Technology is constantly evolving to benefit the people of the earth and help them communicate, learn and accomplish more tasks easier and more efficiently. Or is it? Many argue that in many cases technology distracts and worsens some behavior. This is very prevalent in many classrooms across the world, where technology is banned. Crazy, right? Not to the teachers who make these decisions, for they claim that this will help the students be more attentive and ultimately learn at a more accelerated rate. The other side of the argument is that new media is so important today, and that students need to use technology in classrooms in order to learn so they can excell. This all goes back to the usual discussion of technology and children of the modern age. Why is technology needed and used so much instead of living in the present. All very interesting points that polarize people daily.
Classrooms can be the most fun and vibrant places ever, or one of the most dreary places. This all depends on the people who fill this classroom. It seems as if teachers, before the major portable technology boom over the past 15 years, were deemed as a cool teacher by the students on how lenient they were towards them. How hard or easy they graded their work and how much they let the students talk in class. But today, the harshness of teachers is largely based on whether they let the students have things such as cell phones and technology in class. Many teachers allow this because they believe it helps the students to learn, and at the same time earns approval from the students. Some teachers and students also overestimate the ability to multitask also. So many people claim to have that skill, but it is much harder than people realize. More people do not have it than people who actually do possess this skill. It is hard to focus on listening to a teacher while watching or reading something on a bright screen. Even people who are not using technology in a classroom can get distracted by another classmate using a device. This is unfair to many students who are trying to focus. A main reason why there shouldn’t be technology in classrooms. Others argue that the technology is not needed to learn in the classroom, even if new media is the subject being taught. It is not impossible to teach new media without technology. A good teacher can explain the process and psychology of how new media works without having the technology in class. A teacher could even give the students homework assignments that need technology so they can still use it for a grade, but don’t have the option to be distracted by it in the classroom. It is the most important thing about a classroom isn’t powerpoints, not interactive games or online discussions, but how well the teacher can convey a message to their students. A great teacher can teach just with words through lectures, and maybe even writing on a board. They do not need to have fancy equipment and allow students to bring in technology, risking them being non-involved in the class. When students are allowed to have their phones in class, it seems as if everybody is so disconnected. Nobody talks to each other or participates, they just stay in their online universe on a screen. It is important for teachers to be able to teach through their own words and actions, and to not rely too heavily on technology, even when teaching such a closely related thing as new media.
It can be difficult to be present when there is so much on a laptop or on a phone. It is almost as if the place where a person is located is just a fraction of the world, but through the internet, the whole world is in the palm of your hand. There is so much constantly going on through the internet. It moves so quickly and many feel that if they are not looking at it constantly that they will miss out on something important. It can be an anxiety ridden struggle to be off the phone for even a short amount of time after many have become so accustomed to being able to use it whenever they want. People want to feel as if they are a part of something, and social media is something that somebody can be a part of with no effort. There is no try out, it doesn’t cost money, there is no experience needed. It just a simple way to interact with others and is somewhat reminiscent of a club or a team that somebody can be part of whenever they unlock their phone screen. It can sometimes be easier for someone to be on the internet rather than in the present moment because of this. It takes no effort or skill to interact with others. This is the reason why it can be so hard to stay off the phone during class, or to be on a laptop and be focused on only the task that is supposed to be what is engaging a student. People have grown to be dependent on technology, and it has cursed us into being over reliant. If everybody could re-train themselves to be not so reliant on technology, the world may be better off.
Said while writing on a laptop.
