Technology has given us the power to change and control how people are able to learn. The increase of production in technology (such as computers and tablets), has allowed universal access for the public, instead of an elite few. Due to this, technology has easily been introduced to children through their families; this has changed our children’s lives in the ways that they interact, learn, and play. In the past, we would see kids fuel their imagination through their own form of play, pretending that sticks were swords as they fought imaginary dragons. Now we may see kids creating something on a tablet to show their friends, such as a cool video or art project they may not have been able to create otherwise. Technology has not weakened imagination,
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I believe that technology in elementary school level (ages five to eleven) classrooms has been incredibly beneficial from opening new opportunities to learning, keeping students engaged, and enhancing the curriculum.
One important piece of technology that is debated whether it has benefits to learning is video games. This includes determining if they cause harm to children’s development, or may increase skills such as literacy. In ‘Do Video Games Significantly Enhance Literacy?’ James Paul Gee offers his opinion on the debate; he believes that they could be used as a tool to enhance children’s literacy. Gee is a researcher in linguistics, and has lots of experience in the studies of literacy. Howard Gardner on the other hand, believes that literacy is a complicated topic and stating that video games increase literacy does not delve into the intricacies of the topic. In James Paul Gee’s Pro argument he states, “The biggest barrier to schools success is the child’s ability to deal with complex ‘academic’ language, …show more content…
As such they are afraid to introduce technology into elementary school age children, that their skills may decrease due to ‘computers doing it for them’ and that our future will be hopeless if we lose electricity. Generally, it’s the older generation who don’t see a need for technology in schools, as they ignore disabled students and the opportunities it may provide for students. However, the more recent generation has been more positive toward the increase of technology. I created a survey on Google Documents and distributed it on various forums that I’m on for video games, obviously it’s primarily young gamers on these forums, and so the survey is slightly biased. Of the thirty-seven people who responded to the survey, all of them agreed that it’s important for technology to be integrated into elementary schools. Additionally, many of them stated that it’s important to teach students basic foundations without technology, particularly the use of calculators. Nevertheless, one response did state that technology should be integrated “no earlier than grade five, as it is useless for children to have access to this technology,” (Bennett 1). Moreover, all thirty-seven participants agreed that computer literacy skills are necessary in today’s society. The general public can agree that with how fast technology is expanding, these skills are
I believe that technology in elementary school level (ages five to eleven) classrooms has been incredibly beneficial from opening new opportunities to learning, keeping students engaged, and enhancing the curriculum.
One important piece of technology that is debated whether it has benefits to learning is video games. This includes determining if they cause harm to children’s development, or may increase skills such as literacy. In ‘Do Video Games Significantly Enhance Literacy?’ James Paul Gee offers his opinion on the debate; he believes that they could be used as a tool to enhance children’s literacy. Gee is a researcher in linguistics, and has lots of experience in the studies of literacy. Howard Gardner on the other hand, believes that literacy is a complicated topic and stating that video games increase literacy does not delve into the intricacies of the topic. In James Paul Gee’s Pro argument he states, “The biggest barrier to schools success is the child’s ability to deal with complex ‘academic’ language, …show more content…
As such they are afraid to introduce technology into elementary school age children, that their skills may decrease due to ‘computers doing it for them’ and that our future will be hopeless if we lose electricity. Generally, it’s the older generation who don’t see a need for technology in schools, as they ignore disabled students and the opportunities it may provide for students. However, the more recent generation has been more positive toward the increase of technology. I created a survey on Google Documents and distributed it on various forums that I’m on for video games, obviously it’s primarily young gamers on these forums, and so the survey is slightly biased. Of the thirty-seven people who responded to the survey, all of them agreed that it’s important for technology to be integrated into elementary schools. Additionally, many of them stated that it’s important to teach students basic foundations without technology, particularly the use of calculators. Nevertheless, one response did state that technology should be integrated “no earlier than grade five, as it is useless for children to have access to this technology,” (Bennett 1). Moreover, all thirty-seven participants agreed that computer literacy skills are necessary in today’s society. The general public can agree that with how fast technology is expanding, these skills are