The Computer Into The Learning Process

Throughout this course, a new perspective has provided us with the opportunity to take a look at many of the different ways in which the digital world has become one of the most dominant viewpoints of today’s generation, and how technology has taken over and welcomed itself into many aspects of our lives. This course paper will take a look at one topic of interest in particular, which in hopes will shed some light on a heavily discussed topic in the education world: does technology help or hinder the student. This paper will look to prove the point and discover more about the way in which technology has been incorporated into the classroom, both in an elementary context as well as a post-secondary context, and the effects that it has had on the student, the teacher, and the overall academic development that accompanies it.

Technology has many attributes and applications that improve livelihoods. As a student myself, one of the most obvious advancements is in the field of education. Educational technology has slowly been integrated into classrooms over the last decade. Today, the basis of technology, digital literacy, is a crucial skill for academics. “Students who are digitally literate know how to effectively use technology to collaborate, create original content, and conduct in-depth research for academic purposes” (Dotterer, “Fostering Digital Citizenship In The Classroom”). Some worry that the use of technology will encourage people to “cease to exercise their memory and become forgetful” (qtd. In Carr, “Is Google Making Us Stupid?”).

We are living in a country that is called a technologically civilized society. The use of the Internet has not changed the way that we think but it is making unique contributions in classrooms by providing us with immediate and convenient access to an extraordinary amount of ideas and information. “In the world that we currently live in, technology is a very vital factor”. Today most people are more familiar with the gadget they carry in their backpack or even in their pocket; which is technically advanced. Every other day a new software device is being brought into the marketplace that helps to improve our knowledge in and out of school. in one way, the internet provides a much easier opportunity in education for student everywhere with access to all kinds of books available at any time. However, it is important to note that despite the fact that technology plays a big role in making our school lives much easier, it is not the only role it has. The internet seems to be impairing our ability to focus and to think deeply on any subject. The more technology continues to grow, the more improvement it provides in education level for certain students while for others it has a very different effect in the way we read and take in information. Furthermore, I will be discussing both pros and cons of the way technology is used in and out of our schools today.

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.

Technology has developed far quicker in the last fifty years than ever before in the history mankind. It has influenced the way we all live in countless ways including how we learn. In a culture that has become increasingly reliant on technology, it is not shocking that technology has become part of the permanent setting in our schools and classrooms. Technology is changing the landscape of education, modernizing how educators teach, how children learn and how parents contribute in the process. The digital-technology revolution was slow to penetrate the ranks of America's public high schools and slower still to trickle down to the ranks of our elementary institutions. The good news is that high-tech teaching is finally providing a forceful impact to the elementary learning process. Elementary level education is a student’s foundation of their academic period and it is in this stage where technology should be embraced to learn and teach.

Also by the year 1999 it is found that an unexpectedly a larger percentage (96.95%) of kindergarten students can access computers either home or school. Based on some statistics, even poor students who might not access the technology at home are utilizing it by either using the available resources in the library of their school, or in a classmate’s house. These statistics prove that technology has a vital role in the lives of students. It has helped to verify why an educator presume the change is essential in teaching and learning methods. If students are so engaged in using the technology outside the classroom, they value it. Then it would be logical to assume that if technology were merged into the classroom learning environment has to be more purposeful to the students. Considering the fact that all parts of society are changed significantly in an unseen way by information technology and has been continuing the change so that the future will not be neglected. Schools have to adopt these changes and research must advance with the belief that technology is and will exist to be an expanding component in the educational system. This is the actuality why the students are so involved when it comes to the usage of technology. It is a herculean task to progress in a world which is run by technology and not be affected by it.

With the increasing use of technology in the classroom, learning does not have to come solely from the teacher. The computer programs that are being produced and used act as tutors from which the students are able to get extended time to learn about the topic or subject being discussed. In “Technology in Education” a 1986 study called “Apple Classrooms of Tomorrow” (ACOT) was performed and negative results were hoping to be found based on the long amount of time that students and teachers were at computers. ACOT allowed for each student and teacher to receive two computers: one to keep at school and another to take home. The overall idea of this study was to see the effect of the computers on the teachers and the students. When the results

In this system, students may find out about his concerns through software on education by using computer. In this type of education, a student may gain from what computer offers to the extent that his skills in computer use allows for. He may have simulations, remote education, internet learning, etc. In today’s computers, there is one way message. And students are limited by what this message offers. Computer is a vital requirement of computer supported learning, computer assisted education, remote learning and internet learning. Some research in this area indicate that computers have positive effect on learning. (Alacapınar,2006;Aksin,2006)

Marc Prensky and his work provides clear evidence that there is a struggle between current students and teachers in the educational system. In part 1 of Marc Prensky’s “Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants”, he highlights the differences between the students of today who grew up with rising technology and the instructors who experienced the rising technology later in life. Prensky’s features three major topics of discussing in his article: the change in our students, the struggle instructors undergo, and the possible solutions to the crisis. In part 2 of Prensky’s piece, he explores the topic of the physical and neurological changes that our new generation of learners undergone. Prensky’s

In today’s society, technology plays a major role in the way people operate in their daily lives. It is being used as a tool for people to improve their surroundings by having quick and easy access to a large amount of information anytime they want. With the rapid growth, schools and teachers around the world have implemented many different forms of technology to enhance student interest and achievement. This has entered into teaching methods such as online testing, online reading assignments, research information and many others. The use of technology in school nowadays has become inevitable, but some may argue that this increased use has harmed the development and learning of the students. Given that the positives of technology outweigh the negatives;

Education is one of the most important professions in the working world. Technology has done many things for us in today’s society especially for education and schools. Technology in the school system has impacted the students and teachers in many positive ways, including virtual field trips, testing tips, teacher resources, class web sites, and lesson plans. With computer use in our schools, we have access to many different sources and various types of learning.

Technology is one of the most controversial and innovative subjects in recent history. It has been said that it’s what will cause us to survive in the near, but distant future. Technology has been entering the realm of education for years now. Some schools are becoming one on one schools-where every student has their own computer. The increasing population of ELL students have also come to use technological resources as a way to not only communicate, but to learn the English language. However, there are those who see technology as a distraction or it does not socialize the students. The main argument for technology in the classroom is that emerging students should be able to apply classroom concepts to daily life, and a large part of daily life revolves around technology.

Technology has been recognized as a fundamental part of the education process, ranging from laptop computers in high school classrooms to assistive technology advancing disabled students. Computers are used in classrooms everywhere, designed into various forms. Education institutes pride themselves on their basis of connectivity with the world and themselves. Laptops, more specially Chromebooks, have invaded their way into the classroom in order to enhance student to student and student to staff communication (Cater). The improvement of students in modern schooling is directly linked to the growth of technology in the classroom, which enables the ability to communicate easier. (Roschelle). In a quote by Cater he states, “Laptop computers have become commonplace in K-12 and college classrooms.” The computer technology benefits in classrooms especially affect the coursework of mathematics. This modern technology allows students to collaborate with each other, teachers, and tutors in a way that technology ten years previous would not allow. Students are able to receive the tools needed to understand the fundamental concepts of mathematics at any time of the day. “Students can receive feedback when they create a notation that is incorrect” (Roschelle). This access to online help and instant feedback has shown to help inner-city middle school students, as well as college students (Roshelle). The benefits of technology have also changed the curriculum of English courses throughout schooling institutions. Technology allows students more freedom to receive and give feedback on their writing. This is very similar to the benefits of technology in mathematics. Students are able to access a plethora of peer review sources through the use of technology (Papadopoulos). As well, assistive technology has changed and still is changing the lives of disabled students in schools. Pencil grips, picture boards, large keyboards, touch screens, speech synthesizers, voice recognition systems, talking calculators, tape recorders, and optical character recognition systems are only a few of the life changing technologies that assist in the productive learning process in education (“Assistive Technology…”).

The implementation of technology in the classroom is a pressing topic in education. There are both positive and negative arguments when discussing the impact of technology on a student’s ability to learn. Three parties play a role in the success of technology in the classroom, including the teacher, student, and parent. Along with the introduction of technology comes new terms that must be understood.

Jane Healy presented a strong argument encouraging others to pay attention to technology in schools and its impact on teaching and learning. She stated that her ideas about technology have changed over the years to now becoming a “cautious critic.” She argues passionately that technology will not solve our educational systems issues, cautions against the capitalistic consumerism of purchasing products, the pros and cons of computer use, and whether or not technology provides better support in the classroom rather than a strong teacher.