Technology in the classroom: Fad or foundation for learning?
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 their answers with clickers that look like TV remote controls.
Hundreds of millions of dollars have been spent getting computers into U.S. classrooms, and teachers and students around the country are using technology in new ways. That raises two important questions for parents: How is technology improving learning? Are students developing the skills they'll need to understand and use techology 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 are new.
Here are three pointers to help assess how technology is being implemented:
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 PowerPoint 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 says. "The content should lead; the tool should follow."
2. Ask your child how he or she uses technology when doing assignments.
If, for example, your child worked on a multimedia presentation about the Lewis and Clark expedition, ask why he or she chose certain elements. You'll find out pretty quickly if technology was used for its own sake or because there was thought behind it.
Pasnik explains, "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's 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 he or she says, for example, that students posed questions to experts in the field via the Internet, that's a sign that technology serves a valuable 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.
Bill Carey, a Tennessee author and history buff, is a case in point. Working with the state Department of Education and teachers, Carey created Tennessee History for Kids, which came about because there are so few textbooks available on Tennessee history. The site includes grade-by-grade curriculum on state history, geography, and civics, and Carey hopes its interactive games will inspire students to challenge each other in a game of Tennessee trivia.
