A Case for Technology Integration

Image taken from Ouachita Parish Schools

If you know me at all (which I realize many of you don't...yet 😉)  you know I am passionate about

bringing technology into the classroom. While there is a case for an argument against technology

(which will be saved for another post), this post sheds some light on the importance of technology in

the classroom.  

Moving From then to NOW

Education today looks very different than education from even ten years ago. Chalkboards have been replaced by Smartboards, traditional textbooks are being replaced by ebooks, and pencil and paper have been replaced by Chromebooks or Ipads. Current day students understand and effectively use a large amount of technology. The skills students need to know to be prepared for the workplace include the ability to use a variety twenty-first century technologies. Selwyn (2011) points out “this increasing capacity for technological development has been accompanied by a corresponding growth in the use of digital technologies across most areas of life” (p. 22).  An important piece of effective teaching is meeting students where they are and today’s child, between the ages of eight and 18, spends an average of 7 hours 38 minutes a day with digital media (Kulman, 2015). It is a double when when teachers teach 21st-century skills by incorporating technologies that students know and enjoy to enhance current lessons.

Embracing Twenty-First Century Skills

Digital technologies are essential to supporting effective forms of education in the twenty-first century. One of the main responsibilities of the any school system is to prepare students to be successful in the current workforce. According to Selwyn (2011), “many occupations are now centered on information processing, with workers using digital technology to create and manipulate information-based ‘virtual’ products” (p.23). In the 2010’s, the expectation of employers is that students have the capabilities and comfort to use incorporate technology. Many states have added “21st-century skills” to their list of required standards. Twenty-first century skills, which include a broad set of knowledge, skills, work habits, along with character traits, are skills that are essential to successful employment.

Bringing the World into every Classroom

This ability to use digital technologies in the classroom provides so many opportunities for students that would otherwise not happen.  Possibly the most basic use of technology in the classroom is the number of video resources available to teachers to enhance lessons. Websites like YouTube put an infinite number of videos are the fingertips of teachers, and if a video can’t be found, teachers have the ability to create their own and upload them.  The use of videos outside the classroom provides students, and parents, with additional support to supplement teacher instruction. The use of technology in the classroom also gives students the ability to conduct online science labs, “travel” to any place in the world, and bring experts into the classroom through applications such as FaceTime or Skype.  According to “New literacies” (2009), students have the right to “a literacy curriculum that offers opportunities to collaboratively read, share, and create with peers from around the world” (p.2). Through technology, students can easily communicate and collaborate at school or even in the comfort of their own homes.

What are your thoughts on this topic? Why do you believe it is important to integrate technology into education? I would love to hear your thoughts!

HE> I

References

Great Schools Partnership. (2014). 21st century skills. Retrieved from http://edglossary.org/21st-century-skills/

International Reading Association. (2009). New literacies and 21st-century technologies: A position statement of the International Reading Association. Retrieved from http://www.reading.org/Libraries/position-statements-and-resolutions/ps1067_NewLiteracies21stCentury.pdf

International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE). (2008). National educational technology standards for teachers. Retrieved from http://www.iste.org/standards/iste-standards/standards-for-teachers [https://www.iste.org/docs/pdfs/20-14_ISTE_Standards-T_PDF.pdf]
Kulman, D. R., & Watkins, L. (2016, April 20). How Much Time Do Kids Spend With Technology? Retrieved from http://learningworksforkids.com/2015/07/how-much-time-do-kids-spend-with-technology/
Selwyn, N. (2011). Education and technology: Key issues and debates. London, UK: Bloomsbury.