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I grew up the product of two computer programmers. I understand the benefits and conveniences that come with technology and I welcome them with open arms. Technology in an educational setting can be extremely important. We live in a technologically driven society and the more training our students get on how to incorporate themselves into that society the more prepared they'll be for the future. But, it is important to remember that technology is a means to an ends and not an ends itself. It is a medium which, when used appropriately, helps make our students' learning more efficient and more complete. If however, as Dr. Hough suggests, we put the "cart before the horse," for example, purchasing 200 iPads and THEN trying to figure out how we're going to use them for an educational purpose, then we're not only missing the point but we're doing so in the most expensive manner possible. (Reviewed by: Justin Ormsby)
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http://www.cyberbuzz.com/2012/08/19/global-tv-tech-buzz-taking-notes-on-a-notebook-or-tablet/
From individual slates to I-Pads for every student, advances in technology continue to impact teaching and learning in schools. Many classrooms today are equipped with electronic devices that allow students to submit answers instantly to their teacher, so immediate feedback can be recorded.
This, of course, is an improvement over the Flintstones’ approach whereby young pterodactyls fly from stone tablets to stone walls chiseling with their beaks. However, the learning process is the same: ask a question, get a response, and then provide appropriate instruction in the direction needed.
As part of LBJ’s “Great Society” in the 1960’s the technological invention that was going to revolutionize education was the overhead projector. The idea was to allow teachers to use transparent film in lieu of the chalk board. In this way, they could use prepared materials AND write on them without turning their backs on the classroom as was necessary during the chalk board era.
The downside to this was that there was no longer a need to have wayward students stay after class to clean blackboards or pound chalk erasers on curbs. Instead, they had only marker colors to wipe off transparencies with moist Kleenex. Staying after school for discipline suddenly lost its charm and nostalgia.
Today, schools across the country are investing in a variety of technologies designed to facilitate the learning process. Skype connects students with real life - live time events and people, blogs have become teaching tools, and the internet is our library – of sorts. All too often, perhaps, the technology is purchased before the instructional use is fully fleshed out. In the olden days this was called “getting the cart before the horse.”
Still, we gallop on. Why not put a bar code atop every student’s left wrist. We could scan everybody at the beginning and end of each class and record up-to-the-minute progress. We could plot the progress electronically and produce learning trend analyses in place of annual spring state assessments. This could also be a part of the teacher evaluation package. Data from the bar codes could be used to calculate how much the teacher actually contributed to each student’s progress.
Sound like science fiction? So did the internet and cell phones-turned-computers (or vice versa) a few short years ago. As we continue our “Race to the Top,” let’s keep in mind that the fundamental principles of learning have not changed. Psychological phenomena and social interactions cause neurons to fire and dendrites to grow, but only when the human being is ACTIVELY engaged, not passively entertained.
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