Based on what I have read, technology effectiveness is a highly debated and argued topic among educators. There are many myths and misconceptions that even I myself have argued about technology use. For example, I always assumed that because I was a young, new teacher and used technology that most teachers who used technology were new and young like me. According to the article Research dispels common ed-tech myths, this idea is not the case. Veteran teachers are just as likely to use technology as new, young teachers (eSchool News Staff, 2010). A 2009 survey by Grundwald associates, found that as many as 34% of teachers were infrequent technology users compared to 22% who claimed that they used technology frequently, more than a third of their class time. This number is astounding to me. The research in this article seems to argue that even among those who do use technology in the classroom, many use it for tasks such as email, word processing, or games. Very few classrooms seem to be using the technology for actual learning and teaching.
There are critics on both sides of the argument of effective use when it comes to technology. Some argue that test scores have not supported the idea that technology use increases student learning, that this technology movement is simply another bandwagon fad. For example, the New York Times article, Grading the Digital School: In Classroom of Future, Stagnant Scores, discussed a school in the Kyrene School District in Arizona where technology is used frequently in the classroom. One teacher in the article is using technology in a lesson on Shakespeare. Her students are writing blogs, building Facebook pages, and even creating music lists to support the information the...
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...n because of the ability they present to measure student knowledge at any moment. I did not know before using the Technopedia site that there were so many different types of student response systems. I always just imagined the basic student response system with four A, B, C, and D buttons. However, the fact that you can have student response systems that allow for elaboration to open-response questions make this technological tool even more useful and effective. With so much pressure on standardized testing, this tool allows teachers to question and rank the knowledge of each individual student. Furthermore, because of the abilities of current Smartphones, the expensiveness of student response systems goes out the window in a classroom that allows cell phone use. I truly believe that both of these technologies can truly change and positively effect education.
Technology is very beneficial to children in school because it makes education more entertaining, allows kids to learn outside of school, and provides low-cost alternatives to poor families that are just as good as going to school.
The article, How and Why Digital Generation Teachers Use Technology in the Classroom: An Explanatory Sequential Mixed Methods Study, discusses the use of technology in the classroom. Traditional teachers have been viewed as an obstacle to introducing technology in the classrooms. It is also believed that this issue will resolve once the technological generation of teachers enter the profession.
Once teachers are secure with their knowledge of technology, children are susceptible to becoming addicted to technology and focusing less and less on what the teacher is trying to teach in the class if the devices are not well monitored. The National Center for Education Statistics ran a survey in 2009 to see how much technology is actually used within classrooms. The results were that “97 percent of teachers had one or more computers located in the classroom every day, while 54 percent could bring computers into the classroom” (“National Center for”). These numbers are increasing every year because of the higher demand for and usage of technology and the ever growing upgrades in education. The number of computer for instructional purposes have gone from 72 in 1995 to 189 in 2008 according to the National Center for Education Statistics chart. The number of computers in classrooms has increased drastically in such a short amount of time of just over 10
Most importantly, the question that must be asked when a new technology is put into education, is if the technology is useful, and if it helps the students learn in new ways that were never possible before the technology. David Gelernter in an article for Time magazine asserts that “It’s as if the Administration
We live in an age of technology. Like it or not, technology is quickly changing the way people access information, communicate, and learn. So with this new tool in just about everyone’s hands, why shouldn’t schools use technology to provide better education to students'? Schools should keep in mind the type of technology, the future of human interactions, and the high quality of learning provided by tech. The world is ever becoming smaller thanks to technology.
...assroom. Sometimes there are people that it would not help learn because they need that face-to-face learning. It is just the way that they learn that it could benefit them or it could not . It should be up to the students on it they want to use the old fashion pen and paper or this new technology.
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).
Our world is changing gradually bringing these changes into people’s daily life styles; consequently, a person’s potential to embrace these challenges and revolutionize with them has become an important factor to analyze people’s way to prepare themselves for the future. According to Gilbert Valdez, educational technology, especially computers and computer-related peripherals, have grown tremendously and have permeated all areas of our lives. It is incomprehensible that anyone today would argue that banks, hospitals, or any industry should use less technology. Most young people cannot understand arguments that schools should limit technology use. For them, use of the Internet, for example, plays a major role in their relationships with their friends, their families, and their schools. Teens and their parents generally think that use of the Internet enhances the social life and academic work of teenagers. Nonetheless, not all people has the possibility of changing towards a technological society due to the lack of personal progress through technology, and the misunderstanding of this tool is leading future professionals to become technologically dependant; in other words to rely only on technology without considering the possible consequences that it might have on future professionals development and their educational background. The overuse of educational technology has been growing over the recent years due to the emergent technological developments around the world; however, it can be solved by searching for a new balance between the uses of technology within education.
Technology properly used in the classroom has many advantages to a student’s learning. Technology can help students become more involved in their own learning process, which is not seen in the traditional classroom. It allows them to master basic skills at their own rate rather than being left behind. Teachers and students alike can connect to real life situations by using technology in the classroom; this can also help to prepare students for real world situations. Technology can be used to motivate students as well as to offer more challenging opportunities. It can also be used as a visualization tool to keep students interested in the subject that is being taught. When technology is used effectively, students have the opportunity to develop skills that they may not get without the use of technology (Cleaver, 2011). Assessing and monitoring students is easier on the teacher because of the ability to use technology in the classroom. When technology is used correctly it offers limitless resources to a classroom atmosphere.
Andy Carvin states “ internet access in schools isn’t worth a hill of beans if teachers aren’t prepared to take full advantage of technology” (2000). Schools spend a lot of money on computer hardware and software as well as other technologies without realizing that many of their employees are unprepared to include them in their teaching and use them to their advantages. Educators often use technology as a classroom management tool rather than an educational one, allowing computer time as a reward for good behavior (Clark & Gorski, 2001). The problem with this is that students learn to use the computer for games and such because it is their reward instead of using it on their own time for educational purposes. This is teaching them the wrong idea. Margaret Honey, director of the Center for Children and Technology in NYC said it best, “The bottom line is, you don’t just put technology into schools or into homes and expect miracles to happen. The technology is only as good as the program that surrounds it” (Meyer, 2002, p.2).
Technology affects every aspect of our lives. From romance to business, it has shown its presence everywhere. But technology has had a huge impact on education that cannot be denied, and has done nothing but improve the quality and quantity of education.
Mundy, M., Kupczynski, L. and Kee, R. 2012, “Teacher's Perceptions of Technology Use in the Schools”, SAGE Open, pp. 1-8, viewed 15 Jan 2014, retrieved from Sage Online Article.
Modern technology has made it so much easier to obtain educational information for classroom or homework assignments. It offers educational games that stimulate the brain and help children who have difficulties focusing on traditional teaching and learning procedures. College students are even taking advantage of online courses that many colleges are offering as an alternative to physically attending classes. Advances in technology and computers will continue to play an important role in education for many generations to come.
Computers are helping students get better grades in school, from help with homework over the internet to doing research for an essay at the local library. According to Rother (2004), "Technology has become ingrained in the educational process. It increases teacher productivity in a daily basis, enhanced student performance on key subjects, and improves student results in standardized tests."
Technology in education is a touchy subject in the United States. Many parents believe that technology will only hurt their child in future, while some believe that technology will help their child. Parents have to be open and must allow themselves, to see what is happening before they make their decision.