Technology’s Impacts 1 Technology’s Impacts in Cypress School District Adam Kelley ETEC 525 December 10, 2008 Technology’s Impacts 2 Through all of my education, training, and preparation to become a teacher I have heard only about the benefits of technology. My first professional development was a presentation for Smart Boards. As a group, we were wowed with its features and possibilities. The only downside on people’s minds was the high cost, which we inevitably knew would hinder the purchasing of such a technology. It never occurred to me that there could be other negatives in placing such a tool in classrooms throughout Cypress School District. Neil Postman, critic and theorist, would be quick to warn us that technologies are fraught with problems. These problems can be difficult to anticipate because the designers are sometimes not aware they exist (1990). Ultimately, it is up to us as individuals to raise questions about the implementation of these tools. By asking only superficial questions, we must endure lasting changes to our world (1992, p. 19). In permitting computers, the Internet, and Smart Boards to enter classrooms, has Cypress School District attempted to ascertain knowledge of the impacts on our students, teaching practice, and schools? Or do we ignorantly cheer on the adoption of these technologies unaware of the possible consequences? I can remember being in school when I was younger and being told that computers were going to improve our schools. I was excited about them. I couldn’t wait to have the opportunity to play Oregon Trail. The idea that I was playing a video game was absurd to me. I thought that I was somehow getting away with something in school, a time normally reserved exclusively for learning. My teacher must have been thinking how great it was to see students so excited to do something educational. Here I was so willing to participate in a history simulation, while my teacher believed I was absorbing the social studies curriculum. Indeed this scene portrays an exciting union of ideas: technology and education. Technology’s Impacts 3 Neil Postman would claim that we need to examine how technology can change ways in which students learn and how it can destabilize the idea of school (1992, p. 19). The rise of the television is a great indicator of how our schools have been changed by technology. In the 1980s and 1990s there was a rush to get television into classrooms. It was thought that this media would provide students with a variety of information. What television did, however, was to create a society devoted almost entirely to entertainment. The average shot on television lasts a mere 3.5 seconds. Television’s content focuses on image attention and easily comprehendible material. Without these features, one would not be able to watch programs without having seen every show that preceded it (Postman, 1986, pp. 142-143). “If the classroom now begins to seem a stale and flat environment for learning, the inventors of the television are to blame” (1986, p. 143). In conducting interviews with teachers and administrators across Cypress School District, the number one cited change to classrooms was the idea that technologies hold the students’ attention. Claiming that these new educational tools keep the students’ attention is similar to saying that students are being entertained by them. While television has taken a back seat to the computer, internet, and Smart Board, it provides a lot of insight as to where we have come from as a society attempting to fuse education with its technologies. Cypress School District is composed of nine schools with approximately 4,300 students. Every school has a computer lab on-site, each being built ten to fifteen years ago. Every lab contains 32 computers with a teacher presentation station linked to a large screen television (only one lab contains a Smart Board). Within each computer lab, software has been purchased, but decisions as to what to buy were left up to each school to determine the needs of their students. Figure 1 Technology’s Impacts 4 indicates which programs are used most frequently within each of the nine computer labs: 10 8 Num ber of Schools 6 4 2 0 Microsoft Word Accelerated Reader Type to Learn Pow er Point Quarter Mile Math KidPix Read, Write, Learn Any program being employed by two or less schools was not included. When teachers were asked how they decided what software programs their students utilized in the lab, these were the top three reasons cited: students can use the program independently, the need for students to learn how to word process, and the need for students to practice basic skills. Given this list of demands, the programs being used certainly do the job. The District’s mission statement, however, cannot possibly be met given its expectations of technology. “Technology will be useful for expanding the academic base toward more higher level thinking skills and motivating students toward other areas beyond the curriculum” (Cypress Technology Plan, 2008, p. v). Even the untrained eye can compare the software with the expected outcomes and conclude that they do not match. C.A. Bowers would probably state that the above list of programs is limited alone by the explicit knowledge they contain. Thinking in this sense will be reduced to information retrieval (1988, p. 33). This is the first clear indicator that Cypress School District places too much faith in its technologies. In their book Teaching and Learning with Technology, Judy Lever-Duffy and Jean B. McDonald outline nine varieties of Technology’s Impacts 5 academic software (2008, pp. 210-211). Here are the types and their specific functions: Software Type Application to Teaching and Learning Program Used in Cypress School District Authoring Systems Used to create tutorials and web pages Desktop Publishing Used to create newsletters, flyers, transparencies, and other printed media Microsoft Word & Power Point Graphics Allows visual images to be created or enhanced electronically Kid Pix Reference Electronic dictionaries, encyclopedias, and atlases Gives students one-on-one assistance to learn concepts Presents content in an engaging format to provide practice Encarta 2003 Allows students to re-enact scenarios to promote learning Examples include enlarged pointers and print, to voice recognition software Oregon Trail Typically includes tutorial, drill and practice, and classroom management tools that give students and teachers feedback with performance Accelerated Reader Tutorial/Drill/Practice Educational Games Simulations Special Needs Integrated Learning Systems Type to Learn, and Read, Write, Learn Quarter Mile Math, Math Blasters, Math Munchers, and Jump Start (Grades 1-3) Utilized as needed in RSP classrooms Programs displayed in the “Educational Games” column were limited to two or more schools reporting that the software was used at their site. A glance at the table indicates that we as a district have too many educational games. Some schools utilize two or three educational software programs to allow students to practice basic math skills alone. In working with Math Blasters and Math Munchers, one would discover that the programs allow students to practice the same skills in only slightly different formats. Math Blasters utilizes a space theme, while Math Munchers engages students with monsters. Why is it Technology’s Impacts 6 necessary to purchase 32 of both programs for a computer lab? My school, Cawthon Elementary, has both programs. Teachers at my site cannot remember why the software was purchased. Not only is it worthless to have them both at one school site, they are what Joel Cooper and Kimberlee D. Weaver, educational technology researchers, would consider gender biased software. Both programs utilize visual images and sounds to give students feedback on performance, a feature preferred by boys. Neither program gives instruction for incorrect answers, they simply move to the next problem. Girls prefer to receive assistance for questions answered incorrectly. Finally, both programs feature themes preferred by boys: space, war, and sports. Their research has found girls to have higher levels of anxiety with such games, thus they benefit from these programs less (2003, pp. 16-23). In looking at Figure 2, there is an apparent deficiency throughout the district with authoring software. Software that would allow schools to create how-to videos would serve a greater purpose than two sets of the same educational game. Lilia C. DiBello, graduate professor at Barry University, discusses the idea that teachers struggle to implement technology for various reasons. One of these reasons was the fact that teachers must consider their students’ varying degrees of instructional needs toward technology. Because of these challenges, teachers often end up teaching the how-to of technology rather than blending the curriculum with technology (2005, pp 240-241). By utilizing a tutorial program, a subset of authoring software, my school district would allow students to work at their own pace. Students that know the howto of the technology component could skip right to its use with the curriculum. Those students who need assistance with using the technology could work independently, a feature preferred by Technology’s Impacts 7 teachers, to gain the necessary skills and/or information to move on. Cypress School District’s policy to let schools determine their own needs for software in computer labs has its drawbacks. The biggest negative feature is that teachers’ desire to have a program that the students can work with independently creates a higher demand for educational games. These games fulfill teacher’s needs to make the computer lab a manageable environment; but this is just another indicator that the technology dictates what we do. These programs may be easier for students to work with; however, it is exactly this feature that brings about the program’s limitations. Our computer labs fall short in offering the full gamut of software that our teachers and students could benefit from. When teachers were asked about the negative aspects of the computer labs, these were the most popular answers: - Limited time to spend in the lab / Yet they sit empty most of the time Equipment does not always work properly Difficult to provide assistance given the ratio of students to teacher Outdated equipment Speaking with the district administrator regarding the maintenance of this infrastructure, he stated that doing so has become more of a challenge with the adoption of Smart Boards. Cypress only has three technicians on staff, a staff that has had more demands placed upon them over the last few years. Needs to maintain the district’s labs will become more prevalent because nearly 60% of the computers are more than four years old (Cypress Technology Plan, 2008, p. 4). The district’s Technology Plan literally spells out the fact that there is little money to upgrade these systems. “There will be a greater need to write grants and involve the community to make improvements” (Cypress Technology Plan, 2008, p. 38). One can Technology’s Impacts 8 only imagine that if these labs fall to the wayside because of the district’s shift toward Smart Boards that the computer labs become even less effective. Given that the district has spent millions of dollars to construct these labs, and hundreds of thousands to maintain them, they appear to be used for very little benefit to the students, especially considering what the district expects they will do. When asked what the rationale was behind creating these labs, the district technology administrator said that it was a matter of “keeping up with the Jones’.” I consider this to be a haphazard way of going about implementing technology. Neil Postman would say that this is a prime example of a school district believing they are using a technology, but the reality is that they are being used by the technology (1992, p. 84). Postman points out that what makes computers so attractive to us as technological tools is their unlimited potential. They are tools that have many uses and they tie to other machines (1992, p. 107). Perhaps this is what is attractive to us as educators; we believe computers can be made to meet any need we place upon them. This phenomenon has seemingly taken place in the private sector. Computers have been programmed to understand future moves in the stock market, design and test engineering marvels, and other cause-effect scenarios. The accuracy of these models, however, is unknown. These models make it evident that humans are information processors, interpreting the data from the computers, and that all things have data to be input (Postman, 1992, p 107). This is most certainly another ironic crossroad given that national standards, state standards, and their assessments reduce education to cycles of output, data, and data interpretation. Each year my principal reviews how our students have done on the state test. Thus, the students have been reduced to simply processing the information in the curriculum. This begs the Technology’s Impacts 9 question: Are our students truly learning? Looking at this, it feels as if all of education has been debased by computer technology. The strangest part of all is that teachers and administrators have celebrated the fusion of computers and education. Postman was warning us of this when he said, “Computer technology…has not yet come close to the printing press in its power to generate radical and substantive social, political, and religious thought” (1992, p. 116). Next I turn my attention to use of the Internet within the district. Internet is available on only the teacher stations in each classroom by means of Cat-5 broadband cable throughout the district. Each computer lab also has the capability of connecting to the Internet at the same broadband speed; however, the teacher must put in their username and password for each computer. As Figure 3 points out, many teachers do not allow their students to access the Internet. 25% Yes No 75% Some cited fears with giving up control of such a powerful tool, while others stated they feared being held accountable for what students might run into while navigating the Internet. When asked about the how the Internet changes education, everyone interviewed claimed that it allowed access to more information. Neil Postman argues that the abundant presence of information is Internet’s negative feature. “Our most serious problems are not technical, nor do they arise from inadequate Technology’s Impacts 10 information” (1992, p. 119). Take for example the obstacles plaguing our failing schools, could they be solved by having more information? Postman would argue that many of the problems facing us could never be addressed with technology’s ability to service us with more information at light speed. He would instead claim that this, the information age, is now a deluge of chaos. Billboards, newspapers, magazines, TVs, radios, websites, books, photographs, and movies are creating a clutter of information. This then creates the problem of learning to filter all of this information (Postman, 1990). The teachers interviewed mirror this idea in their anxiety to allow students to access the Internet for fear of having them encounter something inappropriate. This fact exists even though Cypress School District incorporates firewall and spam software to protect students. Apparently it is an area where teachers have unconsciously decided that the costs outweigh the benefits. Neil Postman warns us that being filled to the brim with information prevents our students from judging the context of the information they are given. It is all too easy for anyone to persuade others to believe any outrageous claim. This is especially true if my statement begins with the words, “Scientists have demonstrated…” The reason anyone will believe the statement lies in the facets of, as Postman put it, our peek-a-boo world. The idea at the forefront of our attention can be easily moved away and on to something else. This information appears aimlessly, detached from theory, context, and intention (1992, pp. 56-70). “It is only now beginning to be understood that cultures may also suffer grievously from information glut, information without meaning, information without control mechanisms” (Postman, 1992, p. 70). I feel that much of what I teach each day falls into this category. Students are expected to drop what they were learning with the digestive system and move immediately to learning about the causes of the Technology’s Impacts 11 Revolutionary War. This places such a demand on students’ attention span, but as I spoke of earlier, perhaps the fast paced attributes of television have made this normal for our students. Finally, I turn my attention to the newest technology being installed throughout Cypress School District: Smart Boards. Currently, 40 classrooms have a Smart Board. The majority of them are located at Landell Elementary, where parents have worked to raise funds in order to ensure that every classroom had this technology. Neil Postman would tell us that this is a perfect example of technology’s benefits not being dispersed equally (1992, p. 9). Given that Smart Boards have a considerable up-front cost of $3,000-$5,000 it is no surprise that parents have had to take the initiative to make sure their children have access to these technologies. When teachers and administrators were asked how Smart Boards changed the process by which students learned, everyone replied that it: engaged students, kept their attention, or made things more interesting. I found it shocking that this was the best feature cited for using Smart Boards. Postman would probably claim that what teachers are witnessing is the Smart Board’s ability to feed students thriving on television. The problem is not that television presents us with subject matter, but that all subject matter must be entertaining (1986, p. 87). Serious lectures, discussions, theories, hypotheses turn television into radio with printed matter. If the information cannot be both visualized and converted to an engaging format, then it should never appear on television (Postman, 1986, p. 148). What Smart Boards allow us to do then is to present all things visually so that we entertain students in order to keep their attention. What should be most important to the district is that teachers should be seeing more learning from their students Technology’s Impacts 12 than classrooms that do not have Smart Boards. I am unable to assess this information because I do not have state test data for these students from one year to another. In addition to this, to isolate the Smart Boards’ effects on state test data is nearly impossible. Postman, however, found some research that indicated that only 3.5% of a group of people could successfully answer 12 true or false questions related to two 30-second video segments. Information transmitted through print form significantly increased the amount of recall with regard to names and people within the material (1986, p 151). While these studies took place to find television’s effectiveness on learning, I believe the study applies to learning on Smart Boards because they present a similar teaching style to that of television. When asked what Cypress School District was doing to understand how effective Smart Boards were, the technology administrator claimed that there was nothing as of now. The district is also doing very little to provide training for teachers who receive the Smart Boards. I myself have just received a Smart Board within the last month, but was told that the cost of doing so would be the need to train myself. Lilia DiBello brings up an important point on the issue of teacher training when she found that few teachers could infuse this technology without an inordinate amount of dedication and outside support. She saw the drawbacks within a small school district where they hired a consultant to support teachers in expanding the technology’s uses (2005, p. 240). Currently, Cypress places more emphasis on the means by which we acquire more Smart Boards. It is expected that teachers using the technology will place their lessons on a shared drive so that others may see and use the innovations being created. Simply seeing the lessons, however, does little for teachers who still lack the know-how to create lessons for their own students. Technology’s Impacts 13 Because Smart Boards are so often touted to teachers and parents, I wondered if teachers and administrators were aware of any drawbacks at all. Five of the twelve respondents claimed that the only downside is when the Smart Board is not working (computer crashes or the board has a problem). They equated it with the idea of being moved back into the stone age of having to work with the whiteboard to do all teaching. I asked the teachers that did have a Smart Board who responded this way if they were doing anything to combat this, but none of them were. The problem of a computer crash has the easy solution of simply purchasing a portable hard drive and backing all information up. The board not working for a day or a month is solved by never abandoning overhead transparency machines as soon as you receive the Smart Board. A quick glance around the room indicated that these teachers had not considered this possibility. It is as if these teachers were giving in to the Smart Board’s evils and pitfalls, as if this is what happens with technology. An effective teacher utilizing technology should always “understand that technology must never be accepted as part of the natural order of things” (Postman, 1992, p. 184). It is evident to me that teachers and administrators in Cypress do not see this. “Computers as a technology have certainly made us believe that human progress and technology are tied together” (Postman, 1992, p. 117). We are thus taught to believe that we are at our best when we are thinking and acting like machines. This is most certainly an ironic set of circumstances given that teachers claim such hatred for being given teacher materials that tell them what to teach, what to say, and when to do it. If we look deep enough, we will find that these negatives of technology are found within all we do as teachers. This is not to say that we must surrender ourselves because the proverbial wheels are already in motion, but rather that we must install fail-safes as we continue forward. Cypress School District needs to re- Technology’s Impacts 14 evaluate their expectations for technologies. They can most certainly be made to meet higher expectations, but only by ensuring that a broader range of software applications are available. Teachers need to receive more adequate training to prepare students to use the tools more effectively. Even more important is that teachers need to develop an understanding to better evaluate the needs for future technologies to be purchased in the district. It is time that we place less emphasis on making sure that we have what neighboring districts have because, “The human dilemma is as it has always been, and we solve nothing fundamental by cloaking ourselves in technological glory” (Postman, 1990). Instead we need to begin to place an emphasis on understanding if these technologies’ benefits are worth their costs. Technology’s Impacts 15 References Bowers, C.A. (1988). The Cultural Dimensions of Educational Computing: Understanding the Non-Neutrality of Technology. New York, NY: Teachers College Press. Cooper, Joel, & Weaver, Kimberlee D. (2003). Gender and Computers: Understanding The Digital Divide. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. Cypress Elementary School District (2008). Education Technology Plan 2008-2011. Cypress, CA: Troy Hunt. Retrieved September 20, 2008. Retrieved from: http://www.cypsd.k12.ca.us/tech/documents/CYPSD_TechPlan_2008_Final_CDE. pdf DiBello, Lilia C. (2005). Are We Addressing the Digital Divide? Issues, Access, and Real Commitment. Childhood Education, 81, (4), 239-241. Lehrer, Jim (1990). [Interview with Neil Postman]. Informing Ourselves to Death. Retrieved September 20, 2008. Retrieved from: http://www.frostbytes.com/~jimf/informing.html. Lever-Duffy, Judy, & McDonald, Jean B. (2008). Teaching and Learning with Technology. Boston, MA: Pearson. Postman, Neil (1986). Amusing Ourselves to Death: Public Discourse in the Age of Show Business. New York, NY: Penguin Books, Inc. Postman, Neil (1992). Technopoly: The Surrender of Culture to Technology. New York, NY: Alfred A. Knopf, Inc. Technology’s Impacts 16