Modern technology has penetrated every aspect of our lives and made great impacts on our daily activities, especially in the area of education. The continuous infusion of technology in education has become an unchangeable tendency. Given the increased use of technology in education, much research has been done on the value of technology in education.However, none of the studies have answered all of the questions that are essential to determining whether continuous infusion of new technologies in education can improve the quality of education. Since a clear answer to this question is vital to help educational organizations to make decisions on how much technology should be used in education and in what ways technology use is appropriate (Valdez 5), it is important to explore a possible answer to this question.
Currently, there are many experts with discordant views on the subject of the use of technology in education. After analyzing these views it becomes clear that, even though technology has constantly improved our way of learning, educators need to be aware of the negative impacts of advanced technologies and know how to improve the effectiveness of technology in education. The benefits of technology in education are familiar to most people, and many articles are full of praise for it.Needless to say, some of the most obvious positive effects need to be emphasized, which include the following: internet technology grants students instant access to an endless array of knowledge; it enables greater independent learning with the help of internet resources and communication technologies; it allows for different learning styles and makes students with special learning needs become more motivated to learn (Valdez 12); it enables sharing of instructional resources by teachers in different regions so it helps in closing the gap of student achievement between regions (Hasan, Delialioglu, Dennis A, & Duffy 301); it also makes distance-learning possible which disperses education to rural areas and under-developed countries.Therefore, investment of some funds in educational technology should be continued, but determining the level of investment calls for further examination of the effects of technology in education.
Many educational experts have agreed that, though technology has brought many positive impacts on education, it has also brought some unwanted negative effects, which educators should be made aware of. It is obvious that technology reduces face-to-face interactions between students and teachers in the classroom, which leads to less opportunities for teachers to teach hands-on skills, core values and morals because this type of education requires interpersonal interactions between students and teachers.Moreover, lively and interesting classes taught by teachers can not only attract students’ attention, but can also motivate students in learning more knowledge which cannot be gained from technology alone. Though technology can instantly bring a variety of information to the classroom, it cannot replace teachers’ knowledge, skills, personal touch and inspiration to students.
Technology cannot replace traditional instruction; it actually distracts teachers due to the need to spend time preparing and getting the technologies to work during class time. As shown by the authors Kyei-Blankson, Keengwe and Blankson in the article “Faculty Use and Integration of Technology in Higher Education,” teachers are often not proficient in the technology they are using in the classroom (210).Struggling with technology sometimes takes longer than it would take for a teacher to explain the concepts to students without the technology (210). It not only wastes class time, but also adds a distraction which keeps students from learning (210).
Teachers’ lack of clear understanding of the role of technology in education also impairs the effectiveness of technology in education (Schacter 10). The reason is that lack of solid instructional design can cause negative effects in teaching, but if teachers understood how to integrate technology in learning and conquer the limitations of technology, the advantages of technology would outweigh the drawbacks.One of the drawbacks mentioned in the article “Technology: A Catalyst for Teaching and Learning in the Classroom,” is that technology is very expensive, requires ongoing support and constant upgrades, and is not as cost effective as other investments in education (Valdez 21). Some critics think technology is a waste of scarce resources in education (Valdez 22), because overspending in technology can leave inadequate funds for other pressing needs in education. The funds invested in new technologies can instead be invested in other ways such as arts, science laboratories and shops that allow for more hands-on learning (Valdez 21).
Well balanced funding for all essential elements in education is an important strategy to follow in the reality of scarce resources in education.As stated by the author Sue Ferguson in the article “How Computers Make Our Kids Stupid,” computers and the internet distract students from real learning, which is evident by the poor academic achievement associated with excessive and improper use of computers and internet (Ferguson 2). This view is supported by a massive study conducted by University of Munich economists Thomas Fuchs and Ludger Woessmann in November, 2004, with a subject pool of 174,000 15 year-olds in reading, 97,000 each in math and science from 31 countries, in which the results confirm that teens’ access to computers at home and school has a negative effect on their test scores (Ferguson 2). This fact is strong indication that students’ indulgence in computers and the internet seriously affects their academic performance.Improper use of technology can contribute to students’ behavior problems. Communicating via computers undermines interpersonal skills and encourages superficial thinking (Ferguson 2-3).
Many students rely on new communication technologies such as texting, emails, Twitter and Facebook, etc. exclusively. They have less time to socialize with peers in person and also have difficulty when communicating with people face-to-face. There is another major concern that the exposure to the adult and violent content on the internet makes it more difficult for students to develop character traits which are essential for them to become moral citizens (Valdez 22).Too many children become addicted to the internet because they do not have strong self-control and restraint. It’s also widely believed that students who play violent games are more likely to be aggressive because it is hard for some of them to know right from wrong during their game time.
These problems all negatively affect students’ behavior. The life-long impacts of technology include impairment of intellectual and social development in young children (Ferguson 2). Some educators are concerned that technology exposes young children to information beyond their understanding (Ferguson 3), and makes them learn knowledge in a virtual world instead of the real world (Valdez 21, Yelland 203).In fact, young children learn better through personal experiences using their five senses, which cannot be accomplished through technology alone.
These experiences in the real world make young children understand concepts on their own terms and help them develop their own interests (Ferguson 3). Moreover, what young children read and see online take away their chance of using their imagination (Ferguson 3). Because there is so much information young children can get through the internet, it does not leave much room for them to use their imagination. Internet use promotes superficial thinking because information is often given at a level of detail where there is no need for one’s own critical thinking and judgment.It also makes academic dishonesty a problem, especially in college (Johnson, Patton, Bimber & Almeroth 281) and in online education (Nixon 85).
The authors in the article “Technology and Plagiarism in the University: Brief Report of a Trial in Detecting Cheating”, and the author Mary Nixon in the article “Cheating in Cyberspace: Maintaining Quality in Online Education” all agree that internet technology has been exploited by some college students to cheat on papers and assignments (Johnson, Patton, Bimber & Almeroth 282, Nixon 86). They cheat by either copying work from the internet without proper citation or from each other’s work, even by purchasing papers from unethical businesses which sell them for money (Johnson, Patton, Bimber & Almeroth 282).Since plagiarism greatly compromises the integrity of higher education and online education (Nixon 86), educators must be aware of the seriousness of the matter and take appropriate actions to prevent it. It is imperative for all educators to know how to improve the effectiveness of technology in education and learning as part of their professional training. Based on the analysis of the negative effects of the use of technology in education, several possible solutions are worth consideration: teachers need to use technology in more creative and effective ways to engage students in active learning, and teachers need to demonstrate how to use technology to learn (Papanastasiou, Zembylas, & Vrasidas, 9).Teachers should be encouraged to use traditional teaching methods along with new technologies to provide students with enough interpersonal interactions in order to give students the most comprehensive education possible including knowledge, hands-on skills, core values and morals.
To be able to provide comprehensive education, teachers need to receive continuous training on how to properly operate new technological equipment and apply technology in the classroom effectively, so they can become technologically competent and teach students well with the available tools (Huang 90). If teachers know how to use new technologies effectively in the classroom, it will help avoid wasted class time and distractions by misusing technology. Furthermore, teachers need to acknowledge that technology is only a tool facilitating education (Debatepedia).They need to clearly understand the role of technology in education and make sure that the design of technology integration in the classroom is based on solid instructional design (Papanastasiou, Zembylas, & Vrasidas 10). Well-designed instruction integrated with technology will help teachers deliver more effective learning results to students. However, training teachers will cost a large amount of money in addition to the technology itself, which adds more drawbacks to the cost issue of technology.
Since technology is expensive, other cost effective investments, as suggested in the article “Technology: A Catalyst for Teaching and Learning in the Classroom”, including arts, science laboratories and shops, should be used to complement technology in education.Also when it's time to decide whether to invest in new technologies, the other basic elements of quality of education, such as a safe and healthy learning environment, well-designed curriculum and teachers' professional development, should be given the same considerations. All of these elements need to be addressed together in order to assure the quality of education. Without these fundamental elements, it may be easier for educators to abuse computers and the internet and to substitute them for real teaching.
Both educators and parents need to be aware that excessive and improper use of computers and internet at school and at home can cause distractions for students.Students should be given clear guidelines and expectations on when to use computers and internet, what content is allowed, and how much time they can spend on computers and internet at school and at home. Teachers and parents should set limits for students because only appropriately used technology improves students’ achievement. If educators, parents and students all understand this drawback of technology and agree to work together to minimize the distractions for students from the misuse of computers and internet, students will greatly benefit from technology. As the abuse of communication technology produces more social problems, students need to be encouraged to use other forms of communication instead of relying on technology.
They should be encouraged to participate in more face to face and deep conversations and have more social activities to develop their real social skills. After all, in person communication and social skills are vital to help students achieve real world success in the future. Use of technology in early childhood education should be limited in order to protect young children’s proper intellectual and social development. The traditional way of teaching young children using the five senses to learn should be the primary teaching method in early childhood education.
Teachers and parents should be discouraged from using technology as an entertainment tool. Instead, they should use it as a learning tool.Students also need to be taught to be critical when reading online sources since there is a lot of unreliable information available on the internet. Age appropriate education material is a must for this age group, so teachers and parents should carefully select information on the internet or electronic devices before giving it to young children.
In order to build an active internet environment and a healthy foundation for young children’s growth, parents should be provided education in internet safety so they can use software to block certain key words from internet searches, and monitor students’ internet activities closely to avoid students’ exposure of inappropriate internet content.Strict limits on students’ screen time will help students avoid addiction to internet and video games. Finally, strategies must be developed and new advanced technologies must be utilized by teachers to deter and detect students’ plagiarism, which is made possible by web technology. One of the most common tools is plagiarism detection software, and many universities, including Missouri University of Science and Technology, have begun to use it. There is also an interactive website being developed as a future plagiarism detection tool, which uses biometric measurements such as face and fingerprint verification to assure that the student who is taking a test online is actually the person participating in the class.
Besides using technology, some other solutions for deterring cheating in online education have been suggested by the author Mary Nixon of the article “Cheating in Cyberspace: Maintaining Quality in Online Education,” including the following: research topics selected by teachers, supervised testing, workbooks to document work progress, providing guidance and feedback regarding plagiarism to students (Nixon 95-96). Plagiarism is a serious offense but is easy to recognize by following the above solutions. There are many benefits brought by advanced technology in education, but the negative effects need to be addressed and brought to the attention of educators.The awareness of the negative effects will give educators more motivation and ideas to improve the effectiveness of the use of technology in education. As explored in this essay, although there are some ideas to improve the way teachers use technology in the classroom, more research needs to be done to give more guidance for teachers on how to use technology more effectively.
New technologies need to be developed to be more user-friendly and help teachers to integrate technology in their instructional design seamlessly. Effectively used technology in education will be one of the most important driving forces to catapult education to a higher level in the future.
