mr. Fullan's "big" vision makes complete sense when looking at improving our education system. The part of the book that makes me frustrated is he never truly explains the specifics of how this can be implemented and how to truly get school systems into the "stratosphere." It would have been nice if he could explain specifics in an educational system of how to make this transformation. Another book with a great vision, but no practical applications.

[Judy Ball · Rating 2 out of 5]

Very disappointing. Fullan makes the case for technology and then immediately contradicts himself by citing evidence that technology made/makes no difference whatsoever. The "skinny" lists of criteria may be useful, and the stories about how to apply Jobs' successes at Apple to education were entertaining. However, I question the overall value of this vastly overpriced little report. It appears to be one more attempt to attribute successful outcomes to something other than the interventions in place at the time of the experiment.

[Ellon · Rating 2 out of 5]

I think Fullam has a good main idea but doesn't do a good job explaining it. The book was hard to read and every page seemed to have another list of 3-8 'key ideas' relating to a different concept. It got to the point where it was nearly impossible to follow. My favorite part of the book didn't even have to do with education. I like that Fullan suggested utilizing technology with pedagogy but I don't feel like he actually have any tangible ideas on how we are supposed to achieve this.

[Jane Renner · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book. I have recommended this book to many colleagues, especially teachers that are going to be experiencing a shift in teaching and learning due to the one-to-one initiatives. Fullen eloquently and succinctly outlines the coming together of technology, change, and pedagogy and how these three must work together to benefit students.

[Leah · Rating 3 out of 5]

I picked up this book looking for practical strategies and resources for how to integrate technology in my classroom. On that front, I was disappointed. I should've read the description more closely. This is a book which is primarily intended for principals and talks more generally about technology integration in relation to pedagogy.

[Mike · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fullan says that technology, new pedagogy & change knowledge are 3 parts of the 'stratosphere' that will change education. Readable, short book, carries a good message. Can't agree with all of it - but good points to keep in mind for real change.

[Jeff Pelich · Rating 1 out of 5]

I really question a lot of the "research" in this book based on my own experiences, research, and understanding.

[Shireen · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great exploration of technology, pedagogy, and change theory.
My main critique would be that it combines Ontario legislation and experiences with US policy; not a clear focus of a singular target.

[Maria · Rating 5 out of 5]

Powerful and of the minute work from a clear minded educationalist. Loved the links made and will create my pedagogy around his thoughts and analogies .

[Kate · Rating 2 out of 5]

Started out great...lost interest as it progressed. Great ideas/notions presented but some ideas seemed repetitive.

[Barb]

Found it fairly dense, and lacking in practical ideas. And once he praised the teacher evaluation work of Bill Gates - lost it.

[Anna Latimer · Rating 2 out of 5]

Informative and insightful at times, but does not make for easy reading.

[Melody · Rating 2 out of 5]

Interesting ideas regarding technology use. Very repetitive. He lost me at times.