Technology is just a tool
Bill Gates
Technology is very much an integrated part of the norm that depicts our everyday life. Our children are increasingly becoming savvy digital natives and although I would like to think teachers may never truly be able to be replaced by robots, the use of technology is an integral component of our teaching and learning toolkits. We mustn’t forget that in our greatest hour of need, during the lockdowns and burst bubbles, technology became a teacher’s unsung hero. Having survived such turbulent times, it is unavoidable not to notice how our children have become both fiercely familiar and skilled within their use of technology in their learning. From my experience, since returning from lockdown, my children’s computing skillset has made phenomenal progress. Despite being an experience that once gave me grey hairs, I can safely say, that now I trust that getting the laptop trolley out would be a seamless experience. My children would not only be able to independently log on but also singlehandedly navigate the realms of Microsoft and the internet.
It would be tempting, from a presentation, pace, and performance perspective to ditch our old school methods of books, pens, and paper when directing children to present their research on a new or existing project. I’ll begin with pace, as a profession that is always short on time it possibly the one that stands out the most. Locating and resourcing high-quality texts for children as part of small-scale research projects is a huge challenge. As is the way in which children can navigate them independently. The use of the internet seems like an acceptable solution. With regards to presentation, computers enable children to present their work ‘accurately’, littered with brightly coloured photos and borders- it can be every display’s dream! However, although these could be viewed as 1-0 to the use of computers as part of research projects, it is the perception of ‘performance’ that concerns me the most…
Time is of the essence in every classroom and it is no doubt that using a computer can make our children ‘appear’ more efficient. You could argue that this type of technology usage transforms our children into masters of multi-tasking (how wrong we are!) When researching and presenting new knowledge computers can (and will) enable children to flit between research resources and their methods of presentation incredibly quickly. There are able to copy and paste ‘their new knowledge’ EXACTLY where they want it.
This has possibly blurred the lines of what it means to be effective and efficient.
Our ultimately quick, tidy, and rewarding way to get children to show us what they have learned can come at the ultimate price…the switching penalty.
When we begin to flit between different websites and programs we shift ourselves in and amongst different schemas. The information may be successfully copied and pasted but this leads us to the realms of interrupted thinking. When we return back to our original schema we have to simply restart it. Research has indicated that it can sometimes take upwards of 10 to 15 minutes before you get completely back in your original cognitive schema to the point you are working as well as if you had been left uninterrupted. It would also be foolish to forget about cognitive overload theory whilst were here and, most importantly extraneous. There are so many distractions awaiting our children, when they use technology. Lots of unnecessary information that can put a curveball in their learning journey…
Unfortunately brains, both big and small, simply can’t process information like this. Although in the end, our children may be able to bestow us with beautifully laid out PowerPoint presentations full of information I would really wonder how much learning has taken place. It is not a radical idea that if we don’t process the information, we just don’t learn.
There are consequences to be considered here, particularly for our children’s learning. Firstly it will take longer to study the project properly, retain information and it ultimately inhibits our children from getting to that all-important point of mastery…
In my humble opinion, we could risk becoming perhaps naively comfortable with the potential of a computer. As someone who has previously avidly avoided ebooks at all cost, and even been known to fill my hand luggage for a skiing holiday with heavy textbooks, it comes as no surprise that I am troubled by the idea that we are on a one-way ticket to a paperless world. I try to ask myself whether what I am doing is a triumph for speed rather than sound understanding in a child’s learning. It is hard to not look for quick-fix time-saving solutions, however, I have begun to really question the value.
I ask myself this: am I going to be a teacher who is driven by technology or a teacher who drives the use of technology within my classrooms?