While reading chapter one in the textbook "Personal Learning Networks" by Will Richardson and Rob Mancabelli, several thoughts started to bounce about in this head of mine. I started to wonder what it would be like to have every classroom wired into the wonderful world of technology. What effect would it really have on the children in our classes? Are all of the benefits worth the downsides?
There is actually a section in the first chapter that discusses the "Network Effects." It lists off seven benefits to setting up our schools in this manner:
1. Students are better prepared for life and work in the 21st century.
2. Classrooms are more engaging.
3. Students are responsible for their own learning.
4. Instruction is more individualized.
5. Adults become better at their jobs and build problem-solving capacity.
6. Students are safer.
7. Schools save time and money.
Although I agree with several of the points mentioned, I also have some concerns. For one, classrooms may be more engaging with more technology involved, but they will also be full of a lot more distractions as well. How can one teacher give a lesson and make sure that their entire class is paying attention, or is actually doing what they are supposed to be doing when they have the world at their fingertips? Even while sitting here writing this blog I have Facebook beeping at me, Email notifications, and the temptation of looking at something a lot more fun than a semi-blank composition screen. It is hard to stay focused.
If taught properly on how to do so, I think a child could use a computer to learn things a teacher or a handful of books couldn't teach them half as fast. But on the other hand anytime my 15 year old brother asks to use my computer the only thing he chooses to look at is something like Youtube, and let me tell you, the videos he watches on there are not at all the educational sort. I think kids will be kids, and the internet is a toy to a lot of them.
Students are safer. Debatable. Yes you can tell a kid it is unsafe to give out their personal information, but until they are old enough to actually understand the importance of just why it can be so unsafe, it is a little scary. I remember how upset my mother was when my 13 year old sister put her cellphone number up on her Facebook page. My sister had no idea what the big deal was, or why on earth my mom demanded that she take it off immediately. The internet brings a whole new world of dangers to a kid.
Schools save money. The book discusses how they will save money in terms of professional development for the teachers; it might even save some of the costs of paper too, but what about how much a computer costs to purchase? Or a smartboard? What about the costs to actually run them? To maintain them? 20 kids in a classroom, each with a device? That is a lot of money. Some schools at this point are cutting art programs because they cannot afford the supplies. Some schools are letting teachers go because they cannot afford to pay them. If a school cannot afford to pay teachers to actually teach in their schools, how on earth can they afford to create the type of school that the authors in this book suggest? It just seems impractical to me.
Although I think that in a perfect world students would have this sort of access to technology; as of right now however, I just don't see it actually working. Technology brings many advantages to this world, and it has potential to change the way children are educated, but it has a very long way to go though in my opinion.
