Pros And Cons Of Technology And Education

Today’s High Technology has become an integral component of the lives of

most of the children and teens growing up in America. The integration of technology and education is following a far rockier road, however, and that is to the determent of those children whose future will require a comprehensive, practical understanding of the digital landscape. Many teachers and parents resist the fusion of the Internet with education; the teachers fear the emphasis on technology will limit their ability to teach effectively, while parents are more concerned with safety and the risk of promiscuity aided by technology. Proponents of a more robust technological education are divided as well, with some schools beginning to productively bring the virtual

Yesterday’s Leapfrog Reading systems grow dust, displaced by this year’s new online reading comprehension program. “A shrinking but still relatively significant percentage of educators—especially those who are 55 and older—don’t feel confident with these new technologies” (Wong ¶ 17) is especially important when those older educators have higher positions in the school hierarchy to affect curriculum changes. Other teachers oppose the integration of technology as it increases the time they need to spend preparing to teach. “[M]any teachers simply feel overburdened by the new technology”(Wong ¶ 17), which should come as no surprise given the ever-changing district, state and nation-wide curriculum changes educators must regularly adapt to. The many hours put in off the clock to learn to use and set up MobyMax for an elementary class will be for naught when CCSD announces the change to ST Math the following year. “Still, public-school teachers today say there are already overburdened by a slew of expectations – from the Common Core math and reading to additional state and local stipulations.” (Wong ¶ 23) None of this points to an inherent flaw into the possibility of proper integration of technology and education. The problems are bureaucratic and based on the inexperience of teachers successfully integration technology into the classroom. The method of

The failure of technology to be a remedy for all educational woes as seen by Atwell, however, is a Strawman. While some schools may hand out a laptop, iPad or iPod to every student (Wong ¶ 4, Davidson ¶ 14) the act of providing technology to students is not the same as teaching the student how to successfully use that technology in an academic capacity. Atwell believes the introduction or more devices into the classroom distract children from learning but should that really be surprisingly given the circumstances? Educators give a child an iPad without an explanation of how to use it or a solid plan of how to integrate the iPad into the prepared teaching. Of course, children will become distracted with this new device they were handed by seemingly doesn’t fit in with the lecture. “I’m appalled that we talk about technology as if it’s a discipline or school subject,” (Wong par. 19) says Atwell displaying her deeply conservative views on the progress of education. The technology integration into the daily lives of students is not going to change but if teachers refuse to accept that integration, it should come as no surprise when they fight a losing battle for children’s attention and