My Vision Statement
Technology in the classroom means a successful learning environment. Integrating technology into the classroom allows teachers and students to have an environment with unlimited possibilities. For example a teacher may ask, "let's learn geography by looking on a map or by flying there using Google Earth"? A student may ponder, "what would happen to my ability to create if I had unlimited resources and a good solid hour in Mine craft? The limitless possibilities that technology brings into the classroom help to create a learning environment without restrictions. What impact does technology integration have in the classroom to make it successful? According to the staff of Edutopia technology can provide teachers and students with:
"Access to up-to-date, primary source material, methods of collecting/recording data, ways to collaborate with students, teachers, and experts around the world, opportunities for expressing understanding via multimedia, learning that is relevant and assessment that is authentic, training for publishing and presenting their new knowledge" (Edutopia, 2014) The extremely useful and limitless tools of technology are what makes an integrated technological classroom successful.
Research has found integrated technological classrooms successful. One study found that after students "used laptops for three years had significantly higher achievement that their non-laptop cohorts in nearly all measures" (Roblyer & Doering, 2013) Other studies showed that schools that had students with their own computers had "fewer discipline problems, lower dropout rates, and higher rates of college attendance than schools with a higher ration of students to computers" (Devaney, 2010) These studies show the positive possibilities of integrating technology into the classroom. There are so many valid reasons to use technology in the classroom. In the book Integrating Educational Technology Into Teaching three problems are addressed for helping students and examples for each problem is solved by integrating technology.
Problem 1: How to motivate and engage students? Technology: gains learner attention, supports manual operations during high-level learning, illustrates real-world relevance through highly visual presentations, engages students through production work, connects students with audiences for their writing, engages learners through real-world situations and collaborations, provides support for working cooperatively. (Roblyer & Doering, 2013)
Problem 2: How to support students' learning needs? Technology integration: supports effective skill practice, helps students visualize underlying concepts in unfamiliar or abstract topics, lets students study systems in unique ways, gives access to unique information sources and populations, supplies self-paced learning for accelerated students, turns disabilities into capabilities, saves time on production tasks, grades and tracks student work, provides faster access to information sources, saves money on consumable materials. (Roblyer & Doering, 2013)
Problem 3; How to prepare students for future learning? Technology fulfills: the need for technological literacy, the need for information literacy, the need for visual literacy (Roblyer & Doering, 2013)
From the extensive examples above one can clearly conclude that technology integration in the classroom fosters positive results. Although many factors can play into a successful learning experience, technology integrated classrooms are going to be successful because using technology in education has been proven successful.
Resources
Devaney, L. (2010, July 26). Study reveals factors in ed-tech success. eSchool News. Retrieved from http://www.eschoolnews.com/2010/06/28/survey-reveals-factors-in-ed-tech-success/
Roblyer, M. D., & Doering, A. H. (2013). Integrating education technology into teaching. (6th ed., pp. 24-27). Pearson.
Staff, E. (11/5/2007). What is successful technology integration?. Retrieved from http://www.edutopia.org/technology-integration-guide-description
"Access to up-to-date, primary source material, methods of collecting/recording data, ways to collaborate with students, teachers, and experts around the world, opportunities for expressing understanding via multimedia, learning that is relevant and assessment that is authentic, training for publishing and presenting their new knowledge" (Edutopia, 2014) The extremely useful and limitless tools of technology are what makes an integrated technological classroom successful.
Research has found integrated technological classrooms successful. One study found that after students "used laptops for three years had significantly higher achievement that their non-laptop cohorts in nearly all measures" (Roblyer & Doering, 2013) Other studies showed that schools that had students with their own computers had "fewer discipline problems, lower dropout rates, and higher rates of college attendance than schools with a higher ration of students to computers" (Devaney, 2010) These studies show the positive possibilities of integrating technology into the classroom. There are so many valid reasons to use technology in the classroom. In the book Integrating Educational Technology Into Teaching three problems are addressed for helping students and examples for each problem is solved by integrating technology.
Problem 1: How to motivate and engage students? Technology: gains learner attention, supports manual operations during high-level learning, illustrates real-world relevance through highly visual presentations, engages students through production work, connects students with audiences for their writing, engages learners through real-world situations and collaborations, provides support for working cooperatively. (Roblyer & Doering, 2013)
Problem 2: How to support students' learning needs? Technology integration: supports effective skill practice, helps students visualize underlying concepts in unfamiliar or abstract topics, lets students study systems in unique ways, gives access to unique information sources and populations, supplies self-paced learning for accelerated students, turns disabilities into capabilities, saves time on production tasks, grades and tracks student work, provides faster access to information sources, saves money on consumable materials. (Roblyer & Doering, 2013)
Problem 3; How to prepare students for future learning? Technology fulfills: the need for technological literacy, the need for information literacy, the need for visual literacy (Roblyer & Doering, 2013)
From the extensive examples above one can clearly conclude that technology integration in the classroom fosters positive results. Although many factors can play into a successful learning experience, technology integrated classrooms are going to be successful because using technology in education has been proven successful.
Resources
Devaney, L. (2010, July 26). Study reveals factors in ed-tech success. eSchool News. Retrieved from http://www.eschoolnews.com/2010/06/28/survey-reveals-factors-in-ed-tech-success/
Roblyer, M. D., & Doering, A. H. (2013). Integrating education technology into teaching. (6th ed., pp. 24-27). Pearson.
Staff, E. (11/5/2007). What is successful technology integration?. Retrieved from http://www.edutopia.org/technology-integration-guide-description