Educational Technology Philosophy-Draft 1

            Today, in the United States, technology is extremely present in the educational settings. You can walk into a U.S. classroom and witness educators and children utilizing Promethean boards, IPads, laptops and many other technological devices. I believe that students being able to use these devices in the classroom is extremely beneficial to their learning. Especially since so many students have some sort of tech device at home that they actively use like a gaming system, iPad, laptop, computer, or tablet. It engages their minds and gives them the opportunity to learn the way of the new world we live in. It also prepares them for training beyond secondary school as well as the workforce. Computers are used for various reasons in the workplace. Many companies require knowledge of certain program software in order to qualify for the job. These programs could include word processing, graphic design, spreadsheets, and many others. Offering classes like keyboarding or BCIS is a great opportunity for students to get prepared. Many people consider this generation as the generation of technology and it seems as if babies come from the womb knowing how to operate these devices without instruction form adults. I am extremely tech savvy and love using technology. However, after being so heavily involved in my child’s education and sitting in his 3^rd classroom, my philosophy on technology in the education setting has split between yay and nay.

If you closely look at this generation of education, you will notice that even though the material is closely related or gives the same end result, the way it is administered or taught changes from year to year. Using technology as a teaching method has become more common over the years. However, relationships can sometimes become impersonal when implementing technology in the classrooms. I have noticed that educators sometimes rely solely on technology as a classroom instruction and this takes away from the relationship building between teacher and student. For example, the Promethean board is able to read to the students instead of the teacher sitting down and actually listening to the teacher read an actual print book. For many students this may be fine but for some it can be distracting and disengaging. Technology should complement the instruction and not replace it. Also, after speaking with some friends of mine who are educators, I found out that they are trying to eliminate handwriting in the classroom. Every child will be given an assigned laptop and will only be taught typing skills. They have already eliminated cursive writing. These things will disconnect student from the real world.  While it may seem I am leaning more on the nay side of using technology in the educational setting, there are many reasons why using it is beneficial.

Technology in the classroom has increased parent involvement in their child’s education. Some teachers create social media accounts or a classroom website that gives parents access to their child’s education. They are able to review homework assignments, ask questions, view attendance records and check current grades. I have an app for Skyward, a website that gives me live up to date information regarding my son. The down side to this is that some parents do not have computers at home but the upside is many of these programs can be accessed through smart phones.