Comparison contrast essay on the perspectives of Neil Postman and Thomas Friedman on technology and education

There’s no denying that technology has grown to play a major role in education and learning. Students are using laptops, tablets, and smartphones to research, complete, and even collaborate on assignments, both in and outside of the classroom. Timothy D. Snyder and Thomas L. Friedman both have written articles expressing their opposing opinions on technology in the classroom. Timothy Snyder is a Professor of History at Yale University who has written five different award-winning books. In his article, “Why Laptops Are Distracting America’s Future Workforce”, Snyder explains to students and teachers why he is against technology in the classroom. Thomas Friedman is a reporter and columnist for The New York Times, author of six award-winning

Undoubtedly, technology has done wonders throughout and left an ineradicable mark on education, but technology has its

The price of college admission has more than doubled but the value has not. Andrew Hacker and Claudia Dreifus start off with money grabbing statistics of tuition rates. Following that, they question the reader on whether or not college is a good investment and what the students are gaining from higher education. Hacker and dreifus went out to seek the answers and they concluded that colleges “are taking on too many roles and doing none of them well.”(180).

The overwhelming cost for higher educational institutions is causing a huge concern over whether higher education will be an attainable financial concept to the ordinary student in the upcoming years. Many Americans now tend to believe that the path to obtaining a degree has turned into distraught with financial traps. Recent studies done by the U.S. Department of Education show that “college tuition and fees have ballooned 1,120% since 1978. A year of college tuition for

An Analytical Comparison of Matt Britland’s “What Is The Future Of Technology In Education?” and Samuel G. Freedman’s “New Class(room) War: Teacher vs Technology”

Boser (2013 states that “Far too often, school leaders fail to consider how technology might dramatically improve teaching and learning, and schools

Samuel G. Freedman’s article “New Class(room) War: Teacher vs. Technology”, which was published in 2007 and Matt Britland’s article “What is the future of technology in education” which was published in 2013 both discusses about the role of technology in education”. While Britland feels that we should embrace technology, Freedman feels otherwise. Britland believes that the future of education is in technology, in the form of cloud and advocates that inculcating technology into our education system is the way to go while Freedman believes that bringing technology into the classroom will act as a source of distraction for the students and shows the battle of technology versus teachers.

Barriers have prevented students all over the world from attending college or receiving a quality education, the kind that not only teaches the basics, but also teaches critical thinking and encourages life long learners and a world citizen philosophy. I believe everyone should be able to get a quality education and the fact that higher education has become so expensive and unattainable is a disgrace. The University of the People’s model of tuition free online education is an example of disruptive innovation that is moving us toward a more globalized system of higher learning. Advances in software and internet communication provide the framework to support a collaborative online learning network that crosses boarders and economic classes. Should this model prove successful and gain traction in the mainstream, it has the potential of making brick and mortar schools, as we know them obsolete.

Bruenig, Matt. “The Case Against Free College.” The New Republic. The New Republic, 5 October 2015. Web. 14 April 2018.

Every day the world is changing and things are done differently. Technology has also affected the way students are taught and in which they learn. It has changed the classroom. Technology saves us time and allows us to access material in only minutes. “The Internet and online subscription databases, even as a supplement to the printed works in the library, allow students to see, and force them to consider or reject, points of view that they might never have encountered in decades past” (Gow 4).With all the time technology produces, it also has downsides and it also may have created a less intelligent society.

Across the U.S., technology used in education has been increasing exponentially. Every learning institution ranging from elementary school to college have incorporated technology into their teachings. Online textbooks, quizzes, notes, and classes are all examples of how education has been utilizing technology. While technology has a place in education, not everything in education needs to involve technology.

It is no secret that technology plays a critical role in our society. In fact, it has become one of the most used items in the world, starting from personal computers and ending in smartphones, thus it was only a matter of time when educational institutions would start to utilize these gadgets in order to improve the overall state of current education. According to a U.S Department of Education (UDE, n.d) report, all 48 states, including the District of Columbia are now offering online education. Additionally, the report states that these schools operate on all kinds of scales, including state scale, district scale and charter scale, thus it would safe to assume that the whole state of current education in the United States is large and the whole approach is clearly technology based. However, despite the

Technology has made great strides in the past 20 years. It plays a very important role in our lives today and even plays a critical role in the way students learn all over the world. Unfortunately, students now rely on technology instead of learning key fundamentals. Technology has replaced the need to learn and most answers are just a google search away. Technology has also become expensive and lower socioeconomic school districts have found affording the newest technology difficult because of their lack of funding. Technology is a great learning tool when used appropriately. The lower socioeconomic school falls behind in the expanding frontier of technology in the classroom because they cannot afford it compared to their counterparts and results in a gap in education. The development of technology in the classroom has caused students to fail the learning of fundamentals and has exploited lower socioeconomic school districts.

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.

The complex social and historical foundations of education are rooted in the need to create a population of citizens capable of contributing to the continuing economic and political stability of our nation. First we were an agricultural society, then industrial, and now we are educating students for futures with that are yet unknown (explainvisualthinking, 2007). The new dynamic, created by the recent and rapid expansion of technology driven globalization has created the compelling need for technology infused education in our schools (Friedman, 2005). As an educational technology leader, I collaborate with other educators and families to create technology initiatives that will support educational technology in our schools.