Technology In Schools (February 23rd, 2015)
A textbook has a front and back cover with a fixed number of words in between. A tablet or laptop with internet access has an infinite number of words. It has been a long, on-going discussion among school boards across the nation whether or not new electronics should be integrated into school systems. Administration and teachers need to consider not only immediate issues like information access, but also long term moral issues that the immediacy of technology compromises. After all, it’s hard to learn patience when today’s children are growing up with Google results in 0.2 seconds.
Empire High School, which opened for the first time in 2005, was specifically designed to be textbook-free (Source A). Nearly every element of society is shifting to an e-platform and, like ducks in a row, we follow. The question is, do we follow blindly or logically? Do we follow just because everyone else is doing it so it makes sense that we do it too? Or do we follow because there are real and supportable reasons to follow the technological trend? For the sake of convenience and relevance, it makes sense to put effort into making the switch. There is no better way to teach someone than by getting on their level (Source B). Also, why wouldn’t a school board leap at any opportunity to provide their students with as much information as possible (Source E)? They should, and they are, Empire High School being one of them.
But, on the other hand, putting information in front of a student within a second of their asking subconsciously tells them that everything they want or ask for, they can have within seconds. This isn’t how life works, so it would be irresponsible of school boards to suggest that it is. Life is about digging for answers and searching for information. Although Google has its benefits, it also enables an affiliation with the concept of immediate gratification (Source C). Teaching students immediate gratification through instantaneous search results leads to laziness and impatience, two characteristics students should do well to avoid. And the school board is teaching them exactly those two habits without even knowing it.
School boards must consider all options before making decisions. That is why school boards exist. Administrators and teachers carry heavy responsibilities and are expected to teach their students moral and intellectual lessons. That is part of their job description. Adding technology to school systems can help and hurt, it just depends on how the technology is implemented and regulated.