GAC002 AE#4 Essay: Advantages and Disadvantages
The Advantages of using
Digital Technology in Classrooms
Student’s Name:
Jongwuk Rhim
Student ID #:
HUK 21619
Teacher:
Jooyong Choi
Due Date:
July 2012
Word Count:
871
GAC008 AE#4
Jongwuk Rhim
HUK 21967
Topic: The benefits of using digital technology in the classroom far outweigh the
disadvantages. Relate this to your personal experience. Use specific examples
and provide appropriate evidence to support your answer.
An article published in the New York Times argued that the government will intervene in education
technology after 10 years. Referring to the article, many foundations are achieving their purposes; for
example, the National Science Foundation’s effort on its field and N.I.H’s work on health, many leaders
in the Education Department are trying to fulfill their goals. By making various types of digital programs,
it provides the learners better chances of experiencing and fulfill their requirement.() Therefore, it seems
that the proportion of technology is becoming more important than ever in many aspects other than our
daily lives. Likewise, in contrast to literature where the content is expressed only by letters printed on a
piece of paper, digital technology can illustrate information through various tools such as digital cameras,
CD, DVD and other methods that
involves digital mechanization. Moreover, not only is digital
technology used for academic purposes, but it is now possible for users to share their ideas and socialize
at the same time. Regardless of the benefits that are made earlier, there are some disadvantages of using
digital technology in the classroom too; however, advantages outweigh disadvantages in terms of
education and work efficiency in the classroom not only for the students but also for the teachers.
To begin with, among the many disadvantages which oppose the use of digital technology in classrooms,
there are discussions concerning the loss of the thinking process and the possibilities of losing educational
opportunities for students. According to The University of Michigan, they claim that it decreases the
thinking process of children. Unlike students in the past who relied on books only, students who live in
the twenty first century can get the information they need with ease. The Internet allows students to
benefit from various academic provisions uploaded by many scholars. By simply researching the topics
which corresponds, they are able to access numerous research reports. However, if the students or the
teacher is not accustomed to technology, students might lose the crucial opportunity to experience this
modernization. For instance, when students have problems using digital database for their required works,
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it is the teacher’s responsibility to help them out. But if neither the student or the teacher can’t solve the
problem there lies a chance of losing the opportunity to learn.
Nevertheless, digital technology in the classroom provides many experiences of exploring
different kinds of teaching methods and contents for the students and motivates them to learn
technological skills. It is the same for the teachers too. First of all, the most used aspect of the
computer is the Internet. The Internet includes various works on every topic and presents
different culture. Students who are left from class work can learn more easily by using the
Internet. Because aside from the teacher’s usual style of teaching, students learn materials in
their own way and this leads to active through listening and creativity. When using technologies
in the classroom, students are more motivated to excavate different skills to use technologies.
However, this kind of tendency can be found in teachers too. According to a survey focused on
Spanish teachers done by Anne Cummings, since technology usage is frequent especially in
language learning and mathematics, the Education Ministry require high quality skills which
means it becomes the responsibility of the teachers to learn technology for the classroom.
Moreover, because technical skills are used for communicating and submitting information, for
the teachers it has become more than an implementing tool. Therefore, it is proven that, it is not
only the students who are learning technical skills when using this high advanced technology but
the teachers too, which then leads to a higher quality of teaching.
Having said that digital technology used in classroom enhances the quality of education, it also
improves the student’s and teacher’s work efficiency. When counter arguing the point that digital
technology takes away the thinking process from the students, according to Kathleen Patrice
Gulley, when students solve mathematic equations by using digital technology, their knowledge
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can be visualized by the stimulation from mathematical knowledge. In other words, digital
technology can function as a tutor for students who have problems on specific subjects.
To illustrate my personal experience about digital technology, when I was a senior in high
school, I had a hard time going through math classes. Whenever I took a test, even though I
listened carefully to the teacher there was nothing remaining in my head, so my grades were
usually under 50 out of 100. To help my studies, my parents bought me a PMP that contains
Internet lectures. With this, I learned much more than participating in school because I could
stop the lecture whenever I wanted to and visualize it in my head. The result showed a
remarkable difference, I managed to get over 92 out of 100. Moreover, my experience shows a
typical case of students using Technology for their studies. According to William, L, Goffe,
enhanced opportunities to access learning materials lead to increased interactions with learning.
Therefore, it was the frequent access to study that allowed me to improve my grades (Goffe 278280).
Likewise, the work efficiency of teachers can be enhanced with the help of digital technology.
When digital technology wasn’t advanced enough, in other words the reasons for using
computers to accomplish their tasks were a custom tool for teachers. However, as the proportion
of technology became larger, the usage of computers has increased in many aspects. Unlike in
the past, using a computer is not only for administrative tasks nowadays, but used for managing,
creating, communicating and submitting information; it has become more convenient for the
teachers.
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In conclusion, even though there are disadvantages of using digital technology in classrooms,
because of the advantages such as enhancing education and work efficiency, advantages
outweigh the disadvantages.
References
Cummings, Anne. “Spanish Teacher’s Beliefs and Practices on Computers in the Classroom.”
American
Association of Teachers of Spanish and Portuguese. Vol. 91, No. 1 (2008): Page
73-92. Web. 6 July 2012.
“Digital.” Oxford Dictionaries, Oxford University Press, n. d. Web. 4 July 2012
“Educational Technology.” LSA University of Michigan, n.p, n.d. Web. 4 July 2012.
Goffe, William, L and Kim, Sosin. “Teaching with Technology: May You Live in Interesting
Times.”
The Journal of Economic Education. Vol. 36, No. 3 (2005): Page 278 of 278-291. Web. 5 July
2012.
Gulley, Kathleen, Patrice. “Pros and Cons of Computer Technology in the Classroom.” JEP
eJournal of Education Policy, n.p, n.d. Web. 4 July 2012.
“Meaningful Technology Integration In Early Learning Environments.” Naeyc, National Association for
the Education of Young Children, Sep. 2008. Web. 4 July 2012.
“Technology.” Oxford Dictionaries, Oxford University Press, n. d. Web. 4 July 2012
Wallace, Raven Mccrory. “A Frame For Understanding Teaching With the Internet.”
Educational Research Journal. Vol. 41, No. 2 (2004): Page 447-488. Web.
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