Read the nytimes article about how technology is affecting teaching and learning. Look at all the links but particularlyIn particular read the 3 links re
“Growing Up Digital, Wired for Distraction,”
Teachers' Views on Technology in the Classroom
Students and Technology, Constant Companions
http://learning.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/11/21/how-is-technology-affecting-teaching-and-learning/
Address the question: Technology in Education: the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
I could see how Technology in Education is a challenge and how it can be good, bad, and ugly. The challenge is to help students find a balance with technology and their schoolwork, everything in moderation. How can we implement this technology without students loosing focus? In the video, “Teachers' Views on Technology in the Classroom,” there was only positive feedback. The video depicted positive results and students were on task and completing their assignments in the classroom. However, in the video, “Students and Technology, Constant Companions,” we see that students who use technology heavily are losing focus, not doing their homework and getting bad grades.
ReplyDeleteCould we create lessons to reach them outside of school? I was disturbed to hear the young boy plays video games 50-60 hours per week and the young girl who texts over 9,000 texts every month are doing poorly in school. Parents need to step in and help by doing their part.
I agree with the comment the administrator said in the “Fast Times at Woodside High” video, we have to teach the children, there is value in applying yourself, not getting what you want immediately but working towards a goal steadily.
As the video “Fast Times at Woodside High” state, research shows, heavy technology affects behavior and brain. Students who often text, use internet, Facebook, etc. are deprived of much needed down time…Students are not being able to focus, prioritize, & score low academically. Educators especially need to be cognizant of this.
On the other hand, technology in education has positive results in the class, there are opportunities to reach the students, communicate with them, and the students are able to express themselves in a different format other than paper pencil.
I enjoyed the video with the math teacher who creates videos for her students to view for homework and when she is in class, there is more time for discussion and one-on-one sessions. This is similar to flip classes where students use Khan Academy to watch lecture (video) at home and they do the work in school with the teacher.
Technology in education engages students, removes barriers of space and time when communicating with other students globally. Technology helps learning differences like dyslexia; it helps students globally share ideas in the cloud. Technology allows you to carry fewer books and helps with organization.
In conclusion, I believe the good technology in education out way the bad/ugly. I believe as educators we need to be creative and think of ways of reaching the student by using technology to link lessons to something that they are already engaged in. Together we can create meaningful classwork and homework with technology.
Hi Bernadette,
DeleteI guess I should have been more "concerned" about the amount of time that students are spending on gaming, texting, etc. However, I see it everyday just going about my daily routine. The younger generation is sort of addicted to this new technology.
I have to admit that I'm king of old school. I think technology has its place, but the question is to what degree? I am disturbed that kids today are memorizing, and adapting shortcuts to answer questions on tests, instead of truly understanding what they are supposed to be learning. I don't think more gadgets are going to help alleviate this problem.
Curriculum will always be the foundation of education. The method of delivery is definitely changing, but I think educators and administration need to stand back and think through the implementation of today's technological advances.
I agree that we have to be concerned with the amount of time spent gaming, texting, etc, but I too see it everyday. I think that those things should have a time and place for everything but the question you brought is perfect, at what point? I've seen lesson plans that including the use of all different types of styles including games on the computer and the use of cell phones for answering questionnaires. Although there is a time for everything , I think that there is no perfect time and you just have to see what works with your group of students. We could try these different styles to make sure we exhausted all angles in our student's learning. You definitely hit the nail on the head because curriculum is hands down the foundation of education.
DeleteThe article, Growing Up Digital, Wired and Distracted, really does say a lot about today's tension between the need to embrace technology in education and the duty to help students stay focused on their education, and avoid unintended technological pitfalls.
ReplyDeleteI am all in favor of embracing technology in education. However, as demonstrated in the written, video testimonies, I think acceptance has been a little too rapid. Mark Coleman, a teacher from Montgomery, Alabama has quickly integrated technology with his curriculum. However, he admits a major shortcomings of technological integration is availability. Not all of his students have access or can afford to take part in this technological shift in education.
I do like the idea of the video lecture that can be viewed outside of the classroom. This provides for more time to apply the theory using problems and case studies in the classroom via discussion. Posting assignments, grades, et cetera on a common site for students to view and comment is a good step forward. It facilitates the connectivity with the classroom beyond traditional hours. These are all positive attributes of the modern-day technological advances.
As technology is integrated into the educational environment, I do feel it should be deliberate and cautious. Assigning I-pods and I-pads to students to use for “educational” purposes is noble in its concept. However, it offers students opportunities to misuse the technology either by accident or intent. Are educators prepared to respond to such circumstances? Are there best practices in deploying such technology in the classroom? I don't believe that these and many other questions have been answered credibly.
Educators are handing students tools that bring great benefits, and bring potentially great losses.
I think a “healthy diet” is a mix of technology that offers access to educator-created output with limited student ability to provide unregulated content. I fear that the use of devices such as I-pods may unintentionally blur the lines between educational use/purpose and private use/purpose.
I understand that there is a time an place for everything and those rules apply to teaching as well. I believe that teaching styles should be diverse and mixed. If this is done then the incorporation of technology in the classroom could become a good thing. Though technology is very important in today's society, teacher should not over do it. One of my professor's this semester brought out a good point which is technology should be incorporated in every lesson just like our traditional style of teaching. This is done by gaging what type of learning is actually occurring such as what objectives/goals are you hitting and do they match up to the state standards. If not the question we should ask ourselves is the lesson in which we incorporated the technology actually furthering our student's understanding of the topic?
ReplyDeleteFrom the readings I have taken away that technology could be good, bad, and ugly. Our students live in today's society which is technology driven. If lessons are planned out carefully with thought, then the good will out do the bad. For instance, as a person that enjoys the subject of mathematics, I learned that if you are showing a student what the graph of a function actually looks like, then it is way more effective showing them on the computer then by hand because the computer is more accurate. To come to a closing, we all understand that technology could be just as bad as it could be good, but it is vital that through the teacher's discretion that with or without the use of technology is to make sure that the students actually are learning/comprehending the topic.
Though I do see the down side to technology it is the teacher's responsibility to see the capabilities of it as well. There are teachers I work with that fight the use of technology in every way possible, the most sophisticated technology they use is a VCR. There is something to be said about this method because even ten years ago this was the way most of us learned. But just as the technology is changing so is the way people are thinking. Students are more distracted, but not because they are any different from how students were years ago, they simply have more available at their finger tips. A creative teacher can use this capability to their advantage. Students are able to work wonders with simply their phones. As I have stated in past weeks, I have used cell phones in class, in ways I believe were successful. Students are evolving, so must teachers. We wouldnt imagine teaching a student how to use an abacus, card catalogs have fallen to the wayside, why then do we hold onto traditions that are no longer necessary? Having answers to every question at our finger tips changes not only the way we gather information but also what a teacher must value as important. I am a history teacher and focus very little on the dates of when things happen, instead i aim to teach each of my students how to be able to think critically about key concepts. The idea of not teaching a student dates would have been deemed irresponsible only a couple decades ago.
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