Technology in the classroom

Technology has changed the way people are functioning in their daily lives. Technology is everywhere, in different shapes and sizes, and is also used in many different ways. As we live in the 21st century, technology is becoming more predominant in the classroom, changing the way students learn in class. The classroom now looks a lot different than it did many years ago. Traditional chalkboards have been replaced with whiteboards and screens, and classrooms have a surplus of laptops. Chromebooks are replacing our textbooks and students can search whatever they need on their phones. Thanks to technology, students and teachers both have gained access to an unlimited source of information. Educators took advantage of the technological improvement in society and started using resources such as Google Classroom, Kahoot and other educational platforms to educate their students. Some educators may believe that technology is just a distraction for their students in class, but it can actually help encourage class participation. Technology helps create a more interactive and engaging space in a classroom. Students also prefer technology because they believe it makes learning more fun and interesting. Students are now able to use not just textbooks and lectures to learn about different subjects, but virtual activities and online videos as well. These virtual activities, online videos and projects are shown to help students retain information in a much better, faster way than before. These 21st-century skills are also important in order to be successful in this period. With technology constantly improving every day, more and more jobs are incorporating technology into their workforce. The practice of using technology at a young age in classrooms will help them succeed in the future when technology is more advanced. The use of technology not only helps create a more engaging area for students in school, but gives students the ability to communicate and help each other outside of school. When students need help, they can seek it from their peers through the use of technology. Through social media platforms or messages, they are able to receive the help they need from not just their teachers, but their peers as well. They are able to receive more feedback and improve their knowledge just from their interaction with their peers. Many parents disapprove of the use of technology because of the downsides of the increased use of technology among their children. Technology can end up becoming an “addiction” and “distraction” for teens when not used for an educational purpose. Parents are afraid that the encouragement of the use of technology in the classrooms may encourage the use of technology outside of the classroom, but for the wrong reasons. Teens are seen using technology more for their own enjoyment rather than for educational purposes. Social media platforms such as Instagram, Facebook and Twitter become a distraction during school rather than a tool to improve their knowledge. Technology gives people the ability to communicate with no borders, but that ability can be misused in many different ways. People may also disapprove of the increasing use of technology in the classrooms because not all have access to technology. The increased use of technology in the classroom makes access to technology mandatory for the success of a student. However, not everyone has access to such technology. Instead of increasing the chances of success for a student, technology in the classroom can actually jeopardize a student’s chance to succeed in the future if he or she does not have the technology that the classroom is slowly making a requirement. Overall, technology is a powerful tool for the success of students. With technology improving by the day, it is important for schools and educators to keep up with the times to best prepare their students for this ever-changing world we live in. However, a student’s inability to have access to that powerful tool can cause him or her to fail in the technologically advanced society we live in today. While we see how integrated technology can bring its benefits, traditional learning processes are just as important for the society we live in.

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Angela Lee is a student at Milpitas High School in the Milpitas Unified School District