During my internship, only 1 student out of 27 in grade 2/3 did not have high speed internet access in their home. Demographically, this is not a reflection of the reality for all students, however it does indicate that an increasing number of students within the K-12 education system are exposed to technology and are growing up in a multi-media world.The education system should reflect the needs of the society, which are in constant flux and are dependent on the region. If there are schools (ie: north central Regina) where the basic needs of students are not being met (ie: food, shelter, safety, etc.), incorporating technology in those classrooms may be of lesser focus and a reality for classroom teachers. However, in affluent schools where students are higher on the scale of Maslow’s higharchy of needs, incorporating technology becomes essential.
Depending on the school/school division, there are different technologies and availability. Depending on what is available and how often you are able to use it can prove to be beneficial or challenging. I believe that the use of technology should not be isolated to a computer lab or viewed as “computer class”, rather it should be seamlessly incorporated into lessons/units to compliment the intended learning. Schools that cannot provide laptop carts, computer pods, or data projectors to be used in classrooms make trying to use technology effectively a challenge.
I believe that students who are provided the opportunity to use technology to enhance their learning are given power over their learning. Like Dean said, when you have the world wide web at your fingertips teachers aren’t the smartest person in the room anymore. Teaching students the basic skills and processes of how to manipulate technology (ie: how to do research, use programs, etc) gears the learning to be student-centered, with the teacher as the facilitator. Students are bound to forget information we tell them or test them on, but if they ever need to remember it in their future they can know how/where to find it if they have been taught the basic skills of how to use technology. When students feel empowered over their learning and find it engaging and relevant, that is when the most learning happens.
As previously mentioned, the generations of students in the K-12 education are (typically) exposed to an abundance of various technologies and multi-media. New technologies such as Youtube, Facebook, MySpace, cell phones, etc. are allowing students to have their own social networks and are changing the way students perceive the world. Depending on how they are used, technology and social networks can have a positive or a negative affect on student learning. If students capitalize on the potential support social networks can provide and can learn appropriate ways to manipulate and perceive the technology they are exposed to, the new technologies can enhance achievement and learning. Unfortunately not all students use technology this way, which is why we are encountering more frequent cyberbullying and lower achievement.
To reiterate what Dean said about students living in a multi-media/sensory world, students are also learning differently because of what they are exposed to. They are becoming more visual/kinestheic learners and have more diverse multiple intelligences (Howard Gardner). Because students don’t experience the same text based learning many of us did as children, testing them by paper and pencil may be a reason they may seem to attain lower achievement. Perhaps school systems need to transform their way of perceiving achievement and the means of assessment.
