Tuesday, January 19, 2010

Thoughts on the Proper Role of Technology in Education



When it comes to technology and education, I think the hardest thing to figure out is where to draw "the line". "The line" that I am talking about is where the technology you are using is still efficient, relevant, and beneficial toward the desired educational outcome. So many factors weigh into this dilemma. There are so many great technologies out there, but that doesn't mean they will get the job done any better when you weigh in all the other factors. One funny case I've experienced was in an American History class I recently took. The professor was a retired teacher who was very "old school" in his teaching style. The department forced him to use their power point presentations to guide his lectures. One day the remote wouldn't work to turn on the projector, another day the computer in the classroom crashed, and then finally when their were problems with the electricity he freaked out and gave us a huge lecture about technology and the problems with it in the classroom. Some of his points were well argued as he defended the chalkboard over the dry erase board and computer projectors. This situation got me thinking that the usefulness of technology is very conditional. It really depends on the distinct situations and all the variables therein whether or not technology will help or hinder learning.

Thursday, January 14, 2010

My First Blog Post

I guess I can now consider myself a blogger. I'm all grown up :)