What Is the Advantge of Coming Technology with Education - Assignment Example

Technology and education are in everything in our life. They play a very important role in all levels of our life. Education and technology can helpus on our dairy days because we use our knowledge and technology in everything, by helping us communicate with everything around the world. For example, to conduct research of something, we use computers, which not only give us information, but also research definitions to unknown words. We have computer programs such as Microsoft that provide us a way of writing system by correcting our spelling and grammatical errors. In todays world, all people need to be able to understand and use their education with a technology. Almost every job requires the use of some form of technology. Therefore, teachers need to be using and teaching technology in every class and every subject available. Students in school do not learn today as they did ten or twenty years ago. Today, they are influenced by technology. There are many household items such as televisions, radios, iPods, computers and games which students use every day. So, because these items are part of their everyday lives, it is important that they learn how to use them in a productive manner. Technology enhances their lives in many ways. Therefore there are a lot of helpful objectives for technology in education ,such as better education, less expensive education, spending less money in tuition, communication and more convenient education. Technology is becoming a successful in education and it has raised people’s knowledge but it is still leaving people without much money because it is expensive and not all people can afford it. Technology is still in a state of revolution and it is becoming more and more successful with education which will make our education better.(Effie Moore Salem). In addition, nowadays many schools prefer to use technology so that they can give easier and more successful education. Students can get high grade which will help them to have a prominent place in the country so that they can lead a decent life. People who use technology in their school or business will be considered as important people in any community. The worst mark for technology in education is that students go to class without textbook so they may not be prepared for the class which might affect their grade. So students are compelled to purchase textbooks some of which are expensive and students are unable to purchase them. The best solution for future is numeric pad. Therefore, students who depend on technology have to get a numeric pad to deal with their school like an iPod touch which is going to help them in taking notes in class and prepare for their classes. Nowadays, less expensive screens are available but they are more useful and helpful for students to log out classroom activity easily. According to the news the 14.1 inch screen will be advertise fewer than 1000$ dollars. And the screen vow to last for around thirteen months. Apple, Dell and Samsung companies claim that their screen is marketed for all people but are specially prepared for students. (Moore).Therefore these screens might cost a lot but the students can use them for several years. They can dispense with text books, which have to be purchased every year. Distance education is accessible for best education because all people can study whenever they want without any stress, fatigue or even attendance in classes. All people have their choice where they want to study at home or any public place but there is a place that all distance learning students gather which is one of the places that student can go to and it has a lot of benefits for them. (Tony p.5) Therefore, there are a lot of schools start to execute distance education, such as Kwantlen Polytechnic University, University of California-Berkeley. They have a lot of international students are taking their distance education programs. During the summer and winter vacation, international students may go back to their home countries, but they also want to finish their study as soon as possible. That’s why they choose distance learning so that they can stay their home countries, meanwhile they also can study program from their schools. Some of schools of America, they offer distance education to people, who are living in different countries, students can save their time and money, they do not need to go the location of schools, they still can take the program of schools, and take degree or certification of schools from learning distance as well. Hence we can predict that technology is going to pervade every area of education in the coming century. One important area of education is teacher training. Unless teachers are competent, quality education cannot be delivered. Teachers until now held a pivotal position in the system of education. But with the introduction of technology in classrooms, the picture is going to change. According to William Clark Trow, “A gifted teacher is a fiction, an imaginary construct”. (William Trow, pp 105). A teacher is not only expected to have mastery over the subject but is expected to be a person with a good character, a balanced personality with diverse interests, at the same time one who has sympathy and understanding of the students, who can be a friend, philosopher, guide and mentor. Indeed, what Trow says is true. It is neither possible to find a single individual who possesses all qualities of a good teacher, nor is it possible to identify potential good teachers. But with the introduction of technology, “ – it is possible to devise instruments which measure abilities directly, provide instruction at the point where each learner is, and allow him to go on from there ---“ ( Trow, pp 107 ). “All this will bring a profound change in education. We will stop training individuals to be teachers.” (R.B. Fuller, pp 43)The role of teachers will change. Teacher will be a guide, facilitator, who will only help the student to acquire knowledge on his own. Fuller has called this as ‘Automation in education”, which has ‘Freed the scholar to return to his studies.” (Fuller, pp1) This shows that scholars will be motivated to pursue their own studies. The attention of the students will shift from the teacher who occupied the centre-stage, to books and other technological devices which will lead them to knowledge. Technology can help transform the learning environment into one that is learner-centred. ICTs can catalyze the paradigmatic shift in both content and pedagogy that is at the heart of educational reform in the 21st century. The National Research Council of the U.S. defines learner-cantered environments as those that “pay careful attention to the knowledge, skills, attitudes, and beliefs that learners bring with them to the classroom.” Use of technology also helps to improve the quality of education. Improving the quality of education and training is a critical issue, particularly at a time of educational expansion. Technology has brought about reform in education. Reform implies two things – change and progress. Change is inevitable with or without technology, as a result of time. But the change is taking place in a particular direction set by technology. Reform takes place when there is dissatisfaction with the existing system. Progress is a deliberate effort on the part of human beings to improve the situation, to overcome drawbacks and set the right direction. This reform in education covers three aspects – “the philosophical, the instructional and the instrumental”. (Trow, pp 39). In education, the philosophical refers to the changing value system, which is reflected in content and methods of education. But the instructional aspect is most important in education. The new values and philosophy has led to new approaches and teaching methods and techniques. Philosophy tells us that the teacher is not the sole authority of knowledge, one who can never go wrong, but teacher is also an ordinary human being like any other. Philosophy tells us that the student and not the teacher is the centre of educational system. Students have their own capacities and limitations, there are individual differences and education must cater to different needs in different ways. Total reform in instruction procedures is observed. Recalling entire texts is not study but comprehending and interpreting texts, acquiring skills and forming concepts is real knowledge. “The use of these techniques has even sometimes made it possible to progress beyond a mere change in the educational climate and to encourage problem-solving abilities either collective or individual or develop self-evaluation processes”. (Henry Dieuzeide, p5) This can be achieved by using project method and technological devices in the classroom. Rote learning has been replaced by self study. Reform in the system of evaluation is another important effect of technology. The impending fear of examinations no longer persists. There is continuous and comprehensive evaluation using modern methods. The physical process of organizing examination for thousands of students, supervision, distribution of stationary and logistics involved in all this is no longer necessary. Online examinations are becoming the trend. Students can sit in the comfort of their homes and log on and answer examinations as and when they feel prepared and confident. Even assessment of certain examinations is done by computers. The greatest advantage is the preparation of results, making mark lists, calculating percentages, assigning grades and maintaining records. A lot of manual labour and tedious work has become unnecessary. Moreover, there are little chances of machines making mistakes in calculations. The bias of teachers or examiners has no place in this era of technology! Stationary is also saved which is an eco-friendly move! Both Hardware and Software play their own roles in the system of education. Educational hardware includes “slides, filmstrips, motion pictures, phonographs and tape recorders’. (Clark Trow, pp 122). These are the actual devices that are used in the classroom. They not only make learning more interesting but also motivate the learners. Learners do not feel that learning is a meaningless activity. They get involved in the audio visual aids which have a deeper impact than mere lecturing by the teacher. Students become active learners. But it is not machines that are important; it is the programs which are important. Software refers to the learning programs prepared for learners. Such programs are useful in making abstract ideas and concepts clear. Other kinds of software are “books, manuals, journals, displays, lists, checklists etc.” (Trow, pp 123). These are additional assets which the learners have access to through the internet and sites like Google. Technology aids in motivating the learner and creating interest in education. Aids such as videos, television and multimedia computer software that combine text, sound, and colourful, moving images can be used to provide challenging and authentic content that will engage the student in the learning process. Networked computers with Internet connectivity can increase learner motivation as it combines the media richness and interactivity with the opportunity to connect with real people and to participate in real world events. The transmission of basic skills and concepts that are the foundation of higher order thinking skills and creativity can be facilitated by specially prepared software programs through drill and practice. Operating models of planetary systems, giving PowerPoint presentations and using animated films or recording students’ performances can make teaching effective and fruitful. Information and Communication Technologies greatly facilitate the acquisition and absorption of knowledge, offering developing countries unprecedented opportunities to enhance educational systems, improve policy formulation and execution, and widen the range of opportunities for students. One of the greatest hardships endured by the poor, and by many others, who live in the undeveloped countries, is their sense of isolation. The new communications technologies promise to reduce that sense of isolation, and to open access to knowledge in ways unimaginable not long ago. Technology in education has a number of advantages. It helps expand the access to education. It is a potentially powerful tool for extending educational opportunities It creates an ability to transcend time and space. ICTs make possible asynchronous learning, or learning characterized by a time lag between the delivery of instruction and its reception by learners. It also provides access to remote learning resources. Teachers and learners no longer have to rely solely on printed books and other materials in physical media housed in libraries (and available in limited quantities) for their educational needs. Technologies like video conferencing also facilitate access to resource persons— mentors, experts, researchers, professionals, business leaders. Collaborative learning can take place because easy means of communication encourages interaction and cooperation among students, teachers, and experts regardless of where they are. Learning becomes integrative. “In education, ‘learning’ is more important than ‘teaching’. (Sarita Kumari, pp 9).Technology enhanced learning promotes a thematic, integrative approach to teaching and learning. This approach eliminates the artificial separation between the different disciplines and between theory and practice that characterizes the traditional classroom approach. Learning also becomes evaluative. Technology enhanced learning is student-directed and diagnostic. It allows learners to explore and discover rather than merely listen and remember. The advantages of technology are innumerable, no doubt, but we cannot ignore the other side of the coin. Technological devices can make education more effective, but there are some challenges that it has to face. Preparing good quality software is not a simple task. There will be no feedback from the students as the teachers get in classrooms. The personal touch, the kind word of encouragement from the teacher will be lost. Teachers will have to spend a lot of time understanding the working of the devices, handling them taking care of them and repair and maintenance can also be a problem. “ When a school introduces a technological approach, a teacher will spend less time talking in the classroom, ---- and more time manipulating the input --- instruments ---“ ( Clark Trow, pp 126 ) However, we know that TVs and computers, which were once luxurious items, have become quite cheap and common. So is the case with cell phones. So we can be optimistic about education as well. Since education is an important concern for every nation, the government will also provide some subsidy for educational aids and materials. Even more than all this, the very ease and convenience enabled by technology will prevail over the drawback of cost and it will come to stay as the mode of education in the 21st century. Spaulding (1970, pp18) has rightly remarked “ These first generation educational technologies have suffered ( and continue to suffer ) from ineffective utilisation because they are usually not conceived of as part of an entirely new strategy of instruction which requires new kinds of administrative support, new kinds of Software and Hardware and new ways of managing the materials”. REFERENCES 1. Blurton, , C. (2002, August 25). New directions of ict in use. Retrieved from http://www.unesco.org/education/educprog/lwf/dl/edict.pdf; 2. The Commonwelath of Learning,“An Introduction to Open and Distance Learning”; available from http://www.col.org/ODLIntro/introODL.htm; accessed 14 August 2002. 3. Fuller, Buckminster R. Education Automation: Freeing the scholar to Return to his Studies. 2nd. Illinois: Southern Illinois University Press, 1962. 43 -47. 4. Trow, William Clark. Paths to Educational Reforms. New Jersey: Educational Technology Publications, Inc. Eaglewood Cliffs, 1972. 39-126. Print. 5. Kumari, Sarita. Increasing Role of Technology in Education. New Delhi: Isha books, 2004. 6. Spaulding, Seth. "Advanced Educational Technologies." 1.3 (1970): 18. 7. Dieuzeidi, Henry. Educational Technology and Development of Education. 8. UNESCO, 1970. 5. 3 and 4 are books from the university of new haven. Finally, I could get them – only these two but I have given several references from them. I think enough for your paper. The 5 pages that I have written are now in continuation of your text. OUTLINE 1. Technology in daily life 2. Technology in workplace 3. Role of technology in education 4. Distance education universities 5. Expensive way of education 6. Technology in teacher education 7. Reform and progress in education 8. Advantages of technology – learner centered environment, collaborative and integrative learning 9. Use for evaluation and examinations 10. Hardware and software 11. Major challenges 8. Kumari , Sarita. "Wkxv13hV8C&printsec." Google.co.in. Isha Books, 2004. Web. 21 Mar 2011. 9. Fuller, Buckminster R. Education Automation: Freeing the scholar to Return to his Studies. 2nd. Illinois: Southern Illinois University Press, 1962. 43 -47. Web. 21 Mar. 2011 10. Trow, William Clark. Paths to Educational Reforms. New Jersey: Educational Technology Publications, Inc. Eaglewood Cliffs, 1972. 39-126. Web. 21 Mar. 2011 11. The Commonwealth of Learning, “An Introduction to Open and Distance Learning”; available from http://www.col.org/ODLIntro/introODL.htm; Web. 14 August 2002. 12. Spaulding, Seth. "Advanced Educational Technologies." 1.3 (1970): 18. Web. 21 Mar. 2011 13. Dieuzeidi, Henry. Educational Technology and Development of Education. 8. UNESCO, 1970. 5. Web. 21 Mar. 2011( taken from sarita kumari’s book ) 1. Seth Spaulding "Advanced Educational Technology" Prospects in Education. Vol- 1, No. 3, 197C— PP tlbid P. 10. ... Seth Spaulding, Director of UNESCOs Department of School and Higher Education http://www.google.co.in/search?tbm=bks&tbo=1&q=Spaulding%2C+seth+-+Advanced+educational+technologies&btnG=Search+Books 2. http://books.google.co.in/books?id=0-Wkxv13hV8C&printsec=frontcover&dq=sarita+kumari&hl=en&ei=KRmITevzMYjTrQfh7c3VDg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CDMQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q&f=false Read More