NYT – Too much tech?

One comment on “NYT – Too much tech?”

1. Yes! I have a reaction . . . I like the piece and agree with Pinker’s call for more teacher training. I will not belabor the point (made in the op-ed and in many pieces) that tech is still seen as a golden “fix-everything” possibility for challenging educational environments. Yet I have not heard enough the rallying cry for MORE TEACHER TRAINING (not shouting, just enthusiastically urging). In addition to points made by Pinker . . . and I will search for the paper I read a couple years ago . . . there was a wonderful analysis of tech use in schools and I think they found some of what Pinker discussed (massive inequity and poor tech use associated with lack of teacher training and support in using the tech in question), and they also found a larger pattern. It appeared that students in well-resourced schools with well trained teachers were using technology as connective and generative tools and students in poorly-resourced schools were using tech in a more individual and receptive manner. In the latter case, the computer was seen as a transmissive device – sit in front of it and let the knowledge pour into you, even though we strong evidence that method does not work for real learning. On the other hand, schools in the former group were leveraging technology as a social tool for collaboration, exploration, and skill building. While building our children’s tech literacy, I think we must address the growing digital divide.

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