preview

Integrating Technology in the Language Arts Classroom Essay

Decent Essays

Integrating Technology in the Language Arts Classroom

School leaders today are under extreme pressure to improve student achievement levels. Yet, in the face of tight budgets, threats to cut extra-curricular activities, and an extensive shortage of textbooks in the schools, exactly what are teachers supposed to do to ensure that “no child is really left behind.” Despite what looks like a dead end, there is hope. By integrating the usage of technology in the Language Arts classroom, students are presented with a wide range of opportunities for improving in writing, literacy, and cultural awareness.

According to the article, “Are we there yet?” a survey issued by the National School Boards Foundation says that many schools …show more content…

There is still both enthusiasm for and doubts about the usage of educational technology in the classroom. However, the integration of technology in reading instruction has kept up with the movements and changes in the field of the reading and writing curriculum. While faced with many book shortages, this article also gives ideas for strengthening the skill of students in writing and reading instruction. It suggests that students participate in “invisible writing” as a sort of pre-writing activity. Through this, students will turn the monitor of the computer off for approximately one to three minutes, so that they cannot see what they are typing. Students have reported that this exercise has helped them develop fluency, has freed them from continuously checking their mistakes and losing their train of thought, and has also increased their interest in viewing what they had to say. Thus, students will have learned how to produce more thoughtfully enriched texts that teachers can build on through other types of instruction.

In addition to this, in the face of textbooks shortages, teachers have at hand a source for retrieving other forms of literature. On-line are numerous programs that encourage students to read along with it, while it reads aloud. There are also programs that allow students to retrieve definitions and illustrations of the words, and thus promoting students to interactions in literacy.

Lastly, in the article,

Get Access