Technology Integration In Texas

For the entirety of a student’s life, knowledge is based almost entirely on the scores of quizzes and exams. It seems as though if a student does poorly on a test, they are automatically labeled as stupid or unknowledgeable (Bryan). The way technology functions in a classroom is another issue that needs to be addressed. There are several reasons why technology is needed in the classroom, but also several downsides that come with the technological innovations. As Lynch points out in “18 Reasons the U.S. Education System is Failing” technology has brought many great advantage to students especially when our era is becoming more and more digitized, but technology does have its downsides. Technology has brought a new dimension of academic dishonesty to schools across America. Also, when students enter school, teachers are faced with the difficulties of students being at different levels of knowledge and technological savvy. High school aside, higher education still has its own issues. After high school, students head to college to find a whole new array of problems. One of the most common problems according to Vedder is college degrees do not guarantee economic

Technology in the classroom is important for teachers, parents, and students alike, because technology use has become a necessary skill for survival in today’s vastly expanding technology driven global economy. Research has shown an increase in student’s success rates when exposed to technology in the classroom. Also technology has opened lines of communication between educators and parents to keep students on track, and help teachers educate better.

5. APA Citation Honey, M. (1999). Critical issue: using technology to improve student achievement. North Central Regional Educational Laboratory. Retrieved from: http://www.ncrel.org/sdrs/areas/issues/methods/technlgy/800.htm

As the nation's economy continues to shift towards being a tech centered entity, several states throughout the country are evolving into tech hubs where tech jobs are growing at record rates. In the past, California and Washington stood as the two most prominent destinations for America's most powerful technology companies. Today, the tide is shifting, and the primary beneficiary looks like it's going to be Texas.

Chandler Harkleroad Mr. Cleary Language Arts 10/22/16 TECHNOLOGY AND STUDENTS McAllen school district in Texas recently spent twenty million dollars on I-pads and I-pods for students. The funding for the school district is coming from a combination of local funds, federal grants, and stimulus money. The schools in that area are considered some of the poorest in the nation(Ryan Holeywell). In schools around the world the students are starting to use technology in the classroom such as I-Pads, I-Phones, and other types of devices. Technology has changed Students day to day life, it has modified how and what students are taught negatively and positively.

Also, the amount of teachers qualified was a concern. The ratio of student to teacher in the classroom was an issue. Many classrooms were overcrowded which makes it hard for teachers to focus on students individually if assistance was needed. Teachers in turn were not able to receive assistance from teacher aides. Strength of all individuals is culture. The ethnic background of the children was taken into consideration. Federal funding was used to provide more training to teachers in relation to cultural competency and technical skills. The teachers will take into consideration a child’s culture and their ability to learn and retain information. In addition, the use of technology provided a full range of technical skills to analyze data to improve quality of decision-making skills and classroom experience (United, 2010).

2) Because this was the first year of a technology-based assessment, students who struggled with the use of the technology may

• Technology is deemed a strength but it is also a weakness because the tools used are outdated or the system does allow teachers to have more control of the students chrome books outside of school, so even though they are sent home, some students are still fallen behind academically.

Today’s students need technology in the classroom in order to prepare for future careers, it will help them stay engaged in the classroom, and up-to-date with the most recent research that will ultimately enhance their learning experiences. Concluding the article “Can Students Have Too Much Tech?”, author, Susan Pinker, decides that more technology in the classroom will not help a child to achieve higher test scores. Having conducted a research study of only underprivileged children may have affected the results in various ways. Biased research is an unjust way to make any decision relating to a child’s education. Although there are some instances where Pinker's beliefs coincide with thoughts of my own, the belief of less technology for children

For example, there has been admirable improvements in the level of access to technology in schools severing predominantly minority and L-SES student populations; however, students in these classrooms still have significantly less access to technology (Barton & Coley, 2009). Besides, the use of technology in innovative manners that effectively supports teacher’s instructional objectives is still infrequent, even in L-SES schools with increased access to computer technology (Ertmer, & Ottenbreit-Leftwich, 2010). As a result of budgetary restraints, L-SES schools have less access to the kind of full-time technical support needed to maintain school technology. Therefore, teachers are apprehensive about incorporate technology into their lesson plans due to unreliable machines and untimely technical support (Warschauer, & Matuchniak, 2010). Unfortunately, along with technology shortfalls, schools serving minority and L-SES students also have fewer certified teachers in their classrooms (Barton & Coley, 2009; Clotfelter, Ladd & Vigdor, 2010). In fact, students from underserved populations are more likely to be taught math by teachers lacking focused degree training in mathematics (Barton & Coley, 2009). There is strong evidence demonstrating a long-term patterns of failure related to teacher quality, including economic models that linking the impact of teacher proficiency and dramatically stunted

O’Hanlon (2007) conducted a technology study for Texas immersion program for high- risk, high-need areas of the state, where middle school students were equipped with laptops for learning. The program yielded positive results and reflected in better communication skills for the students, teachers, administrators and their community.

On a daily basis, both businesses and individuals rely on technology. It cannot be denied that technology has become part of our everyday life. As individuals, we all depend on technology, either for education, health purposes, transportation, communication, romantic relationships, and/or business growth . It is impossible

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.

Chapter three will describe the methodology selected for an applied dissertation study, the participants, research design, instruments, data collection procedures, and limitations informing the research. The purpose of the proposed study is to determine the effectiveness of the i-Ready® computer-based reading program used at a Title I school in a large urban district for relationship to increases of student reading achievement. i-Ready® is an interactive computer-based instructional program designed to accelerate reading and language skills at the host school. According to Curriculum Associates (2014,) i-Ready® combines assessment and individualized instruction in a single web-based format ensuring accessibility anywhere a computer or tablet with internet access is available. i-Ready® screens all students for reading difficulties by first requiring students to take a computerized diagnostic test to determine a personal i-Ready® ability level. Thus, the diagnostic can monitor individual performance throughout primary and secondary education by analyzing specific needs for students. The adaptive technology analyzes test response patterns to derive information in order to pinpoint needs more efficiently than traditional fixed-form testing methods.

There were a plethora of weakness or limitations to the finding of the study. The students were not able to be random because of school scheduling. Some scores were not able to be analyzed because of the small groupings. The number of students kept changing due to transfers and absences. A strength the study had was that the technology education teacher was able to use some of the concepts