...Essay Looking back on education over the years there have been many changes. Some of the significant changes that have taken place, were established to support and help students succeed in school such as the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, School Choice, and Technology. Each one has had a significant impact on our educational system today. Each of these changes have been established to support and help all students succeed in school. With the onset of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 standardized testing has become a major instrument for gauging student and teacher performance (Smyth 2011). Based on how students perform, schools performance is measured based upon how they match up with other schools across the country. In some way this is unfair as the demographics of each school are different. When teachers are concerned with how their students are performing on a test it eliminates the opportunity to teach higher level thinking and reduces a teacher’s creativity in the classroom (Smyth 2011). According to Thomas Rabovsky 2011, “School choice refers to a wide variety of policies that allow students to transfer out of an assigned residential public school. These policies range from fairly limited systems of public choice, to more expensive systems of choice that provides tuition vouchers for students to exit the public school system entirely and attend private school instead” (Rabavsky 2011). The school choice movement has allowed families to make intra-district transfers...
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...Technology in Education Because of the rapid change of today’s society technology if used correctly can help any organization advance to the next level. Education has grown over the last ten years with the implementation of technology. Children are able to adapt to the use of technology in the class because they use technology daily at home. When one use the term technology people used to automatically think of computers. As more inventions and devices are made and incorporated into schools or organizations we are presented with many changes and challenges in today’s society. We have smart phones that are like miniature computers and they can be used as modems and other devices besides as a phone. Brown, S. (2010). Laptop learning: Burlington High principal plans for a future in which students can make the most of technology. Boston Globe, p. GN.1. Retrieved November 14, 2010, from ProQuest National Newspapers Expanded. (Document D: 2123617641). In reading this article Laptop learning I understand and agree with the principal Patrick Lark. Because of the changing times that we are living in today technology in education allows children to get away from the norm of paper and pencils. It is a great idea for each student to be able to have there own laptop to use at school, but we must realize that all students will not be able to afford laptops. In most schools cell phones and ipods are forbidden on school grounds. In looking at what these new computerized cell phones...
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...1 Teachers’ Views of Computers as Catalysts for Changes in Their Teaching Practice Sara L. Dexter and Ronald E. Anderson University of Minnesota Henry Jay Becker University of California, Irvine This paper was published in the Journal of Research on Computing in Education. The citation for it is: Dexter, S., Anderson, R. E., & Becker, H. J. (1999). Teachers’ views of computers as catalysts for changes in their teaching practice. Journal of Research on Computing in Education, 31 (3), 221239. Abstract: In this study we examined the use of computers by teachers in their instructional practices and their perception of the impact of computers on changes they have made to their classroom practice. These data draw from 47 teachers from 20 K-12 schools across 3 states who each completed a questionnaire, participated in 3 semi-structured interviews, and allowed 3 observations of their classroom. The teachers who had adopted more progressive teaching practices over time felt computers helped them change but they did not acknowledge computers as the catalyst for change. Instead, they cited catalysts that included: reflection upon experience, classes taken, and the context or culture of the school. We conclude that in order for teachers to implement the use of educational technology in a constructivist manner, they must have opportunities to construct pedagogical knowledge in a supportive climate. Research funded by the program of Research on Education Policy and Practice at the National...
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...The Effect of Technology on Education Abstract In this argument essay I hope to point out and give some feedback on the pros and cons of the effects of technology on educations. That by incorporating technology into our schools would and could make us stronger and more up to speed with surrounding countries. The Effects of Technology on Education The topic of the effects of technology on students is a concern for teachers, school officials, parents, and students. Everyone wants to know if technology is really going to help our children learn more, and truly make a difference in the way teaching is currently being done in the classrooms. What will it cost to bring in technology, and can it be afforded without breaking the wallets of the parents and schools? Can technology help bring education back to life in our children’s lives, where they want to go to school and actually be there? We need to acknowledge that with technology many things can be achieved in education for all ages, grade levels, and countries. The educational system is much different from when we were in grammar school. Kindergarten is no longer about learning the basic skills of numbers, letters, shapes and colors; it has become a first grade level education. Our children now have to know the basics to be in kindergarten; and to be able to move on to first grade they have to be reading, doing basic math and writing. The schoolwork that is being asked of our children now is different, and more demanding...
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...Students How much do you rely on technology for help when it comes to completing a task? People all around the world, including myself, rely on technology a lot. Whether it is with school related, work related, or just personal use. With technology advancing everyday, we can virtually do anything with cell phones or computers. By knowing that there is an alternative and much easier way of doing a task, individuals become accustomed to keep using the source(s) for the easy way out. Not only is it a much easier way, but people lose many other factors and the main purpose by not doing it first hand. Younger generations are the ones that are being affected by the technology the most. In most schools around the world, technology is now being fitted into the school's curriculum in order to lead the students into a successful path. However, it is only giving the students an easier way to find the answers without them actually learning and comprehending what the main lesson(s) or purpose is. For example, when a student is writing a research paper, all he or she has to do is go on a computer, type in a couple of words, and the research is done. Instantly a student can have information and answers without doing any actual research themselves. Technology is not only giving the answers directly to the student but it is putting them down for failure in the outside world when they face the challenge of not being able to rely back to the computer or phone. The teachers rely on technology just as...
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...debate and scrutiny, worldwide comparisons like the Third International Mathematics and Science Study revealed the true extent of failing schools in the US. And while fixing public education tops our national agenda and many public and private institutions have attempted to address the challenge success stories are few and far between. Compounding the problem is a changing world with growing emphasis on highly-skilled individuals. Today's expectations for schools - that ALL children will achieve at a level much higher than required in previous eras - demands much more than a quick fix or a cosmetic approach. Poorly trained teachers, unfocused curriculum, and the inefficient use of resources inevitably result in poor student performance and the inability to compete globally. For the US, the stakes have gone up dramatically. People have also reached consensus on what public school reform looks like. It involves a radical shift from the status quo, with a new foundation built on standards, accountability, and dedication to the kind of profound change that becomes imbedded in the system. For schools to change, educators must do things very differently. In the process, they must rediscover the very substance of excellent teaching in a new world. To many experts, what education reform needs is a long attention span and a sophisticated understanding of how to improve student achievement. As Learning...
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...com/opinion/articles/2013/03/01/the-education-technology-revolution-is-coming The Education-Technology Revolution Is Coming Institutions of learning must learn to incorporate technology or risk being left behind By SIG BEHRENS March 1, 2013 RSS Feed Print Sig Behrens is a president of Blackboard, Inc. Higher education is the next bubble. Facebook will replace classroom instruction. Textbooks will go away, and some colleges will, too. In other words, everything is going to change. Or, at least, that's the talk we in education and technology regularly hear these days. It sounds exciting—and, to some, scary. But it also sounds like what I heard during the dot-com boom of the 1990s when a lot of companies—including Blackboard—began using technology to "disrupt" the education status quo. Since then we've made some important progress, but in many ways the classroom still looks the same as it did 100 years ago. So what's different this time? Is all the talk just hype? Or are we really starting to see the beginnings of major change? [Read the U.S. News Debate: Are Teachers Overpaid?] I believe we are. There are a lot of reasons but one of the biggest is the way that technology has given rise to a new kind of education consumer—the active learner—who is using technology to drive change in ways that we haven't seen before. In the past, change was usually a top-down process, led by campus administrators, district leaders, and other officials. It was often slow in coming, if at all. Look at technology: Mainframe...
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...to Intervention and Assistive Technology Eddrick Wheaton EDU620: Meeting Individual Student Needs with Technology Lisa Reason October 8, 2012 Response to Intervention and Assistive Technology The Response to Intervention and Assistive Technology has both successes and challenges when educating today’s diverse students. As states implement Response to Intervention (RTI) models, it is essential to clarify the relationship of RTI to Universal Design for Learning (UDL) and Assistive Technology (AT). In particular, educators must decide how and when poor academic performance will trigger appropriate technology interventions. The historical development of education has seen a lot of changes though out the last three decades. Changes in key components of education such as teacher qualification, financial funding, curriculum, and assessment have all had huge impacts on education. Teacher qualification has seen a lot of changes in how teachers educate and use curriculum. “Since the 1980s, competing and often contradictory reforms have combined top-down, centralized efforts to improve teaching with efforts to promote decentralization and school-based management (Rowan, 1990) (Borman & Rachuaba 1999) History has had a huge impact on education throughout the years. Education throughout history has faced gender, cultural, and religious issues. The way schools are funded also had a huge impact from history. The control of funding for the school was taken from the community...
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...Technology and School Sandra Jenkins EDU/315 December15, 2014 Professor: Debra Stewart Technology and School Technology was very different when I was growing up. There were no cell phones, i-pads, smart boards, e-books, web based and interactive tools, you name it and it has evolved dramatically. The years have brought about new inventions and bright ideas. We know live in an age of constant digital, informational, and technological change. Paper and the chalkboard are now a thing of the past. Every day, new and improved programs and web-based tools are used as a means to help promote, engage, and teach young minds. This paper will discuss the differences in student and teacher use of technology, how technology has evolved, describe what is expected when using technology in class, discuss concerns that should be addressed for the use of social media during school, the three T’s that Warlick suggests and its impact, and how I will address the needs of my students in technology use. There are many differences that students and teachers face with technology, the main difference is that students are born into it and teachers were introduced to it and have seen it evolve over time. Students are tech savvy, rely on it for almost everything, use it to socialize, and use it as an interactive approach to learning at their own pace and level. Teachers use technology to communicate and collaborate with fellow...
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...FACTORS AFFECTING TECHNOLOGY USES IN SCHOOLS1: AN ECOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE Yong Zhao Kenneth A. Frank Michigan State Univeristy Contact information: Yong Zhao, 115D Erickson, College of Education, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824, Email: zhaoyo@msu.edu, Phone: 517-353-4325 This study was made possible by a grant from the Michigan Department of Education (MDE), but views and findings expressed in this report do not necessarily reflect those of MDE. The following individuals participated in the design and implementation of this study: Yong Zhao, Kenneth A. Frank, Blaine Morrow, Kathryn Hershey, Joe Byers, Nicole Ellefson, Susan Porter, Rick Banghart, Andrew Henry, and Nancy Hewat. Although we cannot identify the names of the schools that participated in this study, we want to thank all the teachers and administrators in these 19 schools. Without their cooperation and support, this study would not have been possible. We would also like to thank Dr. Maenette K. P. Benham and the four anonymous reviewers for their insightful comments. Ann Krause, Punya, Mishra, Matthew Koehler, and Gary Cziko offered very helpful comments and suggestions. 1 Abstract Why isn't technology used more in schools? Many researchers have been searching for solutions to this persistent puzzle. In this paper, we extend existing research on technology integration and diffusion of innovations by investigating relationships among the long list of factors that have already been...
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...Technology and New School Policy: Blessing or Creation of Increasingly Difficult Teaching Conditions Cami L. Southwell English 101 July 18, 2010 Rosemary Harty Today we have all seen the student working on their homework by using a calculator for math or a computer for language arts, history, and science. Whether it is an image on the television or sitting in a library, this has become the accepted norm. Education has changed drastically in the past twenty to thirty years. These changes in the education system curriculum beg the following questions: What are the students of today really learning? Are they learning access a program that does the work for them or are they learning the basics of how to do the work themselves? Are the policy changes taking the personal touch out of teaching, by introducing computers in every classroom and reducing face time with teachers? Finally, does government involvement for fiscal aid influence how public schools mandate what the teachers use in the classroom? The overall question would have to be: Is technology in new public school policy creating an increasingly difficult environment or is the technology a blessing to aid in our children’s education? Walk into any public school classroom and you will see students at computers in the classroom working diligently. Just what you want to see right; but are they learning everything that was taught to generations prior to them? As parents we all love receiving the report cards with good...
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...improvements in technology. You can now chat with your friends across the globe, send text messages, access information through computer or even drive a car without stepping on the gas pedal. All of these innovations are because of technological developments. Agreeing to the definition of technology that can be applied to all stages of history may be impossible. Early technology evolved primarily through accident and trial and error. While the discovery of technology is still very important, contemporary technology is mainly the result of a constantly expanding knowledge base. With the proliferation of technologies that are able to overcome the obstacles of time and space, one would be use to gain an understanding of other culture; meet people all over the world. Maintain and strengthen familial relationship, communicate effectively with others, and help people to become more socially adept. However, some technological advances cause people to be distracted, overly stressed, and increasingly isolated. Many people are involved in an abundant number of relationships through technology, but sometimes the quantity of these associations leaves people feeling qualitatively empty. Obviously, technology has had a profound impact on what it means to be social. Today, the concept of an educated person includes an element of technological literacy. Technology offers broad tools that extend human capabilities. In contemporary society, the bond between human and technology goes to very...
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...The Impact of Technology Mentors on Effective Technology Integration Into the Elementary Classroom by Debra Chester An Applied Dissertation Submitted to the Fischler School of Education and Human Services in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Education Nova Southeastern University 2008 Approval Page This applied dissertation was submitted by Debra Chester under the direction of the persons listed below. It was submitted to the Fischler School of Education and Human Services and approved in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Education at Nova Southeastern University. Deeb Paul Kitchen, EdD Committee Chair Date Patricia Heiselberg, EdD Committee Member Date Maryellen Maher, PhD Executive Dean for Research and Evaluation Date ii Abstract The Impact of Technology Mentors on Effective Technology Integration Into the Elementary Classroom. Chester, Debra, 2008: Applied Dissertation, Nova Southeastern University, Fischler School of Education and Human Services. Technology Integration/Educational Technology/Teacher Training/Professional Development/ Mentoring The purpose of this study was to investigate the use of mentors to increase the integration of technology, to provide teachers with skills, and to investigate the most effective strategies. Three research questions guided the study: 1. Will the utilization of technology mentors provide teachers with the skills needed to effectively...
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...LEARNING AND ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE OF INTERMEDIATE PUPILS OF ADRIATICO MEMORIAL SCHOOL CHAPTER 1 The Problem and Its Background Introduction Today’s world is being described as the “modern world.” Modern through the use of technology at home, in the office, in school and everywhere where technology plays a role in the people’s lives. We cannot deny that it changes almost everything around us; not just in our way of earning for a living but on how we live from day to day with technology as the biggest part of our lives. There are different kinds of transportation that help us get into our destination the fastest time, our appliances at home that minimizes our time in doing the household chores and in keeping us comfortable and safe, all the means of communications that make our messages be sent in the fastest pace, and most importantly in education where learning is being delivered in a most responsive, interactive and digital way. Here comes digital learning. According to Alliance for Excellent Education, “Digital learning is any instructional practice that effectively uses technology to strengthen a student’s learning experience. Digital learning encompasses a wide spectrum of tools and practices, including, among others, online and formative assessment; an increase in the focus and quality of teaching resources and time; online content and courses; applications of technology in the classroom and school building; adaptive software for students with special needs; learning platforms;...
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...Introduction The rapid changes and increased complexity of today’s world present new challenges and put new demands on our education system. There has been generally a growing awareness of the necessity to change and improve the preparation of students for productive functioning in the continually changing and highly demanding environment. In confronting this challenge it is necessary to consider the complexity of the education system itself and the multitude of problems that must be addressed. Clearly, no simple, single uniform approach can be applied with the expectation that significant improvements of the system will occur. Indeed, any strategy for change must contend with the diverse factors affecting the education system, the interactions of its parts, and the intricate interdependencies within it and with its environment. Following are the few consideration to improve learning. • Integrating the commonly polarized goals of education; i.e. the goal that focuses on transmitting knowledge with the goal that emphasizes the development of the individual student. • Adapting teaching to different student characteristics by using diverse methods of teaching. Adaptation to the ability levels, patterns of different abilities, learning styles, personality characteristics, and cultural backgrounds. • Integrating the curriculum by developing inter-disciplinary curriculum units that enable students to acquire knowledge from different disciplines through a unifying theme while having...
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