Critique Of Samuel G. Freedman's Essay

The overabundance of stimuli that comes from technology negatively affects the traditional classroom atmosphere and should be done away with. In the article “New Class(room) War: Teacher versus Technology” by Samuel G. Freedman, Freedman brings up the touchy subject of technology in the classroom setting and how numerous students and professors differ in their views concerning the use of technology.

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

The article written by Timothy D. Snyder in 2010 titled, “Why Laptops in Class Are Distracting America’s Future Workforce” is a persuasive article. His purpose in writing this article was to persuade professors to ban laptops in the classroom because he feels they are a distraction. Snyder’s arguments against the use of laptops in classrooms are convincing, but he lacks evidence to support his stance and he uses emotionally charge wording to sway the reader.

It is a new world today because of the rate it is growing at. From homes all over America to international companies, technology has now managed to creep its way into the classrooms. In the article “Virtual Students, Digital Classroom” Neil Postman states, “…We will become the kind of people the technology requires us to be, and whether we like it or not,we will remake our institutions to accommodate technology” (378). This statement affirms that the need for technology will just continue to grow and that it will govern children. Walking to the library and spending what seems like endless hours to do research for homework is unheard of anymore. Students nowadays have everything they need right at their fingertips, never having to leave the comforts of their home to do school work. With that being said, though, Postman also says, “...The computer and its associated technologies are awesome additions to a culture, and are quite capable of altering the psychic, not to mention the sleeping, [sic] habits of our young” (378). Is it actually helping students or is it honestly hurting them? With the addition of new machines, students are pushed to adhere more information but are given easier ways to gather

In Samuel G. Freedman’s New York Times article, New Class(room) War: Teacher versus Technology, Freedman argues that technology is effecting the younger generations in a negative way inside of the classroom. He explains that while the baby boomer generation sees technology as a useful means for information and communication, the newer generations use technology for counterproductive means such as entertainment and socialization. While it is true that some people utilize technology for unproductive means, the majority of people in the classroom have the self-discipline to pay attention to the professor rather than their phone. Yes, some students may produce worse grades due to technology, but if they didn’t have the technology they would more than likely find a different way to waste time. Freedman exaggerates the issue by acting as if the majority of students are absent-mindedly on their phones during class. There will always be

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.

“New Class(room) War” effectively illustrates the point that suppressing technology in the classroom to limit disruption as opposed to supporting it is a battle the teachers know they are going to lose. (Freedman par. 17) This is inevitable because new technologies for entertainment, learning, and communication are constantly being developed; this provides an infinite number of ways to deviate from classwork electronically that nobody had access to as little as twenty years ago. This detriment to society that is disguised as a miracle has teachers referring to the array of modern media devices as today’s equivalent of “pigtail-pulling, spitball-lobbing, and notebook-doodling.” that took place in the classrooms of the pre-computer era. (Freedman par.6)

Ever since the early 80’s, there has been a rise in technology. From the first Macintosh, to the latest iPhone, technology has evolved to fit nearly any environment. However, not everyone agrees with this rise in the techno age. Psychologist Susan Pinker claims that technology is stripping down student education. She addresses her reasoning in The New York Times editorial entitled: “Can Students Have Too Much Tech?” She argues that, “...mounting evidence shows that showering students, especially those from struggling families,will not shrink the class divide in education. If anything, it will widen it.” Pinker informs parents and educators that having too much technology in and out of the classroom will ruin a child’s education, especially

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.

Many schools, instructors, and parents trust that by utilizing innovation as a part of schools, it is giving their children less demanding access to data, which prompts encouraged exploration, which is valid. However, at the same time many worry that this widespread use of technology can actually stop our era to gradually quit enhancing in ways that include hands on work, with no capacity to research data on the web. Source A states, “School officials believe the electronic materials will get students more engaged in learning”. This is accurate, the utilization of an iPad, laptop, or cellphone unquestionably makes it simpler to maintain

The importance of using technology in the classroom is becoming increasingly important. As technology continues to evolve it becomes more and more imperative that it’s integrated in the classrooms as well. This allows for children who do not have access to technology at home the opportunity to learn these technologies that they will need their entire student careers. To have the advantages of technology available to some kids, and not to others gives those with the privilege of computers, etc… an advantage. The way that life is now, there is not man jobs, or many aspects of life in general that do not require the use of a computer, or even something more advanced. Not only do people who are

Have you ever taken a tour to an middle or high school and saw where the black boards use to be there are now giant computer screens? Our world is changing to a new era where technology has taken over not only the homes but the schools as well. Computers can now be found in almost every classroom and home, but, is this a good a thing or a bad thing? In the New York Times article “Can Students Have too Much Tech” written by Susan Pinker she examines what it means to have technology not only in the classroom but, in the homes of many children. While I agree that teachers must also be equipped with skills to manage, educate, and control technology in their lesson plan, I find her reference to be flawed. Her references does not examine the educational

It’s amazing to think of technology as this worldwide device that every one in every school, house or occupation can grab a hold of. It is devastating to imagine that not every student has all abilities to grasp some education that as been taught by the end of the day. If every student, could wrap themselves around technology today, portraying uniqueness in the way we as society learn as a whole, then technology as viewed today would be similar to an image of parents, only away from home or teacher absent from lecture. Technology today allows us to express our views freely and continue in education forever with the sense being, we learn from technology every day when used. Information technology isn’t a piece of evidence that can be pointed out or highlighted as proof of reality but simply a piece if evidence that most people question, is it’s “genetic makeup” covered or slowly revealed especially in education.

Reams of books and articles published during the last two decades2 testify forcefully of the controversy raging over the impact, both positive and negative, that the infusion of new technology into the classroom is having upon the way students learn and teachers teach. Ultimately, however, these many voices can be roughly divided into two camps: those attempt to forward and perfect the difficult task of using computers as teaching instruments, and those who will resist—many for justifiable reasons which must be recognized and

Good bye blackboard, hello interactive white board! Get out of the way paper, pens, pencils, and textbooks and make room for the netbook, laptop, iPod, iPhone and iPad; they are moving into the classroom. Students are ready to use these new gadgets whether educators are ready or not. Therefore, the world of education needs to embrace the world of technology and take off on the World Wide Web. Technology is not going away. Our students of today must be technosavvy in order to function in their adult lives of tomorrow.