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Technology in Schools The topic is technology in schools. The concern of teachers, and administrators, is whether or not the increased spending in school budgets really is worth the cost. Private business interests are also paying close attention to increasing technology in schools, for the simple reason that there is money to be made. An author going by the last name Cork wrote an article in the Sunday Business Post, describing how IT (information technology) giants such as the International Business Machines (IBM) have been making bold predictions about the future of technology in schools. Anyone can probably understand why large technology companies would have an interest in the progress of technology in schools, and even promote the advancement of technology in schools. This is because there are contracts to be had with schools to install and gain rights to obtain these new technologies, causing IT companies to foam at the mouth in hopes that schools will adopt new technologies and buy their products. This is where problems arise. Many educators argue that the only reason technology is being pushed on schools as rigorously as it is because of the corporate agenda. The primary question and debate examined in this situation, is whether or not new technologies actually benefit students as much as some claim they do, or if it is just another way for tech companies to make money. Michael Zwaagstra, a writer for the Vancouver Sun, wrote an article entitled "Little Gain from Technology in Schools; Latest High-tech Gadgets Are Unnecessary (Zwaagstra). As one can probably decipher from the title, Zwaagstra is a not a proponent of increasing spending in

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schools for the sake of increasing technology. Zwaagstra argues in his article that new gadgets such as netbooks and tablets in schools are simply a waste of resources. Zwaagstra doesnt mention much about the conflicting interests between education and the technology companies as some others are concerned with, but instead argues more to the effect that traditional methods of education are the most useful for instructors, and more beneficial to the students that high-tech gadgets. Zwaagstra notes that it would be more resourceful to ensure all students are provided with the most recent printed and text based information to help aid their studies, as opposed to LED screens. When referring to the effectiveness of technology in schools, Zwaagstra states In other words, rigorous research studies reveal that the wholesale introduction of computer technology in classrooms has, at best, only a limited impact on student achievement. (Zwagstra). Zwaagstra regards the benefits from expensive technologies in schools as modest, claiming that this type of reform is not going to boost academic standards and student performance to the levels that tech supporters are claiming it will. As it pertains to technology in education, I personally have had experiences that have formulated some of my own opinions regarding how beneficial new technologies are in schools. I attended a private elementary school that was experimenting with some new technologies, and as I can recall that were focused primarily on reading comprehension. The software that my teacher had us focusing on was based on an online program primarily focused on younger children, I can remember it included reading and grammar games that seemed like it was meant

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to be fun and interactive for the students. Its difficult for me to determine whether or not it had a positive impact on my reading comprehension at that age, but I do remember it being very tedious, and my classmates and I goofing around in the computer lab as opposed to working on our assignments. From this perspective, I feel that newer technologies arent always the best thing for younger students, I personally feel like there is a certain degree of awareness and concentration in children and young adults that can only be achieved by direct human interaction, most children have short attention spans as it is, so giving them independent work while in a classroom setting among their peers and friends seems like it is counterproductive to leave students educations in their own hands. I feel that education should be focused more on classroom interactions and information being delivered to them by an actual human being, in person. This isnt to say that all new technology in school isnt beneficial to instructors or students, I do believe that there is a lot to explore when it comes to technology in schools, and there are beneficial ways in which it could be used, but I think removing the traditional element regarding the teacher and student relationship for a computer is a mistake. Without doubt there are people who believe that technology is the best thing that could ever possibly happen to the field of education. To refer back to the article Schools buy into technology boom which was written by Chuck Soder, it is clear that there are educators and schools out there who are adopting to new technologies in schools and finding them to be beneficial to the education of their students. Soder explains in his article how large amounts of

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capital are being raised in the private sector as technology in education seems to be on the rise. Soder also includes statements from a superintendent, describing how he has personally changed his opinion and position about technology in his schools, and expressing that he even allows students to use smart phones in school as an education aid. Many software producers are now producing software that allows teacher to create electronic lesson plans, with growing popularity of these type of programs throughout schools, one can only imagine how much capital is being produced by this increased spending in the private industry known as ed-tech, but is it worth the money? The main question if technology in schools is beneficial or not, is a very subjective one. This has sparked many debates and varying opinions in the field of technology and education. The unique thing however, about both sides of the argument. Is that proponents of technology in schools seem to be a bit gung-ho in pushing the agenda for technology in schools. This could be for a few different reasons, as mention above, however the most notable thing about the proponents of increased technology in schools, is that they focus so heavily on the benefits that potential new technologies could bring into the classroom, that they often neglect to mention any negative side effects of spending so much money on technology that is at best, premature. Zwaagstra comments on the use of technology in schools: In other words, rigorous research studies reveal that the wholesale introduction of computer technology in classrooms has, at best, only a limited impact on student achievement. One needs to ask whether this modest benefit

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justifies making technology the focus of school reform (Zwaagsta). Mr. Zwaagstra worded it quite well, I feel. From that quote one can pretty easily get a taste of the debate that is occurring between supporters and skeptics of technology in our schools. While there is potential for technology to have great benefits for the staff and students, there is simply not enough evidence that it will do so, when talking about budgeting decisions, school officials and superintendents are going to what rock hard figures and statistics that make them want to invest in the field of technology. Mr. Terry Greene, a learning technology specialist at Sir Fleming college, was asked in an interview how he felt about increased spending for technology in schools: I would always be in favor of getting more money to work with, but I would say the more important focus would be to be to spend money on the right technologies, in a sustainable way.(Greene). Mr. Greene, as a professional who works with technology in schools every day, made a point during his interview that he would rather see current technologies developed to be more sustainable and reliable, rather than spending a large chunk of their budget on new, wild-west like technologies. When asked about what specific kinds of technology he would like to see improved or implemented, Mr. Green stated: What I want to improve is easier, faster and ubiquitous access to mobile connection to the Internet. (Greene). Mr. Green even admits that newer technologies that are coming into the market, which are designed to get more simple or challenging based on the progress of the student are hard to pull off (Greene). To reach the main conclusion, technology will likely play a very large role in education going forward into the future, but as of

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right now, there simply isnt enough supplemental evidence to substantiate massive portions of already tight schools budgets for the latest and greatest technologies in school. The best alternative to breaking bank on new technology, is ensuring that students and educators have all the basic tools they need at their disposal, such as fast internet access, and computers to access their lesson plans and school work.

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Works Cited Cork. "Technology to Transform Our Schools and Shops." Sunday Business Post, 05 Jan. 2014. Web. 22 Feb. 2014. <http://search.proquest.com/docview/1474084152>.

Soder, Chuck. "Schools Buy into Technology Boom." Crain's Cleveland Business. N.p., 29 Apr. 2013. Web. 21 Feb. 2014. <http://search.proquest.com/docview/1353320816>

Zwaagstra, Michael. "Little Gain from Technology in Schools; Latest High-tech Gadgets Are Unnecessary." Vancouversun.com. The Vancouver Sun / Troy Media, 06 June 2013. Web. 23 Feb. 2014.

Nelson, Susan A. "TECHNOLOGY IN SCHOOLS: Whose Best Interest?" Education Digest. N.p., May 2000. Web. 9 Mar. 2014. White, David. "TECHNOLOGY IN EDUCATION; Wirt County One-on-one Computer-based Learning Takes over Classroom." Charleston Gazette, 25 Dec. 2010. Web. 09 Mar. 2014..

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Greene, Terry. Personal Interview. March 9, 2014