But when you compare the cost for a subscription to an internet site to the cost of tutors or books, the best choice is obviously the internet. In fact, Google Earth Pro used to be approximately the same cost as a school field trip bus, but now Google Earth is free (IClarified). As mentioned earlier, companies notice the shift from traditional ways of learning toward technological ways and they are doing everything they can to be a part of it. This option is much cheaper and more impactful to students. Traci Blazosky is a first-grade teacher that has been taking advantage of technology. She used Google Earth and Glogster to take her class on a virtual field trip that immediately engaged her students (Bowker 137-139). These students are able to learn first-hand things that they would never have been able to learn before in the classroom. Another example of a lasting impact that technology-based learning can provide is the ability to talk to legitimate experts. Videoconferencing is an easy way to get students to talk to real people in a profession they are interested in, and not only is it becoming more common, but it also gives them more information than a book or even a website would give. For example, students can have a live conversation with a surgeon during an operation, so they can get more information than from words on a page (Bowker 141). Students that can get in touch …show more content…
An anonymous elementary school teacher noticed that her students’ “[m]otivation to use technology is very high” in the class. Some students even trade in their recess time for working with technology (“Effects”). Also, if somebody wants to look something up, he or she can just pull out a phone or go on a computer instead of having to plan a trip to the library. The outstandingly high increase in motivation in students from technology calls for a larger amount of students to excel in what they learn and they tend to work harder. Working harder leads to doing better and understanding more in schooling and in life. The internet is home to many articles that can have just as much information as a library, but it is much easier to find an up-to-date article online than an up-to-date book in the library. With social media being as popular as it is, almost everyone can be informed on almost anything almost instantly. While one person might be reading a new blog post about a recent event, another person has to wait for a book to be written, published, and distributed before he gets the same information. For example, Minecraft: Education Edition was released this month, January 2016 and immediately after its release there was an article that could be used for this essay. Without technology the wait for the same information would be horrendous, not to mention the fact that it could be out-of-date sooner