Sitting in the back of class, you can easily see several students scrolling on their phones and playing video games on their computers, blatantly ignoring the teacher lecturing. Technology has been proved to have many benefits in the classroom, but at what point are the consequences outweighing the positives?
Forced by Covid to adjust to online learning, using technology to educate became not only beneficial, but necessary. During distance learning tools like Zoom and Google Classroom were used to keep students engaged and learning. Every online platform had to quickly adjust to helping students learn. When schools were opened, and students began to come back into the classroom, the separation between education and technology was a blurred line. “From classroom management software to attendance tracking to the online tools that allowed students to meet safely during the pandemic, platforms guide nearly every student interaction in schools today” (stanford.edu). Even at Westmont, students and teachers heavily rely on Canvas, Google Docs, Gmail, and many more platforms to create, write, and submit work.
Every student is given a chromebook at the beginning of the year. By not only encouraging, but requiring students to bring a device to school, schools are encouraging an increase in screen time. “As educators are being pushed to use more technology, they are in turn creating more and more screen time for their students…. Evidence suggests that screen time is deleteriously associated with numerous health indicators in child and youth populations” (nwcommons.edu). Having technology readily available in every class also allows more students to easily get distracted and not pay attention to their classes. When completing a task on the school’s mandatory chromebooks, students often will play video games, watch shows, or do work for other classes instead of working on the task assigned. Teachers cannot always be monitoring every chromebook, and despite attempts of platforms like GoGaurdian, students always seem to find ways around it. Technology in the classroom also provides an easy out for students who don’t want to complete their work. Chemistry worksheet too hard? Look up the title and you’ll find it online. Too lazy to analyze a book in english? Chat Gpt will give you the answer. By giving students access to devices that will complete their work for them and help them cheat, schools are taking away learning opportunities. Busy work is easily completed with AI or homework websites. “Cheat as much as you can ” remarked one teacher at the start of a test earlier this year in one of my class periods.
Another downside of technology in the classroom is the extinction of good handwriting. Students struggle with AP tests, finals, and other written assignments because having essays on docs, tests on canvas and one pagers submitted online have eliminated the need for handwriting in the classroom. Writing information has proven to be a memorization tactic, and typing everything out has taken away that. Long term memorization as well as preparation for future jobs has been overall eliminated.
Some institutions, such as the Waldorf Schools, have eliminated technology in their classrooms. The model of the Waldorf Schools is promoted on their website: “Waldorf teachers bring academics to life with vivid narratives, class discussions, hands-on experiments, artful chalkboard drawings, and other engaging techniques—all without the use of computers.” This alternative education system has produced great results, students that publish their art in newspapers and go to top colleges.
While technology can be used as a beneficial tool in education, the misuse and overuse has made screens more harmful than helpful.