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Thirty-five years ago, Everett M. Rogers developed a theoretical framework, based on hard research evidence, that described the adoption and the diffusion of innovations throughout organizations and social systems. To Rogers, there were five steps in the adoption process. An individual, a department, an organization, or any other type of decision-making unit passes "from first knowledge of an innovation to forming an attitude toward the innovation, to a decision to adopt or reject, to implementation of the new idea, and to confirmation of this decision" (Rogers, 1995, p. 36).

Rogers, like his colleagues in the realm of diffusion scholarship, primarily envisioned an organization as a structured social entity in which power and control in the system was concentrated in the hands of relatively few individuals. In such a system, innovations originate from a centralized source and then diffuse to users. However, this model is neither appropriate for, nor does it capture the complexity of, relatively decentralized systems in which innovations originate from the ground up. In a decentralized system characterized by a site-based decision making structure, such as the Boulder Valley School District, innovations spread by horizontal communication networks among peer teachers in a relatively spontaneous fashion. A high degree of modification occurs as an innovation is "re-invented" by users to fit their particular conditions.

What sort of innovation are we dealing with here? Throughout the project's five year duration, Boulder Valley Internet Project leaders introduced the use of telecommunications in the classroom to the Boulder Valley School District by training an initial cohort of 26 teachers how to use the Internet, the local area network, and the World Wide Web for research and professional communication. The initial cohort then returned to their schools and proceeded to share their newfound knowledge and skills with their colleagues, in a "trainer of trainers" process similar to that used successfully used in Canada. (See Main, 1996.)

Another aspect of the project was the development of an online foundation for curriculum-related resources that was to be made available to all teachers throughout the district. Though the training program was successful, the impact on curriculum and instruction was less so. To understand the reasons for this, we must delve more deeply into the Rogers model of diffusion of innovations.

In a decentralized system, innovations tend to fit more closely with individual users' needs and problems. Users seek information through personal networks of colleagues, participate in making decisions about what sort of training and support they would like to see as they learn more about the innovation, and then tailor it to their own specific needs as they begin to develop the expertise, knowledge, and skills to use it effectively. As a result, a decentralized diffusion system is closely geared to local needs. A solution that works for one particular school may not be suitable for another, even within the same school district.

Though horizontal diffusion networks are effective within an individual school, they are far less effective among dispersed schools, even at the same grade level. One of the initial objectives of the project - to have three networked middle schools collaborate on several shared curriculum units - was not achieved, partly due to lack of full connectivity, and partly due to the site-based nature of the district.

Another important aspect of the project was that the attributes of the innovation, as perceived by the end users, changed radically during the five year implementation phase of the project. In the Rogers model, there are five attributes of an innovation that are perceived by members of the social system that is in the process of adopting it, that determine its rate of adoption:

Unlike the type of innovation conceptualized by Rogers and the diffusion scholars, the Internet was a rapidly evolving technology. At the inception of the project, the system was very complex. Innovators and early adopters had to learn a plethora of Internet tools including gopher, archie, veronica, telnet, ftp, various types of e-mail, and the like. One of the early adopters reflected on her experience with the project:

The main thing with the project is when it was first started, where the technology was then, and where it is now. If I had to start getting back with all those, you know, ftp's and so on! I mean, I love the Web. That is what I live on!

Toward an Integrated Technology Adoption and Diffusion Model

Throughout the entire duration of our study, we found ourselves addressing many of Rogers' concerns and reflecting on many of his findings. This article is a short summary of our results. A full-scale research paper, The Boulder Valley Internet Project: A case study, is available online.

We were also able to investigate some new aspects of the adoption and diffusion process, such as its spread within a decentralized system and the re-invention process as the innovation itself evolved.

Critical elements of the diffusion process

Homophily is "the degree to which two or more individuals who interact are similar in certain attributes" (Rogers, 1995, p. 36). Rather than perceiving the Internet as an innovation introduced from outside, teacher-trainees learned the necessary skills required to use telecommunications in the classroom from their fellow teachers or the in-building technical resource person.

Observability is "the degree to which the results of an innovation are observable to others" (Rogers, 1995, p. 16) - especially near-peers and colleagues within the same school. Open labs and demonstrations allowed new users to explore the system on their own, and observe its effects directly, and evaluate its effectiveness within their own, non-threatening environment. New users often ask questions such as "what are the innovation's consequences?" and "What will its advantages and disadvantages be in my particular situation?" In the focus group, one of the participating teachers reflected:

Well, with the exception of things like Netscape, I pretty much understood the impact it would have on kids. But this whole concept of the World Wide Web with Netscape and the graphics now, moving beyond Lynx and gopher, that is what has been the really, really big change. It is very possible to have full motion video conferences, to confer with other classrooms anywhere in the world. This is going to be the tough part - how to get teachers ready for major, major change.

When we started, the goal was really to see if this technology was going to be worth our time and effort or not. Then as time evolved, more and more people got interested. It almost got to the point where there was no question about whether it would be useful, just because society had already decided it was going to be useful, if nothing else, than as a research tool. There is such a hype about research. It is harder for people then to think about it as a communication tool. My vision is that we can figure out the most creative meaningful uses of technology and how it can support the changes that we are trying to make in schools.

Iterative design of the training program

The staff development program of the Boulder Valley Internet changed rapidly as the technology evolved and became more user-friendly. Old tools were dropped as the new graphical interfaces became more widespread.

I had no idea what it was when we first got together. It was something called the Internet. At that point in time, it was a matter of "what is it?" That was the first big question of mine, and "how could I use it?" I think the project was different than when I started, and how it ended up. I have been learning nonstop.

A lot of barriers are disappearing as the technology and the Internet advances and access is becoming available.

Expansion of communication networks

One interviewed teacher mentioned that whenever she ran into a problem with the network, she would get online, find out which of her students were also online, and then send a query to whatever student she felt might be able to answer her questions. Thus, students became not only co-explorers with their teachers, as one might expect in collaborative ventures; they became a vital part of the support network for their teachers as well.

Experimentation and re-invention

In the very beginning it took me three months to figure out e-mail. I mean literally, how do I do this and that? Now it seems so natural for the kids. They can do whatever they do on Netscape. It has opened up so many doors.

This is an area where there is no control, no predictability. If you don't find what you are looking for, the skill is to go back. Can I refine my keyword search? There are some pre-sorting and management skills for bookmarking so that once the kids find a site, they don't have to spend an hour tomorrow finding that site again.

We still don't have good ways for kids to document their resources, so now the district is saying, "Maybe we need to get together."

One of the most innovative members of the school at which we conducted the embedded case study enlisted about a dozen multi-age students to join a new Web-based science course geared toward student-generated questions and inquiry learning. Students used the World Wide Web not only for accessing information; they also contacted astronauts, Jason oceanographic researchers, explorers, and other experts as well. Building knowledge with their distant colleagues as well as their own classmates, they created their own Jason Project Web Page and designed a set of projects that were used by the Denver Natural History Museum.

Collaboration to gather resources

Original funding for the project came through the National Science Foundation. The project directors collaborated successfully with other projects such as the Annenberg/CPB Math and Science Project to provide release time, training, and other incentives to newly trained teachers, as well as with the University of Colorado to provide technical support. As funding continues to be cut within the district, and as in-building technical resource people are reassigned to the classroom as a result, dependence on outside funding and support will continue to be an important factor in the success of the project. An elementary school principal commented on this situation:

When we moved into the building, we all moved into a brand new Mac lab, and there were few people in the building who had ever worked on a Mac before. "Oh my goodness, what is a mouse?" We went through that communal loose bond the first couple of years, managing the computer lab on our own. Then, with planning time, money, the staff running special training, and the Annenberg Project, Internet training was really infused with teacher training. In the past two years, we had planning time like crazy, and we just bailed out and turned to a specialist. That part has come back, and we are all in there doing it, but now we have on-site available training and resources.

Compatibility issues

In the ecological formulation of the classroom as a concentric arrangement of four nested, interacting systems, i.e., classoom, school, community, and policy making institutions, these systems "are interrelated by 'a common cultural blueprint' that sets the pattern for the structures and processes that occur within and across the systems" (Peled, Peled, & Alexander, 1994, p. 37). Cultural/ecological change processes result from combinations of acting and interacting factors within and across these connected systems. In the Peled et al. model, information technology interventions must aim at not only the individual participants such as teachers and technology resource people, but also at the school as a whole, the administration, the School Board and associated policy making institutions, and the entire expanded ecological environment that characterizes the district as a whole.

This viewpoint has not always held true for the Boulder Valley Internet Project and the School Board. The lack of compatibility between the beliefs, needs, and values of the potential adopters and the school board may possibly become a major inhibiting factor to the future use of telecommunications in Boulder Valley classrooms.

Recently, the political atmosphere within the district has become more conservative, and there is now a general movement away from innovative teaching methods toward a "back to the basics" emphasis on content. This new trend has caused a difference of opinion among members of the School Board, resulting in a recall petition for the Board President. A number of central administrators have resigned within the past few months, including the Superintendent. This turmoil within the district, and especially within the leadership, continues to have important implications for the success of the project. Although both sides of the political constituency currently express support for technology, each sees the role of technology in a different light. The role of the Internet within the district will be affected by their decisions in many ways including usage, financing, staff development, and allocation of equipment.

Teachers are concerned. One elementary school teacher commented:

The School Board has to learn how important ongoing staff development is in all areas of instruction and learning.

Concluding comments

Ideally, the adoption of a technological innovation should be part of a larger reform effort, a concerted effort toward common goals. Even if a new vision of instruction is not promoted with the use of telecommunications, the nature and structure of the Internet itself is encouraging teachers to learn and teach in a very different manner.

Peled, Z., Peled, E., & Alexander, G. (1994). An ecological approach for information technology intervention, evaluation, and software adoption policies. In E.L. Baker and H.F. O'Neil, Jr. (Eds.), Technology Assessment in Education and Training, 35-61. Hillsdale NJ: Erlbaum.

Rogers, E.M. (1995). Diffusion of Innovations, Fourth Edition. NY: The Free Press.

Sherry, L., & Wilson, B. (1996). Supporting human performance across disciplines: A converging of roles and tools. Performance Improvement Quarterly, 9 (4), 19-36.

Sherry, L., Lawyer-Brook, D., & Black, L. (1996). The Boulder Valley Internet Project: A case study. [On-line.] Full path: http://www.cudenver.edu/~lsherry/aera97.html