Importance of Technology in the Classroom

With more and more technology being accessible to students in the classroom and districts developing 21^st century technology standards, teachers need to align core subject standards with technology. As mentioned in the popular YouTube video “Shift Happens”, many of the jobs teachers are preparing students for today are not developed yet. One thing educators do know is that these future jobs will rely heavily on the use of technology.

When technology is incorporated into the classroom, teachers and students can benefit. Teachers and students are able to communicate in a format besides the traditional one on one. Through the use of email or discussion boards, students can ask questions and teachers can clarify information. Technology use in the classroom often holds student interest better than a textbook and offers the most up-to-date information. Also, teachers and students can share information/links to broaden a topic currently being studied, whereas in the past a classroom was limited to the materials provided.

In the classroom, technology can be implemented to teach many of the core subject areas. For example, the website http://www.khanacademy.org/ uses videos to teach math skills ranging from simple addition/subtraction through calculus. The developer of this site, Salman Khan, collaborated with a school and used the videos as homework and class time for individual practice/remediation. Students were able to work at their own pace and practice skills that they were in need of. Classroom teachers could develop similar types of videos that specifically meet their students’ needs and these videos could provide additional support for students at home. Additionally, the article Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge: A Framework for Teacher Knowledge outlines how programs such as Geometer’s Sketchpad can help students to understand geometry through manipulating shapes.

In language arts, the availability of online books/e-readers can make reading a long novel less intimidating for students. The article Growing Up Digital, Wired for Distraction demonstrated how a high school student often did not complete his reading assignments because he felt that the books were too long. It is possible that an alternative format of the text would encourage the student to read. While it is important for students to learn the skills needed to write fluently, perhaps other methods of assessment could be used instead of writing a typical book report. These ideas could include creating a digital video that summarizes the book or participating in an on-line chat about the text.

The science and social studies classrooms can also largely benefit from the use of technology. When students are able to watch videos online and experience what an oil spill looks like and how it affects the environment, or listen to interviews from astronauts in space, or be guided through a program on how to dissect an animal, or are able to watch a new president be inaugurated, these are experiences students will not forget. The use of technology makes the concept come alive, much more so than reading from an outdated text book and completing a worksheet.

     While it is important for educators to involve technology in the classroom, these new methods of teaching often require additional time spent to organize/develop lessons. Districts may also have to pay to have staff members trained in how to use new technology (which would be an ongoing process since new technology is constantly available) and often times students do not have access to computers or the Internet at home. In situations where there is a digital divide and either schools or students do not have access to technology, the community needs to work together to find opportunities to incorporate technology in the classroom. This could be in the form of writing grants, applying for federal money, involving local business to donate used computers, or providing students with an opportunity to spend time at the local library/community center which does provide computers. While these drawbacks can make using technology more difficult, it is important to remember that students will need to develop technological skills to be successful in the future.