What should be the role of technology in the classroom?

[Joseph41]

I think this is an interesting topic. It's possibly been posted elsewhere - I'll merge if so.

When I started primary school, my year level of ~100 people had two computers between us, and that was a huge deal. I'm pretty sure they'd just been installed. They were the really, really huge ones. Something like this pixelated mess, from memory:

And you could do diddly squat with them.

In Year 12, my year was the very last year at my school not to have personal school laptops, and I was absolutely stoked at that fact. I genuinely would have hated one, and don't think I would have done as well in VCE if we had to use a laptop.

I don't really know what primary schools are like these days. Like, do people of that age have phones? How about Snapping in high school classes and stuff? I feel like the whole thing has changed so dramatically in so little time - and not for the better.

Obviously, there are some really fantastic applications of technology in the classroom. But should we, say, ban mobile phones entirely?

[EEEEEEP]

Yes we should.

We already have laptops with the right content controls for people to not look at non school related things.

Mobile phones make for just a distraction.

[owidjaja]

Obviously, there are some really fantastic applications of technology in the classroom. But should we, say, ban mobile phones entirely?

Oooh interesting topic! I remember in primary school we had a computer lab filled with desktop computers and we would do typing exercises. As someone who spent my childhood playing Mavis Beacon games and Encarta (lmao does anyone even remember those), I would giggle when all the other students typed with one finger when I was already a pro and learnt about where to position my hands on a QWERTY keyboard. Apart from computers, we started to introduce smartboards and everyone loved using the pens and 'draw' all over the smartboard. I remember in Year 6, we installed our first PA and my teacher made his first announcement and we all sat quietly watching the speaker in amazement lol

Come Years 7-10, we were the first year group to use 11' Macbook Air laptops. Previously, the school would provide those old heavy Macbooks in Years 9-10 for a loan so we were lucky. But then it changed to allowing us to keep our Macbook Airs/ 13' Pros (the boys had Macbook Pros -_-) because our school was amalgamating and they wanted to introduce BYOD to the new Year 7's. We were also the first year group in the Senior School to follow the BYOD since the school would provide 13' Macbook Airs but we were had to bring in our own device as long as it fit the minimum requirement of being 11' and was an actual laptop, not a tablet. All the teachers in my senior school recently upgraded to the new Macbook Pro so they're still in that period of adjusting to new cables. And of course, every classroom has a smartboard.

As for phones... boy have they changed. I remember in primary school only like 3 people had an iPod touch or an MP3 player (I had the iPod shuffle so they don't even have a screen lol). I assumed that people get their first phones in Year 7 because that's when you're starting to get older, catch the bus by yourself etc. But these days, I see primary school kids with the latest iPhones it's ridiculous. I remember in Year 9 waiting for the school bus after school and this kid was like to her friend 'Hey let's take a selfie!' and I'm like kfjhkahifhei whu??? Even as a teenager (almost reaching adulthood) I never used that term.

Like I remember in primary school if you brought a device (phone or iPod touch) you had to put it in the office and then they didn't do that in junior/senior school. I used to leave my phone in my locker but then there were cases of people's laptops being stolen so I carried it around me at all times. But I do see people using Snapchat a lot during class when they want to record something funny in class- my issue is that they don't ask permission and if someone's face is accidentally included in the video/photo, the poster doesn't consider this (also I kinda find it annoying when they post pictures of their teachers on Snapchat without asking). There was an incident in my school last year were these people were fighting (and this is rare in my school)- I was in the library so I didn't know what happened, but the assistant principal called everyone on the grass and told everyone that anyone who posts pictures of themselves or others in school uniforms is a breach of the terms and conditions (something along the lines of how that school emblem is technically 'copyrighted'- no idea if this is the right term- under the school and photos that have the school emblem is a breach of the copyright laws).

I do see some benefits of using phones in class. These days, I tend to take photos of the board as a reference or if we didn't have time to finish a powerpoint so I just take pictures of the slides. However, I do see people who just take photos of the board and never look at it again...

Oh yes, as for laptops in classrooms- they are a great resource for textbooks, past papers and Google Drive but the large number of students who watch videos, play games etc. while the teacher is speaking is ridiculous. In junior school, it became a meme where a lot of students would skype each other during class- which to me, beats the purpose of skype because the whole point of skype is to talk to someone but if you're in a video call with someone during class, you can't really talk to them so you end up messaging each other in the chat whilst looking at each other...?

Anyway, this was a great way for my to procrastinate lmao so this post became unexpectedly long.

But interesting topic!

[PhoenixxFire]

I don't think primary school kids should have laptops outside of a computer room, it just seems really unnecessary.

When I was in primary school we had a computer room and if we brought phones we had to leave them with our teacher (I didn't have a phone until year 9 though - if I needed one before that I borrowed one of my sibling's for the day).

At my primary school for the last few years they've had their own ipads which stayed at school during terms, but they could take them home over holidays and keep them at the end of grade 6. They were locked up in the classroom though, the kids didn't have access to them unless they were being used and the apps on them were controlled by the school so I think that's fine.

I don't think primary school kids should have phones on them during the day (except maybe grade 5/6 - when they're old enough that they might need to communicate with parents during the day). I don't see any benefit to them having them, if something happens to a little kid they should be telling their teacher not calling home.

I do think that laptops are a good resource - they make it way easier to share files, for example, without having to worry about who doesn't have a hard copy because they're sick, and who's lost theirs, etc. I wish teachers were better at stopping people from using them when they shouldn't be though. At my old high school we had iPads in year 7 & 8 (who knows why, they were fairly useless ) but they weren't controlled at all (which was a good thing because we bought them, not like primary school). We spent every math lesson in year 8 playing a class game of flappy golf though so they definitely weren't being used responsibly.

Also in primary school I don't think they should be typing, lots of kids will type at home (in games or whatever) but most won't be practising their handwriting.

I don't think phones should be banned (except in younger years) as they can be useful, although mostly for taking photos. I also use mine for writing down homework/reminders, I'm way more likely to see it there. At my school we can also use it for other things (although my school's a bit unorthodox), we have a thing called teams (which is on phones and laptops) and there's a chat section and so if we have a room change or whatever we can see it on there rather than having to turn laptops on. I've also called teachers during class, and had teachers call me during class. Most of the time I misuse my phone privileges to browse AN though haha.

So yeah, that was a rambling post. Overall I guess I think that it shouldn't be banned but it should be controlled better than what it is. Heavily restricted in primary school, and more relaxed in high school. I do think that when people are allowed to use their devices should be better controlled though (which is obviously hard given teachers have 1000 other things to do). I think it should be more flexible though. If people work better on their laptop, they should use their laptop. If they work better on paper, they should use paper. I really hate being forced to type something that I want to hand write.

[Aaron]

I think mobile phones and other tech has a place in the classroom if used correctly.

For me as a teacher, it's about setting those boundaries, shared expectations and rapport building. I personally don't mind the use of phones if it is contributing to their work in some way. I think it's quite counter-productive to ban mobile phones etc. entirely, as students will still find a way around it. IMO it should really be about teachers trying to find ways in which students can positively use their devices for classroom learning.

Obviously when there's a breach of the shared expectations/norms etc, then the confiscation occurs. My students know that they have to ask me first before they use their phones for anything and i'm usually quite accepting and receptive to the requests, provided it's contributing to their work.

I let students listen to music during class as long as the work is completed too. They have to show me at the end of the class whether they have kept their word or not. If not, then it reverts back from next lesson.

The fact that tech essentially fuels everything these days - textbooks, Compass (or another school portal), games/activities etc... paperback textbooks are so 2000.

There's always going to be one or two that ruin it for everybody else, but even with a strict mobile phone policy in place, it still occurs. The last school I was at had a 'not seen not heard' approach and students still managed to use them at lunch etc.... so..

[sweetiepi]

On the primary school front- my sister (in prep, she's nearly 6) and my brother (grade 1, aged 7) share an iPad at home for learning apps such as skoolbo (I think that's how it's spelt) and ABC's reading eggs. They spend quite a fair bit of time on these apps. At school, I believe there's a sort of 1-to-1 iPad system for the older year levels but my siblings occasionally get the communal classroom iPads to use (similar to the old computer on wheels that I used to have in grade 5/6 for the MacBooks). The kids seem to embrace the technology, but occasionally I think (from the older sister perspective) that the iPad at home becomes a bit of a distraction at times. I know my siblings won't get a phone of any sort until they reach high school, as that was the rule imposed on my other sister (17yo) and myself!

My cohort at high school was the first cohort in the school to get our own personalised laptops. This was great and all, but I prefered to have written things down, and often it was all too tempting to find a new way to bypass netscape to access youtube etc- hence again becoming a distraction aha. :')

Phones are definitely a distraction though, but my lecturers at uni are starting to phase in PollEv to combat that problem, aha :')
(I actually didn't have my first proper smart phone until year 10, thinking about it aha 😅)

[turinturambar]

I do see people using Snapchat a lot during class when they want to record something funny in class- my issue is that they don't ask permission and if someone's face is accidentally included in the video/photo, the poster doesn't consider this (also I kinda find it annoying when they post pictures of their teachers on Snapchat without asking). There was an incident in my school last year were these people were fighting (and this is rare in my school)- I was in the library so I didn't know what happened, but the assistant principal called everyone on the grass and told everyone that anyone who posts pictures of themselves or others in school uniforms is a breach of the terms and conditions (something along the lines of how that school emblem is technically 'copyrighted'- no idea if this is the right term- under the school and photos that have the school emblem is a breach of the copyright laws).

I agree with you about posting pictures of others without permission. It seems to have become the default in my lifetime with social media and with cameras in every device, but it has serious consent issues.  And can also raise all kinds of horrible cyber-bullying implications.

Off-topic rant

However, the response from the school sounds very questionable to me.  No, I'm not expert on copyright law, but if one tiny section of a photo can prevent the publication of an entire photo that is (theoretically) a creative act in its own right, then the copyright law is over broad and needs changing.  Otherwise it can exercise a chilling effect on any new creative acts.

Plus there's the minor fact that copyright infringement doesn't actually mean anything till someone takes action on it.  What's the school going to do?  Take the relevant child to court?

Now if it were in some kind of school rules or student contract, that would (to me) be much more sensible.  Taking and sharing photos of others can cause problems, and so the school has good reason to manage it.  Still leaves the question of how you enforce it (Detention?  Suspension?  Expulsion?). But that's got nothing to do with an over broad application of copyright and everything to do with the fact that schools can reasonably set and enforce their own rules.

[Aaron]

In regards to the whole 'taking photos without permission'.. this can have extremely serious ramifications.

Obviously this is very well hidden to students, but there are certain students in every school that have issues re: custody/family domestic issues and as a result are not allowed to have photos taken etc.. I know I have personally experienced this at least once where i've worked where we were forbidden to take any photos with a certain student in it. If they were in it, we weren't allowed to publish/use it in any way.

I would highly advise anybody who does this at school to think twice next time they take a photo of somebody who is unaware of it, as it can have serious personal and legal ramifications for students, which you may not even know about. Even if they're in the background a shot you take of your friend during a study period etc....

Scenario: Student has been in the middle of a serious custody dispute - has to move schools/the area due to safety. Kid decides to be funny and take a photo with said student in it and uploads to social media. Parent/guardian who the student moved away from somehow manages to view the image uploaded with school uniform clearly identifying location. You complete the next part.... think twice. And if you think this doesn't happen, think again. This happens a lot more than you think.. it's very well hidden and teachers/principals with their duty of care do their best to shield it from all students.

Unfortunately given most devices these days have cameras of some kind, things like this are inevitable and tbh even a ban on smartphones won't stop it.. some will push the boundaries and try to be the funny guy.

[Jocoaster]

Well I'm in school now and we're on our devices 24/7 and for sure we're not doing work. In class people play games and people snapchat and instagram every living moment of their life. I can see why people would want access to technology in the classroom as its easier to write notes out but 99.99% of the time people are not using it for educational purposes. These days with instagram and everyone having phones, its basically impossible to control people to whether or not take pictures or videos without consent. In one of the more extreme cases at my sister's high school, a girl was tricked by the popular boys at school camp to have sex with the ringleader and they tape recorded the entire thing. Needless to say, she was slutty Stephanie and had to move schools because of bullying by fellow classmates. Even then, she still had trouble as kids these days can still message you via social media accounts under alternate names or make group chats about you behind your back. Technology is kind of a double edged sword, it has many benefits but also many problems that it brings along with it.