Technology in Education 1

Technology in Education

Joshua Peebles

ETC 567: Technology, Society & Education

Professor Tammy Sherrard

September 29, 2008

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Abstract

The impact of the social, historical, and educational foundations of technology in

education has been drastically altered throughout the years. In general these changes and

transformations have left many in the dark as far as technology and education is

concerned. The technology that is now being used in our education systems would have

never been expected in years past. Students and children are using more technology than

their parents are in many homes across the country. Some have even brought up the

question of whether it’s too much. Some parents and teachers are even wondering if the

children of today are actually addicted to technology.

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Technology in Education

Throughout history the majority of our children have always been fascinated and

interested in learning about new and innovative ways to discover the world and

everything it has to offer. In today’s society they are still learning and discovering things,

but often times its as they sit in front of a computer screen at home or school.

Technology in our schools has changed a great deal for school districts all over the

country.

Because of the drastic changes we are seeing with technology and our school

systems, many people are in opposition of too much technology and are afraid that the

history of education is being lost and that our children are becoming addicted to it and not

using it for learning purposes.

There has been talk of technology changing the traditions of how our children

grow up and their experiences. According to Joe L. Frost and Childhood Education,

“ A combination of interrelated elements is currently changing the face of the

civilizing traditions of U.S. education and forming a new culture of childhood.

These include: 1) the standardization of education; 2) the dissolution of

traditional spontaneous play; and 3) the growing specter of poverty in the United

States and around the world” (Frost, para. 2).

Kids just don’t want to go outside and play anymore, they would rather stay inside and

play a game on the computer or look something up on the computer or text message a

friend. We are seeing kids younger and younger that are participating in things like an

online chat and even lie about their age in order to get a MySpace page. As the Office of

National Drug Control Policy found out in their research:

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Nearly all teens are using technology all the time, everywhere.

Close to nine in ten teens, or 87 percent of youth ages 12 to 17, are Internet users,
and half of these teens go online daily.

Approximately 19 million teens instant message.

Sixty percent of teens have their own cell phone.

One-third (33%) of teens have used a cell phone to send a text message. One in
four cell phone-owning teens has used their phone to connect to the Internet.

Thirteen percent of young people report having a handheld device that connects to
the Internet.

Since our students are so taken in with technology and everything they can do with it we

have seen many schools and institutions go to such technology as individual response

technology (IRT). This allows each student to answer questions immediately and gives

the teacher or professor immediate feedback on all students. Not only does this make

things easier for the teacher, but at the same time it excites our students because they get

to use more technology. Hunsinger, Poirier, and Felman and Computers in Human

Behavior from the University of Massachesetts found that,

Many students appear to enjoy the use of IRT in the classroom, which means that

IRT is likely to increase enjoyment of the class. In addition, our data suggest that

IRT use improves classroom learning for students who enjoy using the technology

(Computers in Human Behavior, 29).

Given the data above one can easily note that the more technology that is used in the

classroom the more the students will enjoy the learning and want to participate. They

will want to take that quiz using IRT and be excited to hear their results in record time.
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If we don’t continue to focus on education of the past and maintain new ways of

improving student learning we are going to create similar results that we have seen in the

past. As Joe L. Frost puts it,

A kind of “perfect storm” is now brewing in the education and development of

children in the United States. Those who have not lived or explored the history of

education in the United States; have not experienced both poverty and abundance;

have lived lives sheltered from the barrios, slums, homeless shelters, and

epidemics; or those unfamiliar with the rich legacy of history and child

development scholarship on the nature of learning and relevance of culture are

repeating the mistakes to be found in the history of U.S. education (Frost, para 1).

It is great the technology that we are able to use in our classrooms everyday, but it is also

very important to look at the history of education so that we don’t make the same

mistakes twice.

Technology and Society

If one were to step onto a high school campus at anytime on any given day there

would be no question that you would see students on their cell phones, text messaging,

listening to their Mp3 players, or surfing the web on their electronic devices. Many

school have attempted to enforce new rules, where there is no electronic devices in the

classroom and some have even gone to none on campus. It doesn’t work; some kids can

text a friend without even looking at their phone and many experienced teachers don’

notice when it is happening. Many people have brought up the question, what would our

kids do without all of this technology? It’s a very good question, and if they can’t live

without it are they addicted to technology?

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Suzanne Lee thinks that it’s definitely possible for our technology users of today

to be addicted when she states, “The downside of this is that they put other things to a

lesser degree of importance” (Lee, 2008). She also goes on to state, “six to ten percent of

the 189 million that have technology dependency could have it be as destructive as

alcohol or drug addiction” (Lee, 2008). Technology addiction is known as an impulse

disorder, many people cannot get through a family dinner without checking their cell

phone or Blackberry, much less getting through a whole movie. As Dr. Phil put it on an

interview with CyberGuy, “They don’t call them crack berries for nothing” (CyberGuy,

2007). The well-known and well-liked Dr. Phil goes on to explain that, “Technology

does get in the way, but it’s the abuse of it not the use of it that does” (CyberGuy, 2007).

But what is “abuse” of it? I guess one would think that text messaging in class rather

than paying attention would be abusing your right to have a cell phone period.

It is great that our students and kids are so into technology and want to learn new

things that they can do with it to better themselves and their knowledge. Many of them

are blogging on a regular basis, which is probably making them smarter individuals in

some ways. They want to put their own personal stories and feelings online for friends

and family to see. Because the students are so tech savvy they want to continue to see

technology in the classroom setting on a regular basis, it will improve their focus and

desire to learn.

On the negative side of technology in the classroom, teachers have been known to

go too fast. They speedily click right through their Power Point presentation before the

students have the time to let it sink in. Others have said technology in the classroom
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causes many teachers to be impersonal and that they in a way are “hiding behind” the

technology.

Conclusion

The social, historical and educational foundations of technology in education will

continue to develop and improve as we get closer and closer to a society of the new Web

3.0. Not only will the technology continue to get better and better, but so will our

students learning and their ability to apply it to real world situations. As we look into the

future we need to look at ways to get and keep student involvements in our schools on an

upswing. What new technologies can we bring into the classroom to better serve our

students? We just need to keep in mind that our long-term goal is to improve student

success and learning in the classroom as well as in our society.

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References

Frost, Joel L. (2007). The changing culture of childhood: a perfect storm

[Electronic version]. Journal of Childhood Education, 255-256.

Hunsinger, M., Poirier, C.R., Feldman, R.S. (2008). The roles of personality and class

size in student attitudes toward individual response technology. Journal of

Computers in Human Behavior, 2792-2798.

Kirkwood, A. (2007). Getting it from the Web: why and how online resources are used

by independent undergraduate learners. Journal of computer Assisted Learning,

372-382.

McPherson, M.A. & Nunes, J.M. (2008). Critical issues for e-learning delivery: what

may seem obvious is not always put into practice. Journal of Computer Assisted

Learning, 433-442.

Munoz, F. & Ortigosa, Alvaro (2007). Adaptive hypermedia in secondary schools: from

the teacher to the student. International Journal of Learning Technology, 309.

Technology and Learning. 2008. Gale Cengage Learning, retrieved September 23, 2008,

Fromhttp://libproxy.nau.edu:2124/itx/printdoc.do?contentSet=IAC-

Documents&docType=IAC.edu.

You Tube. (2008). Technology Addiction. Retrieved September 21, 2008, from the You

Tube website: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YrjNcj-ls3c

You Tube. (2008). Technology Addiction. Retrieved September 21, 2008, from the You

Tube website: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ijqfPJq0kqo&feature=related

CyberGuy with Dr. Phil.

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