Technology in the Classroom and Using it Wisely

       Technology has begun being introduced to the classroom at an ever growing rate.  The possibilities for help are nearly endless as are the potentials for misuse, abuse or neglect.  As Samantha Cleaver noted in her blog: "Technology in the Classroom: Helpful or Harmful?" technology can be beneficial to students in certain ways, however it often falls far from meeting its potential.
      As Samantha notes, introducing technology into the classroom can be a daunting task for a teacher as they must find a way of incorporating it into the current curriculum or in the case that technology is a stand alone subject top be learned on its own, the teacher may have top draw up a completely new lesson plan in order to create space to learn about the new subject while attempting not to take time and resources from other subject matter.
     One aspect of introducing technology into the classroom which I feel the article neglects to some extent is the difficulty some students may have at adapting to it.  While learning to use and become proficient in technology is an important aspect of having a positive outlook for your future, this is not a skill which all possess or have come to them naturally or easily.  Just as some students perform poorly in math, science, reading or learning additional languages, technology can be a difficult, challenging and upsetting subject for some to learn about.  Introducing technology in the form of games used to teach can be quite helpful, however some students may learn best through some other form or median of learning. 
     As Ms. Cleaver notes in her article, the teachers themselves may find themselves having issues related to answering questions from the students who are having difficulty dealing with the technology aspect of the learning.  As there have been difficulties involving teaching through the medium of videos, the introduction of technology (which is by its very nature constantly growing, expanding, adapting and changing) into the classroom can create unwanted distractions and delays in the learning process if the teacher is not properly educated in how to use the medium itself effectively.
     In her article, Samantha also notes on the ways in which learning through the means of technology can be useful in today's and, more importantly, tomorrow's classroom.  Students who are used to playing video games may exhibit a much stronger willingness to learn by using a tablet which has an app where math science, reading social studies and other lessons are learned through the disguise of a game.  It can also be easier for a teacher to track students' work and to encourage learning at home through online assignments and students' themselves can track their progress more rapidly and easily by having grading available online and the ability of the teacher to create a website with a test or other method of checking the students knowledge which can give instant feedback about the correct answer once the question has been answered by the student and the "submit" button pressed.
     Ultimately I largely agree with Samantha Cleaver regarding her article asking if technology in the classroom is helpful or harmful as it can cut both ways.  I feel it is the responsibility of the teacher not to simply neglect technology completely nor embrace its use as the only method of education worth while.  The new technologies being introduced to the classroom have the incredible ability to teach and interest students in learning in ways which have never been done before and creates new methods for teachers to track and display student's progress.  However, they must remember that some students learn best through seeing or hearing or doing and due to the fact that not every student learns best via the same medium, there must always be other forms of instruction being displayed to the students and options which allow students who do well learning through other means to opt out of learning through technology and learn through another medium.

Source:
http://www.education.com/magazine/article/effective-technology-teaching-child/
"Technology in the Classroom: Helpful or Harmful?"

Vision of Technology and The Classroom of Tomorrow

Technology used in education in 2014 include, online textbooks, tablets, and even interactive whiteboards. Many companies have even developed online educational games which include achievements and badges that students can earn based on their performance in the game. These types of games provide students with instant feedback and allow peer to peer support to solve problems together. There are also many apps that can be used to help students study, manage their schedules and due dates, and learn at their own pace. If we already have all of this technology, what does this mean for the future?

I believe this is only the beginning for technology and the future is limitless. By 2030, I believe that we could have huge screens in classrooms that are interactive but students will also have screens built into desks. Within these desks, I believe that technology would allow students to answer questions through their desk. This could also eliminate the need for students to bring their laptop to class. There are already apps that allow you to take notes effectively. If there were desk sized screens, it would be a giant piece of paper that students could write on with a stylist or something of that nature.  This would also eliminate the need for paper. Also within their desk screens, the student’s textbook would be available to them. Teachers/professors could also write or highlight in the students books for something that may be important for an exam. Similarly, students could interact with other students within their desk if they were struggling with the material but did not want to interrupt class. These messages would also appear on the teacher’s personal screen to ensure the students were actually talking about the content being presented instead of talking about what they are doing that night.

By 2030, I would not be surprised if the technology advanced enough to allow teachers/professors to track their student’s attention. This would in turn allow teachers to adjust their teaching to meet that particular student’s needs or even discuss with the student about their attention. Many times, especially in children, students do not know that they are not paying attention during class or maybe there is a reason they are not paying attention so this would allow the teacher to address those issues. Also if it is known that the student has problems with attention, lectures could be recorded for students to view at a later date via their desk screen. This would allow students to learn at their own pace. If technology was able to track student’s attention, would it also be able to assess students understanding of the material before exam time came? Nowadays, it is not possible for a teacher to analyze each individual students understanding of the material. I believe that one day there will be technology that would be able to assess the students understanding of the material and allow teachers to modify material to meet each student’s personal needs.

Currently, students learn much in the same way they have for the past hundred plus years.  The advent of current and future technologies opens a window to new creative ways for teachers to present the material and delve into subjects.  By having computers capable of creating your own movie or interactive display to teach a topic, the teacher is now able to create their own content while being able to present it in an interesting and thought provoking manner.  An example of this could be to create an interactive computer presentation of the solar system for a science class where students can decide which part of the topic (planets etc.) they would like to learn about next.  This will engage them in the activity, thereby ensuring at least some participation and attention being paid.  For younger children, you can now use technology to create your own cartoon movies and show the children either through a television, tablets or other means.  These movies could be used to teach age appropriate knowledge to the students, whether it is scholastic learning for children of a slightly older age or for the youngest of children morals based learning. 

A potential long term possibility with the sustained rate of technological advancement could be having lessons taught by a teacher who is then displayed as a hologram to the students.  This could be used for students with special needs where learning in their own home and at their own pace would be most beneficial to them.  With this prerecorded teaching, the student could accelerate or decelerate the speed at which they learned to fit their own needs.  The hologram could have a few preset answers to select questions built in, and a method of communication with the teacher if further assistance is required as well as access to the internet to support additional sources of learning, especially ones promoted by the teacher for that specific subject.  This would allow the students to have the lesson planned by their teacher and taught by their teacher, while allowing them to learn with a parent or two present to assist them as well and the additional sources would allow parents to communicate with the students on subjects which they themselves were not well versed.  This would also allow the students who may be unwilling to speak up in class and ask a question for fear of being made fun of the ability to stop the lesson at the exact moment they would like to request further clarification and can access either the web related content or send an email to the teacher asking a question or making a comment either through text or through a video. 

Even nowadays, some schools have BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) Programs including, Oak Hills Local School District in Ohio, and are becoming more and more popular. A BYOD Program is when students are required to bring their own device to school. This is the norm for college students but now it is expanding to high school as well. Some of these ideas may seem unlikely but, the truth is no one really knows what the future holds. I know when I was a child in school, we didn't have smart boards. We had chalkboards and we took notes in a notebook. Also, I bet when our current technology was starting in classrooms they were thought to be unbelievable as well. Future for technology in classrooms is limitless and many bring numerous benefits for both students and teachers.