Education Department, School of Education and  Professional Studies disclaimer

 I never really thought about educational technology before taking this course or reading the book, “The Future of Information Technology in Education.”  I always knew that technology in education was important, but sadly most of my exposure to technology came outside of school.  I had some exposure to technology as an undergraduate student, but most of it was self taught.  There was an extensive network of materials available to me in college.  By plugging into the college network, I had access to e-mail, the internet, any student or professor on campus, the library catalogue, as well as many software programs such as: Excel, Mathematica, and Graphical Analysis.  I never really took full advantage of the technological opportunities I had at my fingertips.  I feel this is because most of my professors did not use a lot of the technology in their instruction nor did they expect us to use it very frequently, even though it was available.

 Nevertheless, this book has re-opened my eyes to the possibilities that educational technology offers.  The theme throughout this book is that we are not adequately preparing our students for an Information Age society, but rather an Industrial Age society.  Most students routinely use computers outside of school, but much less frequently in school.  Since most students have access to more computers and the internet at home than they do at school, the students without computers at home are at a severe disadvantage.  Slowly changes are being made, but curriculum, instruction, and assessment are not changing as rapidly as the new technology.

 In addition, I haven’t been paying attention to how technology is used in schools.  The book mentions the use of graphing calculators in math class as an example.  I think it is important for students to be first taught how to do the long division and how to graph data on their own.  Once they have learned the basic skills, calculators can greatly reduce time spent on basic tasks, so that more difficult concepts can be studied and analyzed.  (I had a professor in college that insisted we learn how to use a slide rule and made us take chemistry tests without a calculator.  He was very anti-technology).  In addition, the book mentions using computers to increase teacher productivity such as: computerized grade books, word-processed lesson plans, as well as computerized assistance in preparing IEP’s for special education students.  As well as the uses mentioned in this book, teachers use desktop presentation materials in order to display text, pictures, and graphs to the whole class.  With all the technology available it’s a shame that the students aren’t benefiting from some of the resources at school.  If only it were this easy.

 While reading this book I had a “light bulb” moment.  Growing up with computers my whole life, I was always of aware of what computers were being used for to make our lives easier.  I also knew that all kinds of books, newspapers, videos, pictures, music, etc. was being digitized, but I never thought of the ramifications.  In terms of storage & delivery, this is a major breakthrough.  Assuming I have enough computer memory (which I probably don’t), all of the media I mentioned above could be stored safely on my computer without the need for a hard copy.  Maybe I shouldn’t go that far, because there is always the possibility of a lightning strike, or a fire.

The book also “forecasts” how computers will be used in the future.  Computers continue to become faster, smaller, cheaper, and able to store more information.  Computers will eventually occupy the smallest spaces and will be used throughout our homes for various tasks.  The personal computer and the television will be one in the same, and there won’t be a need for a separate VCR or DVD player.  Eventually this technology will trickle down into the schools.

 I have been using “virtual libraries” since I began college in 1993.  Presently virtual libraries are not a replacement for the physical structures, because most things cannot be accessed from the computer alone (very few copies of books are available on-line).  What is everything i.e. books, journals, media items, magazines could be perused over your personal computer?  This could eliminate the need for the physical structure and everything could be down-loaded.  There would be virtual librarians to answer your questions.  Currently students are not taught in schools how to access virtual libraries, because most schools don’t have anything in place yet.  This probably will be important in the future.

 In conclusion, while reading this book I discovered that I was not alone.  Most students only have one computer for every 8 students and funding for technology is only about 1.5% of the total budget, when it really needs to be closer to 20% of the budget (according to Moursund).  Funding is a huge problem, as is professional development for teachers and technical support.  There is a need for more equipment and supplies as well as changes in curriculum & instruction.  The changes will be slow in coming, but I realize now that I must do my part in preparing my students for the future.  The technology gap between business and school will only increase over time.  In order to prepare our students for the Information Age that awaits them, we must attempt to bridge the gap between the technology available inside and outside of schools.