Abacus - "a calculating tool used primarily in parts of Asia for performing arithmetic processes." Also a technology boring children for years upon years until the great TI-82 calculator was invented. Thank God.
Technology has influenced the way I've learned dramatically, I'm sure. I was schooled under the transition between overhead projectors and Power Point. I saw the use of chalkboard, white boards, and Smart Boards. In college, I understood conference classes. In grade school I was able to spell out "HELL" and "BOOB" on a calculator, careful to avoid the teacher's stern look. After passing the message to my neighboring classmate, who knew I was actually primitively texting. In high school we learned how to program our TI-82 to help with advanced math problems, later learning how to program them for even better learning objectives - how to geometrically stack awkward objects on top of each....err....Tetris.
Technology has essentially raised the bar. We learn the lesson, but we also learn application. Or we should. When I would have my own students use the computer lab for author research or for a Christmas project, I was doing more than just having them use a tool for a desired object; I was providing them skills (new and foreign to some) to apply to all subjects through the use of the said tool. By giving them tips to improve their hits on a browser, I was aligning them towards future success. Why people type a question in a search engine is beyond me. Yes, Ask Jeeves was sweet, but seriously. The browser semantically doesn't understand the question. It's searching for the words "what," "the," and "about" as much as it's searching for "chicken leg" and "whisky." Odd example.
Technology also enables one to conceptualize abstract (and concrete) ideas better. This is especially true for all of the different learning styles. If we were all auditory learners, we would not need a classroom, books, or even lights. We would need only a voice. But we don't all learn that way. Smart Boards, computers, and, yes, even an overhead projector, reach students on a conceptual level much better than the orator or lecturer.
Although not asked, obviously technology can hurt as well. First and foremost, expecting a computer to correct mispelingz does not make one a sophisticated user. My students overly relied on computers to help with their assignments, plagiarizing (which of course occurred even before computers), mechanical mistakes, and poor grammar pervade the classroom. Why? I don't blame technology, but I blame the students' passivity and apathy that comes from the result of immediate self gratification offered by technology. Does that give you someting to respond to?
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2 comments:
I have to agree that it is not exactly technology that is to blame, but rather us. We have found the many short cuts and time saving abilities that this technology has been able to offer us and though we do not always use it to its fullest capabilities and we take the short cuts it has definatly made things so much easier and better!
Still have my TI-82, at this point it's almost an antique at 17 years old, but I still use it once a month at least. Just thought I'd throw that out there since you referenced it.
I too have seen much of the transition you speak of. From blackboards to overheads and even in some classes, the really technology savvy teachers used laser discs!
The comment about immediate gratification provided by technology certainly seams to ring true. Today's "Digital Natives" will undoubtedly grow up with a very different image of what learning, working, and even life itself is than we did, or especially those older than us.
-Zack
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