Technology and education

The influx of vast technology resources in many of America's classrooms has resulted in all students being successful. All key concepts are all of a sudden being mastered, behavior issues have disappeared, and teachers have easily become masters of these new tools.

Wouldn't it be nice if the previous two sentences were true? Unfortunately, many of our students continue to fall short of being proficient readers, writers, mathematicians, scientists, and historians despite the addition of many classroom technologies.

While it would be great if students' standardized test scores immediately jumped as soon as a computer was installed in the classroom, it's just not that easy. Technology is just like any other teaching tool; it will only have a positive impact on students' achievement if it is used in an appropriate, engaging, and purposeful manner. Without proper training for teachers, a computer, SMART Board, Elmo, or student response system is likely to simply become a dust-collecting decoration or under-utilized pile of plastic and circuits.

Based on everything I've stated, you might think that I am a technology-hater. On the contrary, I think that technology has significantly (and positively) impacted nearly every student in America. At times, I'm frustrated by the disparity of what I believe is possible with the classroom applications of technology and what is actually being utilized, but I am still impressed and amazed on a daily basis of how I see technology used effectively by my peers. As one of many tools teachers have at their disposal, technology can be a motivating, captivating, and engaging medium with which to help students become life-long learners. I constantly struggle to better implement technology into my classroom, and hope to show today's digital natives that this 30+ year old teacher plans on keeping his digital "Green Card" despite the fact that he was born and raised in a time when the Internet was just a sparkle in Al Gore's eyes.