Technology in high school classrooms

Technology in the High School Classroom As the technology of the world advances, schools must make necessary changes to incorporate innovative technology into the classroom. In their article ” Teaching in the One-to-One Classroom”, Alice Owen, Sam Farsaii, Gerald Knezek and Rhonda Christensen discuss the changes in curriculum, attitude and strategies necessary to positively implement technology in the classroom. Providing students with new technology creates an interest in learning, a competitive edge and allows students to access research information and learning aides in seconds. However, this stride forward causes a reverse effect on the traditional strategy of direct class lecture. Teachers need to be willing to become experts at the systems themselves, reevaluate their classroom management techniques and give the students more responsibility and trust. When an entire school and community work together, technology can provide unlimited benefits. Owen, et al, discuss the support system necessary for the classroom to be successful. Teachers need to be provided with opportunity to be adequately trained and familiarized with the new system; if they are not comfortable using it personally, they will not be able to teach with it. Classroom management, especially with students being off task and playing is a major concern. Therefore, schools need consistent policies and teams that oversee instructional material and assist teachers in staying on top of student activity. Technology can restructure the classroom and ” bring real world relevance to the classroom,” providing students with engaging hands on experience to enrich the learning experience. When implemented completely and used appropriately, technology is a great advantage in the classroom. In the article, teachers in district where laptops were recently provided to students were surveyed. The results indicated teachers rated the systems highly and did not wish to go back to prior teaching strategies. They also reported to using ” guiding/facilitating student learning” as the dominant role of the class, steering away from the previous direct instruction method. However, the positive results and high results directly correlated with the training the teachers were given. In the particular district studied, the teachers were provided with their own laptops years before given to the students and also reported using them at home. Students of this same district responded highly of the new system. Owen’s, et al, article disusses the success and benefits of technology to the classroom. The district exemplified is a model for implementing innovative technology into all classrooms. However, the major factors within the article may not be available everywhere. Though the benefits can be exceptional, the supporting structure might cause issues within some school systems. For example, not every district can afford to provide teachers with their own personal program and consistent training, in which the curriculum would fail. Teachers need to be willing to reconstruct their entire teaching techniques and be part of a team that focuses on classroom management and student activity. Money, therefore, is of tremendous concern and a necessity if school’s can even consider new technology. Similarly, schools have functioned until now with text books, blackboards and dedicated teachers, and these classics may not be completely from the dark ages. Education need to remain the goal, not the method of providing it.