The Disappearance
of Technology: Toward an Ecological Model of Literacy discussed how
"the more we look (at technologies), the more they slip into the background".
We become so accustomed to various technologies, we take them for granted.
Bigger and better technologies come along while the previous ones are pushed
aside or improved upon. This was a very thought provoking article
and an assignment that had me thinking of my class in conjunction with
my past experiences.
When I stand in front of my class teaching, I often find myself flashing back to the time in my life when I was a fifth grade student. Life was surely different back then. It is difficult for me to realize that in the such a short time, the experiences I had growing up are so incredibly different than those my students have today.
The daily lifestyle and experiences of my students are vastly different than those I recall from my childhood. My students don’t know what records look like, let alone the 8-track players I used as a child. They won’t ever experience the mysteries and stories that were dramatized on the radio stations on Sunday nights to which my brother and I would faithfully listen on car rides home. Computers and a ‘high-tech’ society are what they know, not the old typewriters and the more ‘simplistic’ days.
Were the days of my childhood ‘simplistic’? In many ways they were, but technological advances have provided many ways to ease some previously laborious tasks. For example, instead of writing a letter by hand, which could be a time consuming process, we use e-mail and send a letter off in a matter of seconds. Completing assignments such as writing papers has become much easier with the use of computers and word processing. I remember the horrific task of sitting down and writing a paper by hand. The editing would be very difficult and would require many revisions before the final draft was produced. Today, students simply hop on their computer and type away. Word processing programs with grammar checks and spelling checks provide easy editing for students of today’s classrooms. But are these technological inroads helping or hindering the education of today’s students? Are they accessible to, and equitable for, all students?
Allowing students the opportunity to communicate with authors, scientists, and pen-pals from around the world is a technological opportunity available to some, but not all, students. I see this discrepancy on a daily basis within my classroom. Our district is comprised of a very affluent section of town and a section with low-income housing. These students come from very different worlds and experiences, yet they are all thrown into one classroom. As the teacher, I have to make sure that the needs of all my students are addressed. With such varying backgrounds and experiences, this is not always and easy task to accomplish especially when little Susie has use of a computer equipped with Internet access and little Johnny isn’t nearly as fortunate.
The curriculum must take into account the background, abilities, interests, and the prior experiences of the students, and what is required to make these students successful, productive members of society. The curriculum must include the teaching of computing skills, but it must also make sure that basic reading, writing, arithmetic, and researching skills are taught as well. What would happen if the computer network crashed and was not functioning for a week. Does that mean the assignments all get postponed because the computers and access to information from the Internet is temporarily unavailable? The stress caused by this type of situation could be avoided if the knowledge base of the students included many different methods of accessing information and completing assignments. I find that my students rely heavily on these new technologies (which is what they know), but they are unable to find the same information through traditional methods.
Students must have the knowledge
to use the technology, but also the skills to survive if the technology
is not always reliable, or even available. A balance between these
‘worlds’ must be found to provide the best experience and opportunities
for our students to be successful.
The site, Expanding
the Definition of Technological Literacy in Schools by James Fanning,
also offered some interesting thoughts on literacy and technology.
last updated: 11/03/99