The Innovational Pivot: The Design and Implementation of a Digital Writing Tool

• In Event: 26.029 - Student Learning via New Tools and Approaches

Abstract

This paper describes the design and impact of a digital writing tool created to scaffold student self-evaluation of academic texts. While innovative technology design is commonly positioned as coming from emerging, newly invented technologies, we theorize about and trace how innovation can also emerge from a pivot, namely how leveraging existing practices in new ways can create pedagogically and experientially innovative learning opportunities. After describing the design of InfoWriter, we explain the results of a study based on an implementation the tool and then reflect on the way the design process and study findings suggest that pivoting an existing practice can lead to innovative education technology designs.

Authors

• Justin Olmanson, University of Nebraska - Lincoln

• Katrina Kennett, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

• William Cope, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

• Rita van Haren, Common Ground Publishing

• Duane Searsmith, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign