Ch.2--Rethinking Education

The Technology Enthusiasts’ Argument

I was expecting to agree whole-heartedly with this chapter as one my life goals is to keep up with the times and technology. However, I found myself taking offense to some of the things suggested by technology enthusiasts such as follows:

• Being “…stuck with 19th century technology, such as books, blackboards, paper, and pencils” (p. 9).

o I found it ridiculous that they made it seem that books, paper, and pencils were outdated materials that we are stuck with. Even though I hear marvelous words about Kindles and electronic “books”, and I wouldn’t mind owning one, but I feel that nothing can permanently replace a book. I can see a glitch happening and never being able to recover my electronic books, but by having a copy of a book, I can mark the pages and fold the pages over, port it around without having to worry about my battery or whether my Kindle is going to be killed in my bag. And I don’t care what kind of technology comes out, the paper and pencil will always be relevant.

• “No one will be able to solve complex problems or think effectively…without using digital technologies” (p. 11).

o This was insulting. People created our current technology and it can be destroyed. It’s a little disheartening to hear that we’re screwed if something should go wrong in the wonderful world of technology. Yes, I agree it is an immense aid in problem solving and that the data available is beyond what one human without technology would be capable of compiling, but I don’t think that we couldn’t think effectively without using technology, perhaps not efficiently, but effectively yes.

• “…children using word processors write better, because they can read their typed words, whereas they cannot easily read their own handwriting” (p. 19).

o Perhaps the case here is that the students need practice with their handwriting so they can read it. Yes, it’s a lot nicer to read type written text, but in the event a computer isn’t available, I would like to be able to read my students handwriting and have them be able to read their own...I’m not knocking the importance of being able to type and communicate effectively, but I don’t believe anyone should have an excuse for illegible handwriting.

Fortunately, these were the only few things that struck me in a bad way. The authors Collins and Halverson made many points of what technology enthusiasts believe, argue, and assume, but I will summarize and comment on the few I thought were most impressionable and that I would like to use in my future classroom.

• “Enthusiasts argue that integrating just-in-time strategies into school curricula will loosen the rigidity of the traditional curriculum and create a legitimate space for learning technologies in the classroom (p. 15)”.
o

• “Enthusiasts believe that customization offers great possibilities to enhance people’s learning” (p. 17).

o People learn best when they want to learn the content. By adapting and customizing curriculum to the student’s individual interest, you’re opening a portal to better understanding and comprehension.

• “Enthusiasts point to how technologies create access to external audiences that can provide legitimate contexts for students to learn from how others perceive their work” (p. 26).

o This goes beyond peer editing in class where students may not give a damn about what their peers are writing/working on. By subjecting their work to external audiences, students can get valuable insight and criticism to better their work.

• “Enthusiasts favor a constructive approach to learning, where students, rather than teachers, do most of the work” (p. 28).

o Hey, as a future teacher, I’m game for this! Teaching is a time-consuming effort, but it’s very rewarding. I truly believe when you teach something you solidify it in your own mind, so by allowing the students to take on responsibility not only do you allow them to fully grasp the content, but you allow them to partake in the reward of sharing their knowledge. Plus, the more participation students have in the classroom the less boring class is and the more ownership they have.