THE PROS AND CONS OF INCREASED
COMPUTER USAGE IN EDUCATION
MICHAEL WALKER
COMPUTER AS A TEACHER’S AIDE
PROFESSOR DEAN
April 30, 2007
Over the past decade, the amount of technological growth in the educational
world has been enormous. In the early 1990s, the computer was used in “computer”
classes, but in few other classroom settings. Now, the computer has become an integral
part of most classrooms and educational environments. This writing examines the views
of two writers, David Wiley and Robert Sanders. The former, in “Open Source,
Openness, and Higher Education (2006),” sings the praises of this computer revolution
in terms of what it has done for research. On the other hand, the latter, in “The
‘Imponderable Bloom’: Reconsidering the Role of Technology in Education,” warns that,
while the proliferation of computer use has been very beneficial, we must be careful with
how much we use these new technological resources. Both authors make compelling
arguments that contain what I feel to be a large amount of validity.
Wiley applauds the change in the research community, as open-source software
has changed from being the tool for the wealthy and computer-savvy to the tool for the
common man. It is now easy to view the works of a plethora of researchers using
Windows or Mac/OS. No longer do corporations hold the sole keys to open-source
software, but anyone can take advantage of Firefox, Thunderbird, Jabber, Apache, or
other similar web browsers. A program, arXiv now exists, which provides open access
to many great research sources. If one wants his or her work to be seen, he would now
be foolish not to put it on an open source. Over the first 4 to 10 months that an open
source exists, it is twice as likely to be cited in another paper as a source that does not
avail users of free computer access. This number jumps to 2.9 times the non-open
source number during the first 10-16 months following publication. Not only does this
technological advancement make it easier to come across these sources, but the
increased transparency causes greater quality in open-source works. Since it is so
simple for others to read one’s work, it becomes more imperative that one does a
thorough job on it. Nobody wants to be negatively criticized for his or her hard work.
Another benefit Wiley sees to this wave of technological advancement is the
proliferation of interactive online classrooms. Users can now create web-based
programs and use them for instant-messenger, blogs, and sharing pictures. WebCT and
Blackboard are discussion-board websites on which students can post their thoughts
and teachers can post documents. Gradually, these two programs are being replaced
by Sakai and Moodle, more advanced versions of discussion-board sites. Wiley thinks
good uses of these sites are to use photo galleries for sharing and grading essays and
using multimedia presentations for concepts like cell growth. Generally speaking, Wiley
does not see any drawbacks to this massive computer use.
On the other hand, Robert Sanders, in “The ‘Imponderable Bloom’:
Reconsidering the Role of Technology in Education (2006)”, warns educators to use this
modern technology in moderation. He worries that sometimes people use new products
for the sake of using them, not because they actually simplify their lives or solve
problems. Sanders believes that there are appropriate times and places for computers
to be a heavy part of learning, especially when long distance is a factor, but he feels
there is no substitute for face-to-face learning. In a traditional classroom setting,
students can bounce ideas off each other, and unexpected interactions occur that
usually enhance the learning environment. In instant-messenger or video conversations,
it is harder to have such interactions; on discussion boards, blogs, or email, it becomes
next to impossible. Sanders believes that it is easier to get information via the Internet,
which is great for research papers; however, true learning involves making connections
and undergoing a learning “process”. That process is stunted in e-classrooms. There
are two additional problems he sees, involving the basic use of the new technology.
First, students who are not computer-savvy might view the new product as an obstacle
to learning. Second, when the technology breaks down, there might not be a backup
option for a lesson. When teaching without the aid of computers, one does not need to
worry about this potential crisis.
Wiley and Sanders speak of the good and bad of this technological revolution,
but who is correct? Honestly, I believe that they are both on the mark. When it is easier
to share research materials, researchers must be more circumspect in the quality of their
papers. Additionally, since so many more papers are read and are read much more
often, it becomes more likely that the brilliance of one researcher can build off the
brilliance of another. Who knows, maybe this improvement in research media can lead
to a cure for cancer or AIDS? On the other hand, Sanders is correct, in my mind, with
his worries about becoming too reliant in the classroom on computers. When students
learn facts, they are not really learning. When students learn to understand concepts,
apply them to real-world scenarios, and analyze these concepts; this is when true
learning occurs. In this case, students internalize these teachings and carry them with
themselves much longer than if they simply memorize. When students interact with
each other and the teacher, they can bounce ideas off each other and see processes
vital to learning. I remember a lot of material from high school because I can visualize a
classmate being guided to come to the correct answer. In that case, the learning
process still stands out to me to this day. I also agree with Sanders that it can be
daunting to learn new technology. If a student enters a math class scared of math, it is
not prudent to give him something else of which to be afraid.
Two of the Professional Standards for Teachers speak of reaching the diversity
within the student body and providing a positive learning environment. Because
research and PowerPoint presentations create a positive need for technology in the
classroom, computers should be embraced. However, we do not want to create robots,
so teachers need to know when the environment would benefit by abstaining from the
computer. Likewise, some students learn best with computers, while some learn best in
a more standard setting. A great teacher finds ways to reach all students and will thus
vary the uses and levels of uses of technology in his or her classroom.
References:
Sanders, Robert. (2006) “The ‘Imponderable Bloom’: Reconsidering the Role of
Technology in Education”. Innovate. 2:6.
Wiley, David. (2006) “Open Source, Openness, and Higher Education”. Innovate. 3:1.