The use of technology in education


Technology has its advantages in education it can be a great resource in the classroom or in any other project you as the educator and the pupils directly. The Department of Education Education Secretary Nicky Morgan says "I want our next generation to have the skills to compete in the global jobs market. That’s why we have put in place a computing curriculum that gives them the basic building blocks but also seeks to give them specialist knowledge too." Our society is constantly changing and we are in a world surrounded by technology and if we don't educate our children now they won't be successful in the global market without sufficient technological skills. We had a 5% increase last year for ICT products that were exported to different countries and we need individuals of the future to know and understand how the technology works in order to provide the future generation workforce with the skills they need to work with advanced technologies. (DOE, 2016)

Some of the top reasons of using technology within the classroom are as follows: it can create a more engaged environment for the students as it turns traditional non-interactive subjects into fascinating activities linked with technology which will inspire children to try a lot more. It incorporates different learning styles or people who struggle with specific learning difficulties e.g. dyslexia. It also improves collaboration between peers as they are more likely to support one another according to a study carried out by teachers.

Prensky defines this younger generation as the digital natives as they are all “native speakers” of the digital language of computers, video games and the Internet” (2001a:1). Prensky refers to people who were born before this new digital era, which began around 1980, as Digital Immigrants. (LSE Research Online, 2011) However, according to Prensky, we have Digital immigrants teaching an out of date language compared to our Digital natives who speaking an entirely new language. (Prensky, 2001) This issue only seems to be getting worse as there aren't enough opportunities to get Digital immigrants up to date and fully aware of how the latest technologies work at the moment most teachers find it incredibly hard and find the Digital natives know more than they do. 

Technology is such a wonderful resource but also there is a risk of using technology within the classroom as part of their education. As we have parents who are employees of tech giants Google, Apple or Yahoo who are set against their children using screens during their school day. It comes as a shock because these parents are working for big corporations working with future technology but are questioning the value of computers or other technological devices within their children's learning environment. Does it really have a big impact on children's education? A global report has examined and has said "education systems that have heavily invested in education have actually seen "no noticeable improvement" in their results for reading, maths and science in the PISA tests ranking different countries on the standard of their education. If you further examine the best performing educational systems such as East Asia they are really cautious of using new advances in technology for their classrooms. Waldor School of the Peninsula prefers a more hands-on, experiential approach to learning. The pedagogy emphasises the role of imagination in learning and takes a holistic approach that integrates the intellectual, practical and creative development of pupils. This is a very good approach to having technology which helps and assists learning could also have a detrimental effect on other experiences and skills within their school life. (The Guardian, 2015)
There could be a detrimental impact on younger learners but also on their health and well-being of sustained computer technology according to Straker et al. (Straker et al. 2005) 
However, Sarah Thorne, head of the London Acorn school, also questions the assumption that limitinor removing technology will have a negative impact on the child's future employability as well so there are good and bad points of integrating with technology you as practitioners have to know that balance to give that child the best possible start in life. According to a CompTIA study, nine out of 10 students indicated that using technology in the classroom would help prepare them for the digital future. He adds: “Teaching is about human contact and interaction. I don’t think we are doing children any favours by teaching them through machines at that young age.” (The Guardian, 2015) This is an extremely important to remember both sides have pros and cons but practitioners need to have a balanced curriculum so their pupils progress and succeed in life...

References: 
  • https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/nicky-morgan-bett-show-2016
  • Helsper, Ellen and Eynon, Rebecca (2009) Digital natives: where is the evidence? British educational research journal. pp. 1-18.
  • https://educationendowmentfoundation.org.uk/public/files/Publications/The_Impact_of_Digital_Technologies_on_Learning_(2012).pdf
  • https://www.marcprensky.com/writing/Prensky%20-%20Digital%20Natives,%20Digital%20Immigrants%20-%20Part1.pdf
  • https://www.theguardian.com/teacher-network/2015/dec/02/schools-that-ban-tablets-traditional-education-silicon-valley-london

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