Laptop Computers Instigate a Classroom Revolution
Have you noticed that laptop computers are beginning to dictate what happens in the classroom?
(PRWEB via PR Web Direct) January 4,
2005 -- Have you noticed that laptop computers are beginning to dictate what
happens in the classroom? Additionally, mobile technology is changing where
learning takes place. This is especially true as laptops are entering the
educational arena in ever increasing numbers.
Yet not all educators are
quick to jump on the notebook bandwagon. They are waiting to see if laptop use
is truly changing learning for the better. That’s why schools such as Framingham
State College in Boston and the Myron B. Thompson Academy in Honolulu are being
scrutinized. Both schools have elected to use laptop computers as a major
resource in their curriculum.
It must be noted that simply having laptop
computer access does not change the learning process - the entire curriculum
must change and merge technology with academics. Using a laptop is more than
replacing paper and pencil with electronics. The entire relationship between the
teacher and students must change. Teachers are no longer merely dispensers of
knowledge but become facilitators in a learning process that takes place with
additional tools for communication with students. This encourages greater
student involvement, long recognized as a key to learning.
Professors
actively engaged in education via technology see laptops as a way to give real
life experiences to otherwise insipid theories. For instance, physics students
can witness the breakdown of radioactive materials, math students can apply
their knowledge of logic to projects that use spreadsheets, and english majors
can evaluate peers’ poetry and prose. With laptop availability in the classroom,
access to additional information and knowledge is readily available.
So
what do students think of the laptop trend? Well most find it invigorating.
Rather than dealing with one dimensional lectures, teachers can engage the
internet to show relevancy to daily life. Out of date, static texts can be set
aside for breaking news stories - and so much more.
As schools show the
link between laptops and learning effectiveness, the trend for laptop use will
certainly grow.
For those opposed to the technological revolution taking
place in today's classrooms, perhaps the words of Maria Montessori should be
heeded.
".....If education is always to be conceived along the same
antiquated lines of a mere transmission of knowledge, there is little to be
hoped from it in the bettering of man's future....."
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Source : http://www.prweb.com/releases/2005/1/prweb194132.htm