The article, “Harness the Power of Technology,” introduces us to the concept that education is revolving more and more around technological advances for both teachers and students. The article touches on the fact that while most teachers want to advance with technology, the schools in which they work for aren’t ready for that and are still stuck in 20th century teaching methods. The author also touches on the issue that some teachers don’t find technology as an integral part of learning. They only look at technology as an “add on” to learning techniques. While some teachers see technology only as an “add on” there are plenty who recognize its important role as a teaching tool. Because of this, the U.S. Department of Education has proposed the establishment of the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Education (ARPA-ED) in order to encourage the investment into innovation of learning technologies.
I believe that it should be a priority to put more technology into more classrooms. Technology is a very important tool for students to be well versed in for their future. Technology is used in everyday situations and students should also use it daily. One statement that stuck out to me the most was that some schools do not have access to the internet. The internet is such an integral part of my everyday life that I could not imagine not being able to use it in the classroom. Although, I believe technology is important a statement that stuck out the most to me was that “no matter what funding or supports exist for technology, the truth of the matter is that teachers are still the most essential part of the learning process” (Duncan, A. 2011). Technology is extremely important, but I believe a teacher is even more important.
This article related to the ISTE NETS performance indicator number five, “Digital Citizenship.” This performance indicator highlights that students should understand a range of issues related to technology in which they practice legal and ethical behavior. In order for students to understand “human, cultural, and social issues related to technology and practice legal and ethical behavior” they must have access to technology in the classroom. It should be a priority to get new technology advances in the hands of children and students so they can “exhibit leadership for digital citizenship.”
Duncan, A. (2011). Feature. Harness the Power of Technology, 38(8).
I think this article clearly outlines the difficulties teachers and schools are having regarding technology. I think most teachers want to use technology in their classrooms, but schools do not support them or do not have enough money. I too agree that it should be a priority to integrate technology into the classroom. It is a common tool that people use every day and it would be very beneficial for students to grow up with computers in their classroom. Although we rely on technology and computers a great deal, I could not agree more with the statement, “no matter what funding or supports exist for technology, the truth of the matter is that teachers are still the most essential part of the learning process.” This is so true! I believe nothing can take the place of teachers.
ReplyDelete