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Stephen T. Kerr

  • The real problem is not whether machines think but whether men do.
    • B. F. Skinner (1969) -favorite quote of Stephen Kerr
  • Perhaps most troubling is the assumption that, if technology makes it possible to do something, then that thing should be done.
    • Stephen Kerr-(Chapter in S. T. Kerr (Ed.) (1996). Technology and the Future of Schooling. 95th Yearbook of the National Society for the Study of Education, Part II. [Chicago: University of Chicago Press].)
  • What educational technology may be about is the work done in schools: how it is defined, who does it, to what purpose, and how that work connects with the surrounding community.
    • Stephen Kerr- (Toward a sociology of educational technology. (1996.) In D. Jonassen (Ed.), Handbook of Research on Educational Technology. Chicago: Macmillan.)
  • "We do not have very good models to really encourage teachers to think thoughtfully about technology in their classrooms. Teachers have not developed a common language to discuss what goes on, at a very detailed level, in classroom lessons and what the impact is of using one approach over another."

Professional Information:

  • Stephen T. Kerr is a professor of education at the University of Washington.
  • He teaches in the College of Education's Program of Educational Communication and Technology and the Program of Cognitive Studies.
  • He received his A.B. degree from Princeton University, an M.A. from Columbia University, and a Ph.D. in Education from the University of Washington.
  • Before joining the faculty at UW in 1985, he taught at:
    • Sheldon Jackson College in Sitka, Alaska.
    • The University of Puget Sound in Tacoma, Washington.
    • Columbia University.
    • Teachers College in New York

Positions Held:

  • Chair of Curriculum and Instruction (1987-1990 and 2000-2002)
  • Associate Dean for Teacher Education (1990-1992)
  • Associate Dean for Academic Affairs (2002-2006)
  • He chairs various university committees focusing on educational technology and distance

education

instructional design, and a new technologically enhanced educational system in Russia and
the former Soviet Union.

  • His current work focuses on the design of distance education experiences for teachers, the

creation of large-scale virtual environments in support of teachers' professional
development, and the emergence and implications of a culture of educational knowledge
management.

Includes an exhaustive list of all publications, chapters, articles, and books.

PROFESSIONAL MEMBERSHIPS:

Divisions: B (Curriculum), C (Learning and Instruction), G (Social Context), and K
(Teacher Education). Special Interest Groups: Instructional Technology; Text Design and
Learner Strategies; Media, Culture, and Curriculum; Textbooks, Publishing, and Schools;
Teacher and Student Cognitions; Restructuring Public Education; Microcomputer
Applications in Education; International Studies. Organizational activities: International
Relations Committee, 1980-86, 1991-94 (Chair, 1992-94), 1997-2000. Various executive,
committee and referee responsibilities for committees, divisions, and special interest
groups.

Divisions: Research and Theory, Instructional Development, Information Systems and
Computers, International. Various executive, committee and referee responsibilities for
divisions.

Special Interest Groups: Computer-Human Interaction; Computers and Society;
Computer Uses in Education.
CIES Comparative and International Education Society; since 1976

Sample Papers:

Introductory Chapter from Technology and the Future of Schooling -- 95th
NSSE Yearbook, Pt. II).

In Jonassen, D. (Ed.) (2004). Handbook of Research for Educational
Communications and Technology (pp. 113-142). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence
Erlbaum.

Paper delivered at the conference of the American Association for the
Advancement of Slavic Studies, Washington, DC; October, 1995)

Comments on what we know and don't know about the effectiveness of
educational technology, prepared for presentation at an In-Service Day conference
for Seattle teachers, October, 1996

  • "Nine Paradoxes of Educational Technology" [1997]

Some thoughts on the nature of the field, and the tensions that exist between
technology and culture in the realm of education

  • "The Re-Centering of Russian Education" [1996]

Remarks at a Roundtable, American Association for the Advancement of Slavic
Studies conference, Boston, MA, November, 1996.

An exercise in forensic cross-cultural anthropology. Paper presented at the
American Association for the Advancement of Slavic Studies conference,
Seattle, WA, November, 1997.

Paper prepared for the CCSSO Educational Technology Leadership Conference,
Washington, DC, January

Accomplishments:

Stephen has directed much of his research efforts and academic focus to improving the much outdated Russian school system. The project he is currently working on will support education modernization goals in the public schools and will help improve accessibility, quality, and efficiency of general and first level vocational education all over Russia.

  • Stephen Kerr is leading the charge to educate teachers and administrators in the appropriate use of technology in K-12 schools. He has helped develop the Smart Tools Academy, a program to bring school administrators from across the state of Washington together to immerse them in technology and demonstrate its benefit.

Why I chose this leader:

I chose Stephen Kerr because he did not set out to be an Instruction and Design Technologist. He was teaching psychology and sociology in rural Alaska and needed to somehow "reach" his students. He turned to technology as a necessity. I chose Stephen Kerr because he has a varied background, a global perspective and interest, and I have enjoyed his style of writing. I agree with his stance that technology for the sake of technology is a flawed approach to education. We should use technology in education as a tool, as a pathway to learning, not the pathway to learning. I like the quote about technology is ultimately about the actual "work" done in schools. Stephen Kerr calls for more work and study of the sociology of educational technology. Most importantly Stephen has decided to assist in the educational reform for a Russia. He has lent his talents to the World Bank's initiative to help improve accessibility, quality, and efficiency of general and vocational education all over Russia. I think that this global perspective should be rewarded.

References:

Kerr, S.T.(Interviewee). Interview Transcript. Retrieved from Instruction Technology Online http://www2.gsu.edu/~wwwitr/interviews/kerr.htm

Kerr, S.T. Stephen Kerr's University of Washington Homepage. Retrieved March 2, 2009, from http://faculty.washington.edu/stkerr/

Kerr, S.T., Winn, B. University of Washington Center for Distance Learning Home Page. Retrieved March 2, 2009, from http://depts.washington.edu/crddl/index.htm

Williams, B.(2001). Evaluating Information and Communications Technology: Perspectives for a Balanced Approach.Retrieved March 4, 2009,from http://www.si.umich.edu/pne/kellogg/091.html