Technology is ubiquitous, touching almost every part
of our lives, our communities and our homes. Yet many schools lag far behind
when it comes to integrating technology into classroom learning (MYCEETA, 2008).
Many are merely exploring the potential technology offers for teaching and
learning. Properly used, technology can assist students acquire the skills they
need to thrive in the complex, highly technological knowledge-based economy we
now find ourselves.
Integrating technology into classroom instruction is
more than training students in basic computer skills and software programs in a
separate computer class. It also means more than allowing a free for all, allowing
students to play with everything. Essentially effective technology integration
happens across the curriculum in areas that research shows deepen and enhance
the learning process. It must support four key components of learning: active
engagement, participation in groups, frequent interaction and feedback and
connection to real-world experts (Roshelle, 2000). Effective technology
integration is achieved when the use of technology is routine and transparent
and when technology supports curricular goals.
Barry
McGaw, Chair of the Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting
Authority (ACARA) states that an Information and Communications Technology
("ICT") strategy for Australian schools was being developed alongside
everything else in the new curriculum. He commented that while technology would
not be treated as a separate subject in the early years and its integration was
mandated (Rubin, 2013).
Research has suggested that technology-enabled project
learning have the greatest benefits as these allow students to be
intellectually challenged while providing them with a realistic snapshot of
what real world problems looks like. Through projects, students acquire and
refine their analysis and problem-solving skills as they work individually and
in teams to find, process, and synthesize information they've found online
(Buck Institute, 2013). The myriads of resources held within the online world
also provide each classroom with more interesting, diverse and current learning
materials. The Internet connects students to experts in the real world and
provides numerous opportunities for expressing understanding through images,
sounds, texts, apps and manipulative.
New technology tools for visualizing and modelling,
offer students ways to experiment and observe phenomenon and to view results in
graphic ways that aid in understanding. As an added benefit, with technology
tools and a project-learning approach, students are more likely to stay engaged
and on task, reducing behavioral problems in the classroom (Becta, 2008).
Technology also changes the way teachers teach,
offering educators effective ways to reach different types of learners and
assess student understanding through multiple means. It also enhances the
relationship between teacher and student. When technology is effectively
integrated into subject areas, teachers grow into roles of adviser, content
expert and coach. Technology assists teaching and learning to become more
meaningful and enjoyable.
In the past technology in education was a debatable
topic amongst the society. There was a myriad of views on modernising education
and making it technology aided. There were a huge number of positives and
negatives to education technology. Gradually as schools embraced technology,
the importance of technology in education was realised. Its positives
outnumbered the negatives and now, with technology, education has taken a whole
new meaning that it leaves us with no doubt that our educational system has
been transformed owing to the ever-advancing technology. Technology and
education are a great combination if used together with a right reason and
vision.
With technology, educators, students and parents have
a variety of learning tools at their fingertips. Here are some of the ways in which technology improves education over
time:
·
Students
and teachers have access to an expanse of material: There are plenty of resourceful, credible
websites available on the Internet that both teachers and students can utilise.
·
Teachers
can collaborate to share their ideas and resources online: They can communicate with others across the world in
an instant, meet the shortcomings of their work, refine it and provide their
students with the best. This approach definitely enhances the practice of
teaching.
·
Students
can develop valuable research skills at a young age: Technology gives students immediate access to an
abundance of quality information that leads to learning at much quicker rates
than before.
·
Online
learning is now an equally credible option: Face-to-face interaction is huge, especially in the younger years, but
some students work better when they can go at their own pace using a blended
learning philosophy.
There are in numerous instances to date where we can observe the improvement in
education, once it embraced technology.
·
Effectiveness
in Mathematics for K-12:
Technology has proved to be effective for making students efficiently adept
with Maths. Interacting with the physical environment by manipulating objects
such as tiles, colored squares, or circles improves understanding of math
concepts by allowing learners to experience relationships between objects and
events, which helps to build abstract conceptual understandings (Martin and
Schwartz, 2005). Using virtual manipulatives improves understanding of math
concepts and attitudes toward maths, and blending physical and virtual
manipulatives also has been shown to improve maths learning (Li and Ma, 2010). Other
research suggests computer-managed learning; our example is Mathletics produce
a positive effect on Mathematics achievement (Cheung & Slavin, 2011).
·
Effectiveness in Science K-12
According to research
(Gerard, Varma, Corliss, and Linn, 2011), technology can improve
inquiry-science by allowing students to:
·
Conduct
virtual experiments using dynamic simulations of difficult-to-see scientific
phenomena.
·
Generate
and test models of complex data.
·
Collect
and analyse data to test predictions.
·
Gather
feedback from different sources to refine work.
·
The Blended
or Flipped Classroom: It is a
practice in which, students watch tutorial videos as homework and discussion is
carried on them in the class-time by the teachers. It has resulted in a
remarkably better student performance, with noticeable grade boost-up. Students
can now learn at their own pace and save class-time for interaction (Ferenstine,
2013). According to Cheung and Slavin’s (2011) meta-analyses,
blending technology with face-to-face teacher time generally produces better
outcomes than face-to-face or online learning alone.
·
Educational
Technology improves student-learning outcomes: Evidence suggests that educational technologies
can improve student achievement, so long as such tools are integrated
thoughtfully into teaching and learning. When digital capabilities like, online
environments are incorporated meaningfully into instruction, students have new
opportunities to learn and achieve (MYCEETA, 2008).
·
Long-term
research indicative of the positives of technology on learning: Researches have been performed to address to the
question, does the use of computer technology affect student achievement in
traditional classrooms as compared to classrooms that do not use technology? An
extensive literature search and a systematic review process were employed and
insights about the state of the field, implications for technology use, and
prospects for future were discussed (Tamin, et. all 2011).
·
The
effect of technology on education depends on the design of instruction: The design of the instruction accounts for more
variance in how and why people learn than the technology used to deliver the
instruction. Educators and educational researchers should be encouraged to
focus on determining how to better integrate the use of a given technology to
facilitate learning, rather than asking if it works or if one is more effective
than another (Hirumi,
2012).
Conclusion
The review of literature also finds that successful
technology integration generally involves some key principles:
·
Students playing an active role in their learning and
receiving frequent personalized feedback.
·
Students’ critically analysing and actively creating
media messages.
·
Teachers connecting classroom activities to the world
outside the classroom.
·
Teachers actively monitoring students’ work and
engagement.
·
Teachers explicitly exposing students to learning
experiences in the areas of cyber safety and appropriate use of technology.
Over the past years, a numbers of studies have shown
benefits from the use of technology in education. The role of
technology in education is vital (Lokesh, 2013) and the
question is no longer if technology enhances learning, but rather how do we
improve our use of technology to enhance learning?
References
Becta
(2008) Technology and school improvement:
reducing social inequity with technology? Institute for Policy Studies in Education (IPSE) London
Metropolitan University
Buck
Institute (2013) Education Technology and
Managing Your Project
Cheung, A., Slavin, R.E. (2011, July). The
Effectiveness of Educational Technology Applications for Enhancing Mathematics
Achievement in K-12 Classrooms: A Meta-Analysis. Baltimore, MD: Johns
Hopkins University, Center for Research and Reform in Education.
Ferenstine,
G. (2013) Flipped Classroom - http://techcrunch.com/2013/09/18/the-flipped-classroom-boosts-grades-5-why-thats-as-big-as-we-can-expect/
Gerard, L.F., Varma, K.,
Corliss, S.B., and Linn, M.C. (2011). Professional Development for Technology-Enhanced
Inquiry Science [Abstract]. Review of Educational Research, 81(3),
408-448. http://rer.sagepub.com/content/81/3/408
Hirumi, A. (2012) Does the Use of
Technology Improve Learning? The Answer Lies in Design. University of
Central Florida STEM White Paper. https://www.mheonline.com/glencoemath/pdf/technology.pdf
Li, Q., and Ma, X.
(2010). A Meta-Analysis of the Effects of Computer Technology on School
Students' Mathematics Learning (PDF). Educational Psychology Review,
22(3), 215-243. http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10648-010-9125-8
Lokesh, G (2013) Technology and It's Role in
21st Century Education. Tech Review http://edtechreview.in/trends-insights/insights/277-role-of-technology-in-21st-century
Martin, T., and Schwartz,
D.L. (2005). Physically Distributed Learning: Adapting and Re-interpreting Physical
Environments in the Development of Fraction Concepts (PDF). Cognitive Science, K. 587-625. http://csjarchive.cogsci.rpi.edu/2005v29/4/s15516709HCOG0000_15/s15516709HCOG0000_15.pdf
Ministerial Council on Education, Employment, Training & Youth
Affairs (2008), Melbourne Declaration on Educational Goals for Young
Australians: www.curriculum.edu.au/verve/_resources/National_Declaration_on_the_Educational_Goals_for_Young_Australians.pdf
Rana M. Tamim, Robert M. Bernard, Eugene
Borokhovski, Philip C. Abrami and Richard F. Schmid (2011) What Forty Years of Research Says
About the Impact
of Technology on Learning: A Second-Order Meta-Analysis and Validation Study.
Review of Educational Research March
2011, Vol. 81, No. 1, pp. 4–28
Roshelle,
J.M. (2000) Changing How and What
Children Learn in School with Computer-Based Technologies - The Future of
Children, Children and Computer Technology Vol. 10 • No. 2 – Fall/Winter
Rubin, C.M (2013) The Global Search for Education: Got Tech? –
Australia. The Huffington Post. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/c-m-rubin/the-global-search-for-edu_b_4183496.html