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how technology has changed and in turn changed learning
how technology has changed and in turn changed learning
how technology has changed and in turn changed learning
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Life in the Digital Age: To What Extent has the Digital Age Revolutionized Learning?
Introduction
In late 20th Century, specifically the years depicting 1990 to 2000, the human civilization at large, bid farewell to the industrialization age and welcomed in its place the digital age, characterized by rapid access to information communication technology. Without a doubt, the technological advances set apart by the digital age have, as stated by Davidson (2011), tremendously transformed "how we live, work and learn." This has been made easy by the fact that the cost of purchasing significant digital equipment such as computers, mobile phones and other related gadgets has been declining over the years; meaning that access to digital technology has outgrown the boundaries of economic standards relative to neighborhoods, cities, countries etc. The greatest question most scholars have been grappling with is how this new found technology is impacting the way people live, learn and work. It is this particular state of affairs that forms the basis for this essay. For purposes of coherence, the essay will focus more on the characteristic of learning, but will also incorporate living and work life in instances where they interrelate. To what extent has the digital age revolutionized learning? Has this transformation been negative or positive? What are some of the challenges that have presented themselves?
Impact of the Digital Age on Learning
It is, first and foremost, important to realize that learning is a continuous process; right from childhood all the way to adulthood. It is therefore important that we characterize the extent to which the digital age has transformed learning into the following subdivisions; its impact on learning at ...
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...ion to everything that happens around us.
Works Cited
Craft, Anna. "Childhood in a digital age: creative challenges for educational futures." London Review of Education Vol. 10, No. 2. (2012).
Davidson, N. C. Now You See It: How the Brain Science of Attention Will Transform the Way We Live, Work, and Learn. Viking Adult, 2011.
Sharpe, R., Betham, H & De Freitas, S. Rethinking Learning for a Digital Age: How Learners Are Shaping Their Own Experiences. Routledge, 2010.
Springer, Richard. "An Online Education Revolution." INDIAWEST.com. India West, 5th July 2013.
Wake, J. D., Dysthe, O., & Mjelstad, S." New and Changing Teacher Roles in Higher Education in a Digital Age." Educational Technology & Society, 10 (1), 40-51. (2007).
Zeller, J. W. "Living Learning Programs in the Digital Age." The Journal of College and University Student Housing Vol. 35, No. 1. (2008).
Just spending some time in the modern-day classroom; I have observed several students on their phones. During my high school years we did not have to worry about cell phones or laptops being a constant problem. In Annie Murphy Paul’s “You’ll Never Learn!” she explains the studies of multitasking while students do their homework with the modern-day distraction of the digital age; resulting in a lower quality of learning. I agree with Paul that the digital age is becoming a problem in education, even though educators are leaning towards teaching on a digital spectrum. In this essay, I will explain how a digital age versus a non-digital age is effecting everyone involved in a higher education.
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The teacher’s role is changing from standing in front of the room lecturing to being on the
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It is said that digital natives are active experimental learner, excellent at multitasking, and dependent on communication technologies for accessing information and for interacting with other (Frand, 2000; Oblinger and Oblinger, 2005; Prensky 2001a b; Tapscott, 1999). It has been stated that these characteristics raise valid question about weather that the current education system is equipped to meet the needs of new student (digital natives). Tapscott (1998), described education in developing countries as already in crisis with more challenge to com: "There is growing appreciation that the old approach [of didactic teaching] is ill-suited to the intellectual, social, motivational, and emotional needs of the new generation' (p. 131). This was echoed by Prensky's (2001a) claim that: 'Our students have changed radically. Today's students are no longer the people our educational system was designed to teach' (p.
Do you ever think about how much technology has changed the way we work, learn, play, and even think? Technology is a major beneficiary to society; especially in the classroom where we get the opportunity to learn and grow. In recent years, schools have begun implementing tablets and other devices in the classroom to better student’s education. The use of technology in the classroom provides more of a personalized learning experience and gives students a widespread availability to engage in learning. Technology is necessary in today’s modern globe, it is basically “the pen and paper of our time and the lens through which we experience much of our world” (Warlick, 2013). Technology is not just considered the “internet”, it is so much greater than that. Overall, it enhances the quality of education and engages students deeper than ever before. With all the significant gains, why would people argue that technology hinders students more than it helps? Critics may try to repute the use of technology in the classroom but I believe what really matters “is the way we use it, the context that we use it in, and the learners who we use it for” (Chong, 2012).
Through new technologies including computers, World Wide Web, and email, we have seen many changes the way we think about and carry out the process of writing. While most seem to welcome new technologies others like Sven Birkets believe these new technologies are hurting the learning process. He writes, “Many educators say that our students are less and less able to read, or analyze, or write with clarity and purpose. Who can blame the students? Everything they meet with in the world around them gives the signal: That was then, and electronic communications are now (63). This “cyberculture” that we are a part of has truly changed the way we currently live our lives. If we use new technologies to enhance learning and not it’s primary source we as a culture, a “cyberculture” will be able to make even greater advances than previously anticipated. Presently the need for actual printed textbooks is on the decline and is sure to continue as we move further into the future.
Today’s generation is like no other. The nation as a whole has completely evolved from past times, with technology being one of the greatest improvements. Traditionally, schooling takes place in a classroom setting, but, with the many modifications in our world’s system, we are able to assimilate more modern means of education, such as online learning. However, with many changes comes differences and requires adjustments. The online learning system has proven to be just as effective as traditional learning, with some minor differences, however, nothing of great significance. A few of those insignificant differences include online learning being convenient, especially for the non-traditional students,
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