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This is a collection of reflections I have done on readings pertaining to the use of computers and technology in the classroom. A brief synopsis of each article is provided on this page. Click on the link for a more detailed overview of the article.
General Computer Use In The Classroom Computer Use In History/Social Studies Summation
Reading #1: Brief Synopsis:
This website document is concerned with reviewing the current usage of computers in the classroom, giving an overview of the possible uses of computers in the classroom and developing some goals in this area. Each section which looks at current usage examines how current usage can be sustained, improved and made an integral part of education. In some cases, the issues of professional development, assessment, school-community partnerships, and implementing project-based learning are discussed as well.
Reading #2: Brief Synopsis:
This chapter is about how technology has gained control over social institutions and national life. Postman calls this a technopoly. Postman is hostile to the social sciences, which he regards as allies of the technopoly. We are living in an age of information glut and fail to realize the dangers inherent in this glut. The tie between information and human purpose has been severed.
Reading #3: Brief Synopsis:
As the title suggests, this article states that information is all about surprises. You learn something when things do not turn out the way you expected. We learn from a long series of surprises that we gradually store in our memory. We categorize these events in our minds. This type of learning can be handled by a computer. The teacher should not be handling this sort of learning. The teacher should be available for the type of learning that requires human interaction.
Reading #4: Brief Synopsis:
Weizenbaum asserts that "the machines of man have strongly determined his very understanding of his world and hence of himself." Man's tools are pedagogical instruments and are used to help fashion man's imaginative reconstruction of the world. The tool is not just a device, it is an agent for change. These tools and modern science have resulted in a rejection of direct experience with the world, thus alienating man from nature.
Reading #5: Brief Synopsis:
Romanyshyn begins his prologue by talking about the power of technology as being awe-ful, filling us with wonder and causing us to dream. It is the magic of the modern world. To a great degree technology has gone beyond the life of imagination rather than being the realization of imagination. We must avoid the use of the power of technology to reduce all depths to visibility. Technology is the working out of a shared cultural dream, the acting out of the human imagination in the world. It is powered by conscious intentions and unconscious motivations. Dreams are a part of this work, which draws upon both darkness and light. Romanyshyn calls upon us to attend to our cultural dreams of technology, to their shadows and silences, as a cultural symptom, to remember what might be forgotten on the surfaces of things and events. This is a way not only of saying that something is wrong, but that it can be made right. If we don't remember these dreams then they can become a nightmare of destruction.
Reading #6: Brief Synopsis:
This article looks at various interpretations of what Social Studies is and proceeds to consider how these interpretations will determine how computers can be used in teaching Social Studies. Whether various programs are qualitative or quantitative in nature plays a role in making such decisions. The three main philosophical traditions in studying Social Studies fall into the following categories: Social Studies as citizenship transmission, Social Studies as Social Science and Social Studies as reflective inquiry. The use of computers for teaching Social Studies will vary according to which philosophical assumption one is operating on. Brady examines particular software programs to see how they fit the various models.
Reading #7: Brief Synopsis:
The authors of this article assert that debriefing has long been missing when doing simulations for learning. With the growing use of computer games and simulations debriefing is taking on more importance than in the past. The authors see debriefing as an essential activity if learning is to take place when using simulations. This is what separates a game from a learning activity.
Reading #8: Brief Synopsis:
Farnworth believes there is a natural link between history and computers because they are both information based so history teachers should exploit this link. Word processing, spreadsheets, charting and data processing can all play a role in doing history with computers.
Reading #9: Brief Synopsis:
Ruef and Layne conducted a limited study on the effects of the use of computers on instruction in the Social Studies. However, although the study was limited it does have some value. It should be noted at the outset that Layne is an avid computer user who believes that the computer is a useful tool. Much of the article is devoted to describing the parameters of the test and its limitations, which need not be dealt with here other than to note that a small number of students were tested.
Reading #10: Summation of My Thoughts on Computers in Education
I hope you have found these readings to be informative and enlightening.
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