Running Head: the Impact of Technology on Education

 

Introduction

Sezgin’s (2002) study states, environments enriched with multimedia class software increases students’ success levels. Technology is useful to monitor students learning experiences and help the students develop mentally . “Technology can foster a student to conjecture, justify and generalize mathematical contents by doing fast and accurate computation and analysis of various representations.” Some teachers also stated that lessons were able to be given much faster and with ease because of the reduction of questions and increase in understanding on what students were doing in the science-based classroom , The curriculumn in turn became more fact based (Smith and Southerland 2007; Taylor et al. 2008). 

Literature Review

    Technology has advanced rapidly throughout the years and has become a part of our everyday life. The development of architecture, art, literature and even music has been influenced and changed because of this advancement. The usage of technology has even been implemented into the classroom to try and make learning and organizing things easier. According to Sezgin’s  study, environments enriched with multimedia class software increases students’ success levels.” Also, Aktumen and Kacar  have come to the conclusion that having an electronic device that is connected to an internet source enhances learning and comprehension while research conducted by Aktas, Alio?lu and Vardar have pointed towards a lower academic success rate. 

  Teachers who depend on technology to help when giving out extra assignments for students when they are at home embrace the use of technology in the classroom. Technology is useful to monitor their students learning experiences and help the students develop mentally . Also, it is stated that technology not only enables and facilitates learning, but also provides many different learning spaces, venues and tools . Lew and Jeong, 2014, stated, “Technology can foster a student to conjecture, justify and generalize mathematical contents by doing fast and accurate computation and analysis of various representations.” The writer of the article describes technology as a catalyst that greatly influences the speed that students studying mathematics learn at as “impressive.” Some teachers also stated that lessons were able to be given more faster with ease because of the reduction of questions and increase in understanding on what students were doing in the science based classroom , The curriculum in turn became more fact based . 

Technologies implementation into today’s modern classroom has caused a shift or change in the way different tasks are done. In the Literacy field, technology makes students release their inner creativity with its different texts and multimodal features. .  According to Kress & van Leeuwen, 1996, 2001 technology is seen as just another tool to writing rather than a new level in which a student can change the way they write and carve their form of writing. The significance of technology is how the user encompasses it and uses it to further change the way the writing process is undergone.  

Recent studies have shown that there is an increase in learning with technology. In North Carolina courses are being offered that show students to solve problems using two dimensional and three-dimensional animating software . Also, tablets and computers are becoming increasingly used in the medical field due to the fact that it helps effectively transfer information while medical examinations are in process (C. Baumgart, 2017). Stables (1997) described technology in three ways; gaining experience and proper knowledge through practice, a tool that helps children learn about the outside world and learning to socially interact with one another.  

A success in being able to integrate technology into a teacher’s curriculum showed that technology can be used in the learning process. Gardner and Hill,1999, said that technology is used in the classroom in order to help develop their student’s capabilities and self-esteem when they figure out a solution to a problem. Bungum stated that a teachers’ ‘‘beliefs and actions ultimately shape the kind of learning that young people get.” Research also stated that preservice methods should be implemented in order for teachers to adopt the same technological teaching methods of other professionally trained teachers. The usefulness of technology is not being accurately being measured with research and statistics states Garmire and Pearson 2006 and contributes to the ongoing debate on whether technology is really necessary in the classroom. There is still a lot of observing and investigating left to do in order to determine what is needed in order to have a technological classroom that meets student’s needs and helps enhance learning processes and student mindsets when it comes to learning.

 Lai et al., used international data to determine the definite impact of technology, primarily computers, on student overall academic results and came to the conclusion to no significant evidence was found to find positive increase on student learning. The results of the research point towards no overall change in a pupil’s ability to increase overall percentage in exams and in classwork. Some students, as stated by the research, developed negative influences because of the assignation of computers in the learning environment.

“Digital literacies are increasingly being treated as an integral component of teaching and learning in more recent policy documents (e.g., U.S. Department of Education, 2010), reflecting an evolving conceptualization of literacy over the years .” This information shows that technology is being highly depended on as a source of general information and is being treated as beneficial in order to improve a students’ academic potential and overall grade.

Ben Jacob’s,2001, inferred that due to technological advancements in the new millennium students would be more astute, prepared, and independent when it came to their education. Jacobs inferred this because of the amount of resources available and steadily growing on many different platforms and databases. The amount of resources readily available gives a certain expectation out of today’s students and a push to further advance students into a higher level of academic understandment. Meagher, 2012 stated the early integration of technology into the learning environment helps the student feel more comfortable in their subject area and especially in mathematics. 

Being more comfortable in the subject being studied helped the student be more accurate when solving a problem and also helped alleviate anxiety when taking tests. Dixon & Brown, 2012; Franz & Hopper, 2007 stated that evidence has portrayed a better understanding of science-based concepts and use of mathematical skills because of the integration of technology. Technology is being seen as necessary in order to educate the people in the “era of technological advancement” and is being put emphasis on by educators looking for a more efficient way of scoring each student’s individual academic potential.

Even though technology is being heavily depended on there is also evidence that it is being used poorly. A study conducted by researchers indicated that teachers fail when adopting new uses for technology and its uses. The study also pointed to a poor usage of the technology already bestowed to them until the teacher begins to comprehend the potential use of the technology and uses it correctly.  Teachers also admitted, according to a study, to not be fully trained and qualified to integrate technology into the classroom environment (NCES) (2000). Studies also indicated that a “tech savvy” teacher couldn’t correctly integrate the use of technology into student’s learning environment . Schools that had many sources of technology readily available to students did not push students to use the technology as an advantage in the learning process. The result of these studies showed that in order for easily accessible technology to be put to use four factors had to be present; time, teacher’s attitudes, beliefs, and how comfortable the instructor felt on the usage of technology.  

“The new millennium learners are considered as digitally literate, mobile, social, and experiential. They have short attention span; they choose not to pay attention, lack reflection and text literacy. Their learning preferences are in terms of peer to peer. They are visual and kinesthetic learners, they prefer to be engaged and enjoy learning based on their experience.” The students of this age are described to be unable to focus on their given task and therefore need the use of technology in order to give a straightforward visual representation of how to solve a problem and think with more logic. Students are so used to having technology in their daily lives for communication and entertainment purposes that according to the article they need to have some form of technology in their educational routine in order to best feel comfortable and more prone to understanding and learning a topic. There is still insufficient evidence today that shows solid results of the effects technology has on students and their academic improvement or degradation. Quantitative research is difficult to obtain because of the lack of technology in most schools and lack of experience when instructing children on how to use and best take advantage of the tools they have in hand.

The use of Web 2.0 tools has also been embraced by teachers seeking to find more uses of technology in the classroom. Carlos (2018) stated that the use of web tools increased the amount of participation in the classroom and students who were mostly quiet participated more by typing and discussing their answers. Web 2.0 tools introduced students to typing out their answers and discussing it online while at the same time preparing and being a catalyst for teachers once Web 3.0 tools are introduced. Gareis, Hylton,White, and Moye  discussed the use of “Assessments”, which by the use of tools help to collect data and judge students on areas of struggle and areas of comfort. Assessments were described as better than “evaluations” in the fact that Assessments collect data on students while evaluations just gave the student a percentage. Gareis stated that teachers that taught at a higher level would give assessments that were lower than the standards that were taught during class.

“With the addition of these technologies come great responsibilities and the need for leadership ”. Merisotis and Kee both agree with the need for a leader who monitors how technology is implemented and the right way for it to be implemented in order to meet the requirements of many STEM programs and at the same time introduce students to a new system of technology. This can help technology evolve in the most effective and student beneficial way. Having the opinion of the leader can help districts determine whether a piece of software is necessary or should even be funded. The role of leader also surged various questions such as who the “leader” would be in this scenario. Most theories that have formed suggest the instructor using the technology as the leader therefore the teachers being the ones holding the opinion on the effectiveness of technology. Murphy (2001) stated that the problem with adding and using technologies into school isn’t solely based on the “leaders” but the fact that technology is politically, economically and socially funded and certified. Murphy states that it is up to technology coordinators in all school districts to provide the change and acknowledge different classes that can serve as opinion leaders.

Ozerbus stated that a technology friendly classroom needs specific features and not just a random set of electronics spread across the classroom. This shows how difficult the technological environment must be in order to have acceptable results. According to Ozerbus, students should have their own personal mobile device, some form of communication (internet connection), a screen that the teacher can control that the students can look at and follow along during lectures, an interface where the class can learn together, and a device management system that can be used to charge or store devices. Ozerbus describes these requirements as essential in order to be able to use technology to its full potential.

Research Method

“Research methodology is the procedures by which researchers go about their work of describing, explaining and predicting phenomena. It is also defined as the study of methods by which knowledge is gained. Its aim is to give the work plan of research” . The research I am conducting requires me to use a mixed-method research study in order to attain the best results. A mixed method study is defined as “The type of research in which a researcher of team of researchers combines elements of qualitative and quantitative research approaches  for the purposes of breadth and depth of understanding and corroboration.”

I chose the mixed method research method because it allows me to both gather quantitative data, which is numerical, and qualitative data, which is based on observations. Having these two types of data allows me, the researcher, to better validate my results because of the increase in data and therefore the strengthening in results.

Participants

A total of 5 participants participated in this research to help gather the required data. The surveys were filled out anonymously and were completed through a web link. Also, this survey was required to be completed by teachers that teach High School students. I also sent the survey to teachers in the school I’m currently attending.

Materials

I used a computer to create my survey. I had also used “Survey Monkey”, a survey making website that gathers results once a survey is completed and compiles the data into graphs and charts. The survey, titled “Technology Impact”, included 9 questions that were a mix of numerical and qualitative data. The questions were mostly numerically based and also had a “comment” box in which a teacher could describe their answer or add their opinion in. This helped me achieve the mixed-method research method efficiently.

Procedure

The process in this research was long, but not so hard. When I first began the AP Course I started off by thinking about the simplest, in terms of whether it is doable and in efficiency, topic I could research. I started off on Gun Violence and how it affects different populations of people but noticed It would be a long process which didn’t fit with the time frame I was given in order to conduct my research and compile my data. I had to take the amount of time it took me to collect my data and even the time it took me to find people that were affected by cases of gun violence that would be willing to be part of my research. I decided to take an approach in which I could complete my research in my school which would decrease the time needed to find participants. This led me to use teachers, technology, and their students. Surveys were also a quick and easy method in order to gain results and question teachers quicker, so I decided to stick to that method. I then completed my survey by first introducing myself and my goal. I asked questions that would help me get to know the teacher being surveyed and then gradually started asking the questions that would complement my research best.

REFERENCES

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