Plugging In With Technology
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- clsate
- jerrib
- Rangifer
- johnstonm
- ratslinger
- johnstonm
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» clsate - Tech in Ed
I guess I disagree somewhat.I have spent the past 6 years as a high school and elementary school "technology mentor." Unlike most of my peers in the school district where I work, I am a certified technician for Macs and PCs. I love technology, but I also love kids and learning. And most of the uses I see in schools is generally inappropriate, especially in the younger grades.
Frankly, if left to me, a life long learner and lover of books, I would take all computers out of grades k through 3. A trip to the lab every now and then might be justified, but small kids working alone on computers is not.
I work in a very poverty stricken area. Many parents of these kids did not finish high school. Reading is not something they see done at home. Good reading skills come from good vocabulary. Early vocabulary development comes from conversation with literate adults. Research indicates that even computer drill "games" do not teach skills as effectively as classroom drills and hands on work and games. Certainly, they do not get conversation, frequently missing at home, from these programs.
Literacy is becoming a national crisis and I would include social skills to be in crisis as well. Children and adults alike spend too much time with T.V., game programs and computers, they don't need more of that at school.
On the other hand, school administrators should be required to learn more about technology, should be aware of the considerable cost involved in the long term care and maintenance of each computer and should become familiar with database terms and capabilities. Then perhaps the ways that school administrations misuse technology to impose additional burdens on teaching staff might be corrected.
Teachers have too much paperwork to do, they have little time or energy left to have any enthusiasm for technology, yet they are required to find ways to integrate it into their curriculums. In many cases, they don't even have a computer of their own on which to learn, since grants that purchase the equipment specify it is for student use. Enter all your lesson plans and then have a student trash them and your excitement over technology goes right down the tube.
And instead of using the technology to lessen the teacher's work load, I see report card committees made up of a few folks who are proud of their Claris Works word processing skills develop templates for doing report cards that consist of 3 documents, (because one page in the middle is printed in landscape), that have to be recreated for each student in a class. The information doesn't go into a database, has to be continually recreated and every grant that obtained the technology requires additional reporting by the teacher. Generally, I just pick up the assigned floppy from the teacher and do it for them, because I can do it faster and they are ready to cry or quit. Now, I wonder, the district is paying for technology trained people like me to be in the school, to teach staff how to use the server, but it never occurs to them to have one of us sit on these committees so we could start integrating all the needs into an easy cohesive program.
And yes, we do run a school administration program - so somebody has to go in and reenter all those grades into it. But only the high school utilized a gradebook program that feeds into it. And they are the only place where teachers can enter attendance directly into the program. 'Cause the other schools don't use period attendance and they were afraid it would be too much for the teachers to learn. So instead each quarter, the teachers wind up pulling their hair out trying to get it all done within the correct time frame.
I see more older students trying to get into chat rooms or download music or use the CD drives in the computers to play their own music CDs than doing real research. And when they have to, they are generally doing cut and paste instead of learning how to take notes and summarize. And yes, we do now have in place a pretty good "babysitter" that can keep them out of most of the chat areas.
I started using computers in 1982, but I did so because I had jobs to do, that I knew how to do and could see where computers might help me do them faster and more accurately. I saw it as a tool to assist with what I already knew how to do. Too many people (all the failed .coms are good examples) believe that a computer and Internet access are all it takes. Wrong! You have to know the job and have the skills to do it first.
Our kids need to be learning to read, write, do math and think first.
-- posted by clsate
» jerrib - I find
your article and the first message cover each end of the spectrum. This is a good way to start, Melissa! A good discussion is what learning is all about.I watch my four-year-old grandson who's hooked on Donkey Kong and would rather play that than learn how to read or write. This concerns me. Of course, I also know that will change once he starts school.
Technology is great if used the right way. Hope school boards learn to define that to work for kids.
Jerri
-- posted by jerrib
» Rangifer - another perspective
I applaud both the original author and the first reply for well-written, interesting opinions. I guess I agree with both of you.
I apologize ahead of time for this meandering post.I am a high school student. I attend a Science Focus Program (part of our public school system but an entire school in itself with about 60 students in grades 9-12). The city also has an Arts & Humanities Program, and next year they are creating a Computers & Techology focus.
I can remember using computers in class from the very beginning. Both of my elementry schools had a "computer lab," where we went twice a week to use game-like programs on outdated Apple computers--so old they lacked a mouse and color screens. Looking back, I think these programs were a waste of time as far as skills are concerned, but they introduced students to computers. We got a vague understanding of how computers work, how to navigate through them, and how to behave around them.
My middle and "home" high school were similar. They had rooms dedicated to computers and maybe the occasional classroom computer for teacher use. In the same way, we did nothing highly productive with these Macintoshes, but it gave kids who didn't have comps at home a chance to explore, see what it mean to "surf," and all that other new tech lingo, and see how they could use the internet to find resources.
It was in that setting that I could really see the downside of technology in the classroom. People did mess around, play games, and download programs. And while this made teachers furious, I still think that doing those things is valuable to gaining computer experience. I know that's how I learned to use computers...I just did it at home.
There are certainly people who "cut and paste" their reports. Not only is that annoying to the teacher, but it was frustrating to me, too, as a student who didn't. I don't like to think that people got the same or better grade as me for a paper that they got online.
There are also a lot of kids who come onto the internet, find a contact to another person, and demand that they be helped with there assignment. Especially from younger grades, I find younger people doing this constantly. "Where can I get this?" "Someone send me this." "What is the answer to this?" In learning on their own through experimentation, kids don't seem to be acquiring the real skills that will make technology an asset for them. They don't understand search engines, or references to hard copy material, or online libraries. They just want the info e-mailed to them for easy downloading. I think this is where teachers need to be involved and experienced so they can prevent and provide alternatives.
Where I am now, computers have become the center of all school activities, and I'm very grateful for that. We work out of portables, one of which is dedicated to computers. But unlike anywhere I've been before, these are always and entirely accessible to students. And we use them constantly. Yes, people listen to CD's, download things, check their e-mail...but by this point we are all highly computer literate, and use technology as a way to do all school related activities quickly and easily.
All our homework must be typed. Anything we don't finish, we can access from the server on any other computer, or we can upload it and access from home. People bring laptops to school to take notes. We can check our homework assignments from the school webpage, or just e-mail a teacher and ask them for advice. We often have reports based solely off the internet, and there is certainly benefit to that. I have learned so much more about topics I'm interested in from online forums...where people are constantly learning, updating, and discussing...than in any book or paper.
By now, I would be lost without a computer. And whether or not that is positive, it is the future. Everyone will have to know how to work a computer. So whatever suffering they're causing teachers right now, I think they're vitally important. Computers aren't going to go away, so we need to focus on getting them to work with our education system, too.
-- posted by Rangifer
» johnstonm - Re: Tech in Ed
In response to message posted by clsate:Thank you for the fantastic response to my first Suite 101.com article! I had no idea that I would be receiving such immediate and well-written feedback. I choose "Plugging in with Technology" as my first article for several reasons. I wanted others to understand the necessary, preliminary steps for integrating technology into the classroom. It absolutely does not happen overnight and takes much hard work and effort on the part of teachers, students, and technology coordinators to ensure that the experience is a positive one. Technology is simply one more tool in our toolbox of techniques for effective teaching. It should never be used exclusively as the only tool.
After reading your response, I realized that I failed to define what was meant by "technology integration". Technology integration, in my definition, is the process of enriching and enhancing the educational experience, not replacing it. In my next article, I will discuss more definitively what is meant by technology integration. I hope that you will stay tuned for my second article and be sure to send your comments on it. There is nothing that can replace a good book or the valuable skills learned from sustained reading on a regular basis.
My second in the series of articles was to focus on developing technology training programs for teachers, but your responses have prompted me to feature another article that I believe will address some of your comments and concerns.
This is a great start to what I hope will be a place where educators can come together to discuss current topics in education.
Melissa Johnston
-- posted by johnstonm
» ratslinger - Re: Re: Tech in Ed
In response to message posted by amschallenge:I agree wholeheartedly with clsate and complement her/him on a very well written article. You make some excellent points. I'd like to add just one:
There are more than 45 million computer literate people in the United States. Only a small percentage of those became computer literate with the help of public schools. More than 90% taught themselves! The fact is we dont need teachers to teach kids to work computers. The media and the computer itself has done such a wonderful job instilling a nationwide desire to become computer literate that the teachers job in this case, is already done.
I say get the computers out of the schools altogether and free up all those tax dollars for things they really need.
-- posted by ratslinger
» johnstonm - Tech in Ed
In response to message posted by ratslinger:I, too, agree with the fact that the media has created a nationwide desire to become computer literate. I also believe that with the numerous resources available (how-to books, online manuals, tutorials and more) that anyone can learn how to operate a computer. I do feel that computer literacy is something to be addressed in school. For some, this is the only place they will have the opportunity to touch a computer. I currently teach 12 students whose only access to a computer is in my classroom.
My topic, however, is aimed at helping teachers utilize this wonderful tool called technology to enhance and enrich the educational experience. I don't believe content teachers should be burdened with the job of teaching students how to use computers. They have far too little time as it is to address academic goals.
When the teacher uses technology in the classroom, students benefit. A classroom where students can communicate with others around the nation, compare data, create new knowledge and products to represent that knowledge is the classroom of the future. In some schools it is a reality now.
I appreciate your comments and look forward to your views on future articles. Look for my next article which will define technology integration and spotlight some real classrooms where teachers are integrating technology. Let me know what you think!
Melissa Johnston
Technology in Education
-- posted by johnstonm
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