About the Author
Author: Santosh Bhaskar KWebsite: http://www.twitter.com/SantoshBhaskarK
Devotee of Dr. Abdul
Kalam. Following his path of Creating Creative Education in India. Contributing
my works in "India Vision 2020". Former EdTech Blogger/Researcher at
ETR India
Mr. Santosh Bhaskar begins his article with the following: "Elementary Education should focus on learning through playing and exploration in order to improve a child's cognitive, emotional, physical, sensory, reflective, communication and social developments. Traditional classroom methods may not always provide children with a fun learning environment. But nowadays, technology helps educators engage students with many fun learning approaches." I agree with Mr. Bhaskar's view wholeheartedly. When I think of "traditional classroom methods", I visualize a lot of teacher lecture, a lot of teacher doing, a lot of kids watching, and a lot of worksheets and paper/pencil type work - not necessarily engaging or fun. I have been teaching for six years now and have seen first hand how rapidly technology has changed within that short time frame. I recognize the impact that technology has had on teaching practices such as having an online version of our new reading curriculum, having access to projectors and smartboards, having laptops, netbooks, i-pads, kindles and most recently chrome books, and how this technology has indeed, increased student engagement.
Mr. Bhaskar states that "Educators find the use of technological devices in education, a great way to engage students because it attracts them. Mobile devices and computers provide students with a fun learning environment. As we know, different students have different learning styles, technology helps them learn in the way they're comfortable with." As I reflect on this part of the article, I do agree that the use of technology engages students. I believe that the addition of technology can bring a lesson, concept, or topic to life, thus creating excitement and sparking student engagement. Technology can also aid the teacher and students by allowing for more opportunities for differentiation, interventions and enrichment. I do still believe however, that students need and should have a balance between technology/virtual hands-on learning and truly physical hands-on learning . I hope it never comes to the point where the personal human interaction of teaching by teachers and/or parents be completely replaced with technology.
The article also mentions that "There are some people who oppose technology in the classroom as it reduces physical activity." Again, I think there needs to be a good balance of technology based learning as well as other types of learning happening in classrooms. In my opinion, people fear that our children are on technology/electronics overload, overly stimulated, expect instant gratification, and rely on technology to get their answers instead of building concrete knowledge and understanding. That is why I believe there needs to be a balance. Technology should be used and it must be taught - like it or not, it is the current trend and the way of the world in present and future times. In conclusion, educational technology does positively impact student engagement. Used correctly and in moderation, teachers, students, and parents should continue to embrace technology as an excellent learning and teaching tool.
No comments:
Post a Comment