This article appeared in the Fall 2010/2011 Newsmagazine

In the past decade, digital technology has been advancing at an astonishing rate. It has become such a huge part of our lives that having a cell phone and an iPod are staples of modern society. Large news networks like CNN have begun to use Facebook and Twitter as sources, and many American families even own multiple computers. It makes sense, then, that this new technology should be incorporated into our schools to advance our educational boundaries.

The ever expanding market of available technology has given some educators an almost insatiable desire to use it into their classrooms. However, the point has been reached where the potential benefits of classroom technology have been crushed by the desire to show off technology in use. Schools are overreaching themselves in an attempt to bring technology to their students, when sometimes the “traditional” ways are more effective.

Some of the first technologies to be incorporated into classrooms were educational videos. Despite the original good intentions behind showing movies during class, it often becomes corrupted by teachers who use them in place of an actual curriculum. There are certainly some instances where movies can be used to enhance the curriculum, but popping a DVD in for an entire class period is often unnecessary and doesn’t inspire creative and independent learning. A video of a teacher teaching is not nearly as engaging as the real thing.

A student should have confidence that the teacher they see in class nearly every day knows the curriculum and can answer their questions, and that confidence may not be there if the teacher directs them to a video or a website.

This isn’t to say that teachers don’t know their subject area, simply that technology doesn’t replace the interaction students can get when they aren’t getting lectured by someone who can’t pause to answer questions, or go into further explanation when necessary.

Smartboards are an increasingly common feature in many classrooms, and while we admit they are pretty neat, not a whole lot of teachers use them to their full potential. And why not? Because they don’t need them. It’s understandable that we took advantage of getting this technology because they were supplied by a grant, but in many ways, it’s a waste.

We don’t hate technology (as evidenced by this issue of The Southerner), but we do advocate a cautious and thoughtful use of it in classrooms. Before rushing to take advantage of new technologies, teachers should ask themselves if what they are about to incorporate into the classroom would really help their students, or if, perhaps, a “traditional” method would be more beneficial.