Technology in the Classroom: Fad or Foundation for Learning?
From cell phones to laptops, technology tools are standard equipment for students, raising questions about how they're being used.
In some classrooms, iBooks have replaced textbooks. In others, students
prepare video yearbooks that can be delivered to their classmates' cell phones. In still others, teachers ask students a question and they punch in the answers with "clickers" that look like TV remote control devices.
Hundreds of millions of dollars have been spent getting computers into classrooms, and teachers and students around the country are using technology in new ways. That raises two important questions for parents:
1. How is technology being used to improve learning?
2. Are students developing the skills they'll need to understand and use it in the future?
Pointers for Parents
It can be tough to assess a school's use of technology. There is little research to go on since many of the tools and techniques that employ them are new.
Here are three pointers to help assess how technology is being used:
1. Ask the teacher or principal how technology is aligned with grade-level goals. Parents might be wowed by an 8-year-old's ability to produce a Power Point presentation without looking closely at the thinking that went into it. While students need to develop technological skills, it should be in the context of thinking and learning to solve problems. That means the technology needs to be aligned with learning goals, says Shelley Pasnik, senior researcher for the New York-based Center for Children and Technology.
"There needs to be a vision on the part of the instructional leaders at the school," she said. "The content should lead, the tool should follow."
2. Ask your child about how he uses technology in doing his assignments. Pasnik advises parents to talk to their children about how they use technology in their assignments. If, for example, your child put together a multimedia presentation about the Lewis and Clark expedition, ask why he chose the elements he did. You'll find out pretty quickly if technology was used for its own sake or because there was thought behind it.
"If your child says, 'I was able to use not only my words to describe Lewis and Clark's journey, but also a picture' or 'I chose this font because it looked like something Lewis and Clark might have used in the 1800s,' you'll see that technology was used to give deeper meaning to learning."
3. Volunteer in the computer lab. Pasnik also encourages parents to help out in the school computer lab to see how technology is used. When you're visiting the school, ask the teacher why the computer was used in a particular lesson. If she says, for example, that she's using the Internet so students can pose questions to experts in the field, that's a sign that technology is being used with a purpose.
Using Technology in Inspired Ways
Headlines about innovations in school technology disguise a key fact: the way technology is used varies widely from classroom to classroom. While many computers sit unused much of the day, some schools are harnessing technology in creative ways to engage students and teachers.
A Web-based Approach to History
Bill Carey, a Tennessee author and history buff, is a case in point. Carey is creating Tennessee History for Kids. He has been working with the state Department of Education and individual teachers on the project, which came about because there were so few books available on Tennessee history. When it's complete, the site will include a grade-by-grade curriculum on state history, geography and civics, and Carey hopes its interactive games will inspire students to challenge others across the state in a game of Tennessee Trivia.
Classroom Blogs Engage Learners and Parents
Elsewhere teachers are experimenting with classroom blogs that introduce multimedia skills to children and help them polish their writing skills. Mr. Roemer's Fifth-Grade Polar Bears in Tampa, Florida, also keeps parents informed about what's going on in the classroom.
Laptops Replace Textbooks
A few districts, such as Vail, Arizona, are giving students laptops instead of textbooks in a step toward the all-digital curriculum. It's a solution that addresses the problem of outdated textbooks and bulging backpacks. But, as critics have been quick to point out, it's expensive.
Teachers Get Instant Feedback with Classroom Clickers
First used in college classrooms in the late '90s, these devices have become less expensive and more common in public school classrooms. Teachers use them to find out if their students are understanding — or paying attention to—the material being covered in a class lesson. Here's how they work:
- Using a computer keyboard, the teacher displays a question on a large screen in front of the class.
- Students point to the screen with their clickers and punch in an answer.
- The answers are sent to a receiver either through radio or infrared signals, then fed into a computer.
- A summary of the results is displayed on the screen instantly, giving teachers real-time feedback.
- The answers of individual students can also be tracked by the teacher.
There is no solid research yet that indicates whether clickers improve teacher or student performance, and they are costly tools because every student needs a laptop to use the technology.
Updated January 2008
