Ian O'Byrne

Associate Professor

Education

  • University of Connecticut, Storrs, PhD, Educational Psychology - Cognition and Instruction 
  • University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MEd, Secondary Education 
  • University of Massachusetts, Amherst, BA, English 

Research Interests

Dr. W. Ian O’Byrne is an associate professor of literacy education at the College of Charleston in South Carolina. His research focuses on the dispositions and literacy practices of individuals as they read, write, and communicate in online and/or hybrid spaces. Ian is the author of many journal articles and book chapters focusing on initiatives ranging from online and hybrid coursework, integrating technology in the classroom, computational thinking, and supporting marginalized students in literacy practices. His work can be found on his website or in his weekly newsletter.

Courses Taught

  • EDEE 325 - Foundations of Language and Literacy 
  • EDFS 326 - Integrating Technology into Teaching 
  • EDEE 417 - Curriculum, Instruction, & Assessment in Grades 5 through 8 
  • EDFS 687 - Introduction to Educational Technologies 
  • EDMG 658 - Applied Methods & Materials for Grades 5 through 8 

Selected Publications

Turner, K. H., Stevens, E. Y., Paciga, K., O’Byrne, W. I. (2022). Learning about  
ourselves by listening to youth: How parents and children develop digital literacies together. Journal of Adolescent and Adult Literacy.  
 
Radakovic, N., O’Byrne, W. I., Negreiros, M., Hunter-Doniger, T., Pears, E., & Littlejohn, C.  
(2022). Towards Transdisciplinarity: Constructing Meaning Where Disciplines Intersect, Combine, and Transcend. Literacy Research: Theory, Method, and Practice.  
 
Jocius, R., O’Byrne, W. I., Albert, J., Joshi, D., Robinson, R., & Andrews, A. (2021). Infusing  
Computational Thinking into STEM Teaching. Educational Technology & Society, 24(4), 166-179. 
 
 
O’Byrne, W. I., Turner, K., Paciga, K. A., & Stevens, E. (2021). Co-constructing Digital  
Futures: Parents and Children becoming Thoughtful, Connected, and Critical Users of Digital Technologies. In Algorithmic Rights and Protections for Children. PubPub 
 
 
Jocius, R., Joshi, D., Albert, J., Barnes, T., Robinson, R., Cateté, V., Dong, Y., Blanton, M.,  
O’Byrne, W. I., & Andrews, A. (2021, March). The Virtual pivot: Transitioning computational thinking PD for middle and high school content area teachers. In Proceedings of the 52nd ACM Technical Symposium on Computer Science Education (pp. 1198-1204). 
 
Garcia, M., Marlatt, R., McDermott, M., O’Byrne, W. I. (2021). Today is the Tomorrow  
We Should have Prepared for Yesterday: Rebuilding our Classrooms to Facilitate Student-centered, Teacher-sustaining, Tech-supported Education. Voices In The Middle. 
 
 
O’Byrne, W. I., & Hunter-Doniger, T. (2021). Pre-Service Educators Developing a Digital  
Identity. TechTrends, 65(4), 444-453. 
 
 
Hunter-Doniger, T., Radakovic, N., O’Byrne, W. I., Adams, B., Gourdie, E., Heckman, C.,  
Smith, D. (2020). 3D Printed Iron Gates: Celebrating an African American Artist through a Transdisciplinary Lesson. Art Education. 
 
 
O’Byrne, W. I., Keeney, K., & Wolfe, J. (2021). Instructional Technology in Context:  
Building on Cross-Disciplinary Perspectives of a Professional Learning Community. Tech Trends, 1-11. 
 
 
O’Byrne, W. I., Savitz, R., Morrison, J., Kane, B. D., Lilly, T., Ming, K., Aldrich, C. (2020).  
Literacy across the disciplines: Development and validation of an instrument to assess literacy instruction in middle and high school classrooms. The Clearing House: A Journal of Educational Strategies, Issues and Ideas, 1-14 

Honors & Awards

The Divergent Award for Excellence in 21st Century Literacies Research (2021) 

Excellence in Collegiate Education and Leadership (ExCEL) Award (2020) 

Press & Media

How to Raise Media-Savvy Kids in the Digital Age (page 2) – An interview with Meghan Herbst from Wired Magazine. Published on January 27, 2020. Available online 
at https://www.wired.com/story/kids-digital-media-literacy-tips/ 


What It's Like to Quarantine With Kids: The extra screen time isn’t all bad (page 
11) - An interview with Joshua Brustein from Bloomberg. Published on March, 25, 2020. 
Available online at https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-03-25/what-it-s-like- 
to-quarantine-with-kids

 

Professor Supports Educators in the Wake of COVID-19 (page 13) – An interview 
with Alicia Lutz from The College Today. Published on April 29, 2020. Available online 
at https://today.cofc.edu/2020/04/29/ian-obyrne-higher-ed-learning-collective/