First came home computers, then school computer labs. More recently, schools are providing laptops to all high school students. Add iPods and iPads and finding information in a school gets easier and more complicated. If several textbooks could be downloaded onto an iPad, why carry around heavy textbooks?
Teachers Support the Latest Technology in the Classrooms
A British survey of teachers resulted in strong support of technology.
- 70% of teachers state that state of the art IT equipment is more important than traditional textbooks.
- Over 50% of teachers believe students without Internet access at home are seriously disadvantaged.
- 30% predict that textbooks will become obsolete within a few years.
This survey comes at a time when IT is at risk of having major cuts by Michael Gove, the education secretary. Gove has already cut schools’ IT budgets to the tune of 100 million pounds.
600 Teachers Speak Out in Support of Technology
68% of the 600 teachers polled believe that interactive whiteboards and other IT gadgets are more useful than textbooks. However, many students have no access to the Internet or computers once they reach home. It is a concern that students will not be able to complete homework if the same technology is not in both the school and home.
Julian Morgan, deputy head at Chatsmore Catholic High School in Worthing, urges the government to continue investing in IT but warned "that the value of textbooks should not be underestimated. IT is not a replacement for textbooks – it is another tool in the pencil case but children must learn how to use it properly to get the best out of it. The Internet can be inaccurate."
The Printed Page Does Have Value
A Norwegian study disagrees with the British survey. Anne Mangen, associate professor at the Center for Reading Research at the University of Stavanger in Norway, believes that the physical appearance of a book offers tranquillity to the reader. "Several experiments in cognitive psychology have shown how a change of physical surroundings has a potentially negative affect on memory. Technology provides for a number of dynamic, mobile and ephemeral forms of learning, but little is known about how such mobility and transience influence the effect of teaching." Mangen also questions how a computer screen compares to the printed page when comprehension is at stake.
Technology is a tremendous tool. There is no question that students need to learn the latest technology. However, the true benefits of technology and how it impacts learning is still unknown.
Sources
Wardrop, Murray. "Textbooks becoming obsolete due to rise of computers in the classroom, claim teachers," The Telegraph (UK), Nov. 12, 2010.
Pytel, Barbara."Bound Books Are Better," Dec. 25, 2008, Suite101.com.
Barbara Pytel - Email me Experience Although I was never particularly fond of going to school as an ELL student, I ironically became a teacher, ...
