What does a well done use of technology in education look like?
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There are a whole lot of terms used to describe how technology is used in education: technology integration, embedded technology, technology infused. I’m not going to explain the hair splitting definitions that separate each of these different terms. Here are some basic “rules of thumb” for effective use of technology in education.
- Having students “creating” on computers (writing, making multimedia, etc.) is much more powerful than just consuming (staring at a screen and answering questions);
- The students should be able to have a chance to manipulate the data/materials, not just the teacher;
- While test prep is easier to do on computers, if that’s all that they are used for you are missing out on a lot of the potential.
Here are some examples of how this looks in practice.
Creating vs. Consuming
Larry Ferlazzo teaches at Luther Burbank, the largest inner-city (high poverty, high language learner) high school in Sacramento City Unified School District. He started using online tools to help teach students that included a large wave of Hmong immigrants, who had no formal schooling prior to going to coming to
