The Ten Fundamental Reasons
for technology in education

Reason 1. Expansion of time and place

In a typical high school a student has access to a teacher 40 minutes per day. That means she has access to that teacher 5% of her waking day, and even that time is shared with 25 classmates. She has access to the Internet 100% of the time. That's 20X better. Technology is no substitute for an inspiring teacher. However, on-line materials are far more available. Twenty times more.
Using the "textbook plus classroom" approach, the places where learning can occur are limited. On the other hand, a wireless laptop has access to the teacher's course material and the entire Internet almost anywhere. This is also a vastly larger resource than can be practically carried on paper in a backpack. Bottom line: information technology allows learning anywhere, anytime; not just in one particular classroom for forty minutes a day.

Reason 2. Depth of Understanding

Interactive simulations and illustrations can produce a much greater depth of understanding of a concept. When virtual manipulatives are used in a classroom setting they can go far beyond chalk and talk. Using a projector, the teacher can conduct onscreen investigations and demonstrate concepts far more easily than with just words and arm-waving. For example see Subtended Angles.
Because the students have access to the same tools over the web, they can reinforce the ideas by experimenting with the simulations themselves, any time, any where.

Reason 3. Learning vs. Teaching

Technology allows the tables to be turned. Instead of teaching (push), students can be given projects that require them to learn (pull) the necessary material themselves. Key to this is the ability to get the information they need any time anywhere, without being in the physical presence of a teacher. This project-based pull approach makes learning far more interesting for the student. I have seen firsthand how students cannot wait to get out of regular classes to go to the after-school robotics project.

Reason 4. New media for self-expression

In the old days, students could write in a notebook, and what they wrote was seen only by the teacher. Using modern technology they can: Make a PowerPoint presentation, record/edit spoken word, do digital photography, make a video, run a class newspaper, run a web based school radio or TV station, do claymation, compose digital music on a synthesizer, make a website, create a blog.

Reason 5. Collaboration

A vital skill in the new digital world is the ability to work collaboratively on projects with others who may not be physically close. This can best be done using modern computer tools such as the web, email, instant messaging and cell phone. Rather than laboring alone on homework, students can work in small groups wherever they happen to be and at any time. They are doing this already (it used to be called cheating) - it can now be formalized and taught as a vital skill. Many university projects are undertaken by teams spread around the world. Students need to be prepared for this.

Reason 6. Going Global

The worldview of the student can be expanded because of the zero cost of communicating with other people around the globe. The Internet permits free video conferencing which permits interaction in real time with sister schools in other countries. From an educational viewpoint, what could be more important than understanding other cultures through direct dialog and collaboration?

Reason 7. Individual pacing and sequence

Students are, of course, all different. Information technologies can permit them to break step with the class and go at a pace and order that suits that student better. Without disrupting the class, they can repeat difficult lessons and explore what they find interesting. With time, it will become more like having a private tutor rather than being lost in a large class.

Reason 8. Weight

Three textbooks and three binders easily weigh over 25lb. A laptop computer weighs about 5lb and provides access to infinitely more material via its own storage and the Internet. A 40Gb hard drive can hold 2 million pages with illustrations; the web is unfathomably large. Right now, students are getting back injuries lugging around a tiny subset of what they need in the form of black marks on slices of dead trees. And it's just static, boring text.

Reason 9. Personal Productivity

Students need productivity tools for the same reasons you do. They need to write, read, communicate, organize and schedule. A student's life is not much different from any knowledge worker, and they need similar tools. Even if they are never used in the classroom, portable personal computers will make a student's (and teacher's) life more effective. To cash in this benefit, schools need to go paperless.

Reason 10. Lower Cost

It is not unusual for a textbook to cost over $120, and in community colleges, where they are purchased by the student, they can cost more than the tuition itself.
Through the use of open, free educational tools on the web, the dependence on expensive paper textbooks can be reduced. There is a growing movement to create and publish this type of material through organizations such as OER Commons. OER stands for Open Educational Resources and the idea is to follow the open source model made popular by software projects such as Linux. Material is created by the educational community itself then freely shared.


http://www.mathopenref.com/site/techreasons.html

 

Education Reform and Computers:
The Connection

 

WITH THE TRENDS of recent reform efforts in mind, how does technology fit into the scheme of revolutionizing education? Simply put, computers provide ample assistance in accomplishing numerous reform goals. From a structural point of view, computer networking is creating a professional bond between teachers as well as administrators never seen before in the history to education. Traditionally, every classroom is an island unto itself, with the teacher instructing, assessing and remediating children with limited contact with other teachers, even within the same school. Networking allows teachers to exchange lesson plans and advice and debate instructional methodologies with peers around the globe at the touch of a keyboard. Instead of waiting for annual summer conferences on successful education reform, they can compare and contrast their work with relative ease and speed. In a sense, the Internet has created electronically a professional fraternity between educators.
In terms of actual instruction, computers are an invaluable tool for providing active collaborative learning and assessment. While basic wordprocessing programs allow students to become independent publishers of ideas and opinions, email provides opportunities for "peer review" and group editing. More sophisticated interactive multimedia packages offer true inquiry-based learning, where students must construct and demonstrate solutions to a variety of in-class projects. This is not to suggest that computers are used in reform to replace the role of the teacher; realistically that would be both undesirable and impractical. Instead, the computer must be recognized as an effective teaching tool which assists the educator. Software offer students individualized learning, so while some students progress on a subject at their own paces, those who begin to fall behind can receive proper interpersonal attention from the instructor. The computer lets the teacher concentrate on interaction and individualized assistance. In a sense, because computers have proven to be a successful tool of reform-minded schools and educators, they are now inextricably linked to the reform movement itself.



http://www.edwebproject.org/edref.connection.html

Advantages and Disadvantages of Computer Networks

Advantages of Networks

File Sharing

The major advantage of a computer network is that is allows file sharing and remote file access. A person sitting at one workstation that is connected to a network can easily see files present on another workstation, provided he is authorized to do so. This saves him/her the hassle of carrying a storage device every time data needs to be transported from one system to another. Further, a central database means that anyone on that network can access a file and/or update it. If files are stored on a server and all of its clients share that storage capacity, then it becomes easier to make a file available to multiple users.

Resource Sharing

Resource sharing is another important benefit of a computer network. For example, if there are twelve employees in an organization, each having their own computer, they will require twelve modems and twelve printers if they want to use the resources at the same time. A computer network, on the other hand, provides a cheaper alternative by the provision of resource sharing. All the computers can be interconnected using a network, and just one modem and printer can efficiently provide the services to all twelve users.

Inexpensive Set-Up

Shared resources mean reduction in hardware costs. Shared files mean reduction in memory requirement, which indirectly means reduction in file storage expenses. A particular software can be installed only once on the server and made available across all connected computers at once. This saves the expense of buying and installing the same software as many times for as many users.

Flexible Handling

A user can log on to a computer anywhere on the network and access his files. This offers flexibility to the user as to where he should be during the course of his routine. A network also allows the network administrator to choose which user on the network has what specific permissions to handle a file. For example, the network administrator can allot different permissions to User A and User B for File XYZ. According to these permissions, User A can read and modify File XYZ, but User B cannot modify the file. The permission set for User B is read-only. This offers immense flexibility against unwarranted access to important data.

Increased Storage Capacity

Since there is more than one computer on a network which can easily share files, the issue of storage capacity gets resolved to a great extent. A standalone computer might fall short of storage memory, but when many computers are on a network, the memory of different computers can be used in such a case. One can also design a storage server on the network in order to have a huge storage capacity.

Disadvantages of networks

Security Concerns

One of the major drawbacks of computer networks is the security issues that are involved. If a computer is a standalone computer, physical access becomes necessary for any kind of data theft. However, if a computer is on a network, a hacker can get unauthorized access by using different tools. In case of big organizations, various network security software need to be used to prevent theft of any confidential and classified data.

Virus and Malware

If even one computer on a network gets affected by a virus, there is a possible threat for the other systems getting affected too. Viruses can spread on a network easily, because of the inter-connectivity of workstations. Moreover, multiple systems with common resources are the perfect breeding ground for viruses that multiply. Similarly, if malware gets accidentally installed on the central server, all clients in the network that are connected to that server will get affected automatically.

Lack of Robustness

If the main file server of a computer network breaks down, the entire system becomes useless. If there is a central linking server or a bridging device in the network, and it fails, the entire network will come to a standstill. In case of big networks, the file server should be a powerful computer, which often makes setting up and maintaining the system doubly expensive.

Needs An Efficient Handler

The technical skills and know-how required to operate and administer a computer network is considerably high. Any user with just the basic skills cannot do this job. Also, the responsibility that comes with such a job is high, since allotting username-passwords and permissions to users in the network are also the network administrator's duties. Similarly, network connection and configuration is also a tedious task, and cannot be done by an average user who does not have advanced knowledge of computers and/or networking.

Lack of Independence

Since most networks have a centralized server and dependent clients, the client users lack any freedom whatsoever. Centralized decision making can sometimes hinder how a client user wants to use his own computer.

Computer networks have had a profound effect on the way we communicate with each other today, and have made our life easier. From the World Wide Web to your local office LAN, computers have become indispensable in daily life, and networks have become a norm in most businesses. If networks are designed and configured keeping in mind its pros and cons, they are the best piece of facility you could ever have.

By: Swapnil Srivastava

http://www.buzzle.com/articles/advantages-and-disadvantages-of-computer-networks.html

Imporatance of Technology in Education

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