I recently read an
article entitled, "The Education-Technology Revolution Is Coming" by
Sig Behrens who is the president of Blackboard INC. Behrens says that
there are many reasons and advantages of technology in the classroom but the
main reason is because of active learners. These active learners can be found
in any classroom, all because of the technological tools they use at home
(computers, TV’s, smartphones, etc). Because of these everyday technological
tools, educational changes will no longer be pressured and derived from the
institution but the learner instead. Think about it. Students know what engages
them best outside of school so why not use similar ways to engage them in the
classroom? Behrens offered an example of how powerful technology could be on a
company. Borders (remember that store?) was having difficulty adapting to the
technological changes which ultimately lead to the drastic change of going
bankrupt. Amazon, however, adapted quickly to the digital era and allowed
customers to have control online. He connects this to education by saying:” Education
institutions are now grappling with the same challenge Borders faced: how to
connect with savvier and more discerning consumers who have more options today
than they did even a few years ago.” These active learners know what they want
and get it in a matter of minutes. Instead of spending hours researching and
looking for valid sources at the library, they can simply use their mobile apps
to do all that in a fraction of the time. Simply described, it is convenient,
which is why this should be heavily emphasized in the education spectrum. It
saves teachers and students time which ultimately leads to more learning
instruction. Furthermore, it is no longer the teacher who provides all of the
instruction because once students become engaged in their education, they offer
their insights and influence and inspire their own lesson plans. These active
learners move fast outside of school, all due to their digital tools but once
they enter the classroom, they are forced to slow down or as Behren says, “power
down” because their classrooms aren’t as updated as they are. On an endnote, it
is no longer for the student to keep up with the teacher, but the teacher to
keep up with the student.
Article: http://www.usnews.com/opinion/articles/2013/03/01/the-education-technology-revolution-is-coming
I don't know why, but whenever I hear the word "revolution", my mind just zaps me to just the Les Miserables barricade screaming, "DO YOU HEAR THE PEOPLE SING! SINGING THE SONG OF ANGRY MEN!" lol. So thank you for titling your blog post that way. I also liked the final line of your post: it is no longer for the student to keep up with the teacher, but the teacher to keep up with the student. Such a deep statement makes you want to snap your fingers. I agree with you, that this sort of article speaks about the convenience of technology within the realm of education. OH YEAH! I also forgot to mention that I used to have a passionate love affair with Borders before the business was butchered by bankruptcy. I used to go there all the time. Now they're gone, I can't help but think back on how teachers are in that Borders type phase. How if we don't adapt to the changes happening in education nowadays, then we'll get massacred on the spot in terms of being fired. We do need to incorporate the positives of technology in our own lessons in order to really appeal to those active learners out there. Needless to say Abeer, I think your blog post is very insightful. And I dig insightful.
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