Journal #2
McFarlane, Sarah H. (2008). The laptops are coming! the laptops are coming!. Rethinking School Online, 22 No 4, Retrieved
This article was written by a teacher who has incorporated the use of technology in her classroom. At first she was happy about her students receiving laptops to use. She soon discovered that her excessive time spent on the computer was taking away from the face-to-face communication she should be having with the students and parents. Sarah talks about how she felt like she was more of a computer monitor than a teacher. I think it is creepy that people can monitor other computers so closely. She began to notice the increased distraction of her students the more they used their computers. Sarah also noticed that the students began to have less communication amongst one another. There was a discomfort about how the laptops were introduced to the students. It seems as though everyone was too eager and did not take the time to plan ahead. Some students are not as computer savvy as others and it takes them longer to complete the steps and end up getting lost way behind the other students. Sarah ends her article by saying that technology can be a good thing in the classroom, but it needs to have the proper planning for execution. The DYN is an interesting group, because they encourage personal contact and still explore technology as it advances. The participants are learning to work together on technological projects.
Q: Who really does gain through an excessive use of technology in schools?
A: I think that many people benefit from the technology. Schools benefit even though they spend the money on the products, because they get to tell the community that they are using the technology. Technology use might make the school more appealing to some. Advertisers benefit, because it gives them a higher chance of their ad being seen if students are constantly using the internet. The manufacturers are benefiting financially. It seems the only people who have a negative side to their benefit are the teachers and students, who are spending less time communicating face to face. In the case of the DYN, everyone sounds like they are benefiting.
Q: Will everyone have an experience like this?
A: Not everyone will have the same outcome as Sarah. I thin that as technology emerges into the classroom, teachers need to be willing to learn about the technology they are incorporating. This way they can better control the usage by their students. Maybe they can only allow the use of some technology at specified times if they are abusing the use.
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