Boring Lessons Cause Distractions, Not Technology

With or without technology in the classrooms, students are going to have short attention spans. For most students, even those interested in the lesson, it is easy think of ten things that they would rather be doing than sitting in an uncomfortable chair in a classroom. This desire to be doing something other than school work is what drives the short attention spans, not the increase in technology. Technology does make it capable for students to become instantly distracted, but that is only due to the large amount of information that is just a click away. The bigger problem is teachers who do not understand the distractors in a student's life and how to use those distractors in an educational way. Using cell phones, video games, or iPods to teach or aide instruction are some examples of technology that might otherwise have been prohibited (at least in the past) but are now being promoted in schools for their educational value. With these and other technological tools "students are given the freedom, creativity, and ability to problem solve while using that technology on a daily basis" (David Son, 2008, p. 9). How can you argue with technology that allows students to expand their creativity, exercise thier freedom, and teach valuable problem solving skills that will be so valuable throughout their lives?

I have a gut feeling (just an uneducated opinion) that makes me weary of completely going away with anything tangible and replacing it with digital representations. My biggest source of concern has to do with writting and using our hands to assist education. Tangible learners use many body movements to aid in retention and it is my thought that this ability is reduced when solely using computers. Also, there is an artistic element to handwriting and I think there has been a general decline in asthetic quality and legibility throughout our society due to word processing capabilities on most computers. My hesitation to completly switch to all digital may go against my digital native upbringing, but I think a well rounded classroom is one in which many forms of technology are used, not just the lastest and greatest (i.e. pencils and paper used to take notes on a PowerPoint presentation).

References:
David Son, J (2008). Is Educational Technology Shortening Student Attention Spans. International Society for Technology in Education, Retrieved July 27, 2009, from http://webct.cu-portland.edu/webct/urw/lc9140001.tp0/cobaltMainFrame.dowebct?JSESSIONID=q9HhKzJQzN3XphgGCS5TTMKsLnCmVVpTx9tFZTnS3VF51MrNRXRN!-544224791!newwebct.cu-portland.edu!80!443