Karen Cator, director of the Office of Educational Technology, mentions in the interview that “technology facilitates communication, engagement, interaction, and understanding” (Scherer, 2011, 17). With proper application, it can improve the existing classroom practices. For example, discussions on the given topic I the classroom are expected to be challenging and interesting. However, many students are too shy to participate actively and, as a result, only few people say their arguments aloud. Turker (2013) suggests online discussions as an alternative to the classroom ones. They allow the participants to express their thoughts anonymously, thus providing more engagement in the task. Another practice that may be improved due to the technology is the communication with students and the information spread. I used to think that e-mailing students with news or tasks was modern and useful. Nevertheless, the idea of building a class website (Dappolone, 2013) provider broader opportunities. The possibility to place various information, important announcements, schedule and its changes, classroom materials, readings for the following lessons will have a positive impact on the learning process since the students will have access to the necessary information 24/7 even if they missed the class. The third practice which needs enhancement is teaching writing. Here the technology can be applied in creating blogs for teaching writing (Dappolone, 2013). Publishing on the Internet can be particularly challenging for teenagers. Besides, readers’ comments may stimulate young writers for further development.
The educational technologies I already apply are as follows. First of all, it is online research. It can be used in any subject (Dappolone, 2013). It is good for small researches and enables fast access to various information. Students are usually engaged in the research process to find the unusual or unexpected information. Secondly, technology is a perfect tool for expert group investigations (Turker, 2013). The members of a group communicate in a chat, can add information on a Google document and create presentations on an online resource on their choice. Such online cooperation saves time since students do not need to find the place to gather together to complete the research project. Besides, it provides equal participation opportunities for every student. Thirdly, I consider the close-reading activities fruitful. For example, the readings of books and stories can be followed by watching videos, listening to related music or reading discussions (Kist, 2013). I suggest comparing the texts and the video or analyze the influence of musical background on the plot perception. It helps to develop critical thinking and speech competence.
However, technology in the classroom is sometimes misused. Often computers are used “for their own sake” (Dappolone, 2013, 72). Such approach adds nothing to the learning process. The technology should not be a distracting factor, but a facility. Another way to misuse technology is to rely on it without any understanding of its opportunities and certain goals. Kirst (2013) states that “More powerful than a room full of gadgets is a teacher who has a deep understanding of what the new forms of reading and writing entail.” Thus, it is the task of a teacher to guide students in their use of gadgets for learning. Finally, school sometimes fails “to use technology meaningfully” (Moorefield-Lang, 2012, 31). It is connected with the improper use of digital graphic novels that can be an efficient medium in a modern school. Thus, there is a necessity for instructions that will guide the use of media sphere in education.
Ferris (2013) discovered the differences in perception of text when reading a paper book and reading from a screen. Reading of printed books provokes particular reactions in the human brain and helps to remember the information. Often people memorize the location of this or that passage in the text. Other useful habits to improve memorizing of the information may be making bookmarkers or highlighting the important passages. These habits can be applied with reading from a computer or tablet. The technology enables the same action of electronic devices. I would advise the students to use bookmarks to remember the pages they consider the most interesting or important. Besides, digital reading devices give the opportunity to highlight the text with different colors. It can be used to read for discussions of researches and simplify the following work with a book or article.
Among various kinds of books, graphic novels are those that “can add value to literacy instruction, especially for struggling or disaffected readers” (Rapp, 2011, 64). Sometimes children are not good in acquiring reading skills due to the low motivation and lack of interest. These students can be encouraged for reading with comic books and graphic novels. First of all, comic books develop comprehension trough integration of pictures and text. Secondly, comic books contribute to the development of critical thinking skills through prediction activities. Another way of using a comic novel is to compare it with a full version of the same story. This kind of stories may be helpful in teaching writing since it presents the events systematically. Finally, graphic novels are engaging to some readers who need particular support.
References
Dappolone, M. (2013). Making best practices better. Educational Leadership, 70(6), 69-72.
Ferris, J. (2013). Why the brain prefers paper. Scientific American, 309(5), 48-53.
Kist, W. (2013). New literacies and the common core. Educational Leadership, 70(6), 38-43.
Moorefield-Lang, H. (2012). These aren’t your father’s funny papers. Knowledge Quest, 40(3), 30-35.
Rapp, D.N. (2011). Comic books’ latest plot twist: Enhancing literacy instruction. Phi Delta Kappan, 93(4), 64-67.
Scheer, M. (2011). Transforming Education with technology: A conversation with Karen Cator. Educational Leadership, 68(5), 16-21.
Turker, C.R. (2013). The basis of blended instructions. Educational Leadership, 70(6), 57-60.