The Importance of Technology in the Classroom
By Brian Denis
Quite often as I contemplate my educational career, I wonder to myself what class
may have been like when my parents or grandparents were in school. What type of
assignments did they do? How was their class set up? How did they learn, or what were
their textbooks like? As a first-year teacher, it makes me reflect back to my days as a
student in secondary education. I can remember being in a 9th grade Honors English
class, marveling at the fact that I could type up my research paper on a word processor.
At the click of a button, I watched in amazement as my paper flowed out of the printer in
a matter of seconds. No more pencil and paper, no more decrepit old typewriter. I felt
the same trance-like emotion several years later as a college freshman, when I sent and
received my very first e-mail message. Although that was only ten years ago, I am
amazed at how far technology has come in such a short time. Now as I wind up my first
year as a junior high science teacher, I have come a little more accustomed to the fact that
technology has not only invaded our educational settings, but is a driving force behind
how kids learn today.
One of the most revolutionary inventions of the 20th century was the internet. Ask a
baby boomer about the internet and they may have no idea what you are talking about.
Ask a junior high student about it, and they will tell you how much time they spend
accessing the internet and the infinite amount of information they can find there.
Internet-based assignments can be a benefit to any classroom. Instead of searching
through book after book, a student can type in “George Washington” and can find
anything they have ever wanted to know about the first President. The internet is a
wealth of information that if used properly, can offer a student a fun and interesting way
of learning about a given topic. Although the internet offers a student the potential to
plagiarize material, a well thought out and applicable assignment can be the springboard
to a student obtaining much more information than he or she might find in the school
library.
Using the internet, teachers can also assign projects such as WebQuests and
Scavenger Hunts. These are more of a guided discovery tool, which offers the student an
opportunity to search for and learn specific information. As opposed to simply having
students complete vocabulary worksheets or outlines, a student feels some selfaccomplishment by searching for their own information at their own pace. Students in
today’s classroom enjoy feeling like they are somewhat in control of their own learning.
The web gives them an opportunity to learn in a fun way, and the idea that a wealth of
information is at their fingertips.
In recent years, many school districts across the country are implementing hand-held
palm pilots, or computers, into their classroom. This is the equivalent of having a
backpack full of notebooks and papers in the palm of your hand. Although the
technology can be expensive, it allows the students to put information including notes,
homework, papers, etc. into a computer the size of the palm of their hand. Sometimes
students are turned off by classes because they have to carry a heavy book or book bag
around. Now they are afforded a conduit to keep all of the important information needed
to be successful in a classroom in a tiny computer.
One of the technological advancements that have affected our very own school
district is the institution of Smart Boards. Smart Boards allow a teacher to transfer the
information that he or she has on their own computer, to a large board in front of the
classroom. A teacher can encourage student involvement by allowing the students to
come to the Smart Board and fill in the teacher’s lecture notes, instead of simply sitting at
their desks and copying them. The boards also are very interactive as they can play
videos and sound clips on the large screen as well. Smart Boards are just one more way
of giving the students hands-on opportunities to promote learning.
Power points are another technique growing in popularity in the classrooms. Fifteen
years ago, students would expect to get an assignment that they had to research, write a
paper about, and give a presentation. This task may have seemed mundane back then, but
now students can demonstrate their computer prowess by presenting all of their
information via a power point presentation. For visual and hands-on learners, power
point allows the students to be endlessly creative when passing on information to their
fellow classmates. They can work on their grammar and typing skills, and at the same
time give an impressive and eye-catching presentation that would interest fellow
classmates. One can present a tremendous speech, but be allowed the freedom to design
each power point page to their own liking.
These are just a few of the technological advancements that our society has
encountered since the dawning of the computer age. Everyone indeed expects changes to
occur and education to evolve. In the last ten to fifteen years, it is incredible how
technology and computers have become more and more commonplace in the classrooms,
regardless of what discipline you teach. A science teacher could use these advancements
just as easily as an English or Music teacher. Where will we head next? When students
were using typewriters to crank out a ten-page paper, they never would have thought that
a word processor would be possible.
Some people, especially those of previous generations are not too keen to the idea
that technology and computers have invaded our classrooms. They claim it to be too
personal, too disturbing. Maybe they are just unwilling to try to see how effective
technology can be. Whether some people like it or not, it is impossible to ignore that we
now live in a society, and teach in classrooms where technology can help our students if
used properly. As a teacher, I would be willing to use any practice that would stimulate
or help the intellectual growth of my students. Hopefully in another ten years, I will sit
back and scoff at how ‘out-of-date’ some of the things I did in my classroom were. All
that could mean would be that more technological and exciting advancements have been
discovered that will carry our students to further heights as we move through the 21st
century. Now that’s not such a bad thing, is it?