By: Keerthana Vinod
The phrase, “It’s always because of that gosh darn phone,” is something most of us have heard before. From headaches to procrastination, the cause can always be traced back to our phones. Despite all of the negative stigma around phones and other technological devices, are they really all that bad? This question mainly arises in educational settings. So, today, we’ll be taking a deep dive in order to refute the claim that all bad things come from phones and technology by looking at its place within classrooms.
Despite what common sense might tell you, the adoption of technology-based learning actually makes learning more accessible to students. Textbooks and workbooks were costly in that separate copies were needed for each student. These extra costs may lead to education not being affordable to many families. However, with the use of school-provided laptops and iPads, the school and its patrons are able to save money, while the students are able to carry all of their textbooks in a compact, easy way. Not to mention, it saves them from a lifetime of back pain!
Another common misconception is that we are consistently isolating ourselves by staring into a screen all day long. This couldn’t be farther from the truth. With the rise of the internet alongside handheld and portable devices, we are more interconnected than ever. This provides countless opportunities in the classroom to learn from others that may not be in the direct vicinity. For example, a class studying the wildlife in the sea could get in touch with a marine biologist by means of a Zoom meeting. In this way, the students would be able to have an interactive, immersive, and memorable experience with a specialist that relates to the topic that they’re learning about.
Another favorite falsehood people like to prey on is that younger generations are less adaptable because they wouldn’t be able to survive without their precious WiFi. However, it can be argued that the opposite is true. Technology allows students to be more adaptable with their learning. Both teachers and students can shape a custom educational journey through a variety of different learning techniques such as games, videos, interactive study guides, and more. It provides more versatility than ever before, helping cater to each student’s needs.
So yes, even if technology can have its downsides, we tend to forget that there can be many positives to it as well. By just looking at the field of education, we’ve discovered that it makes learning more accessible, connects students with others, and makes the educational experience adaptable among the countless other benefits it brings. So, in a way, I agree with the sentiment that everything is due to our devices. It is because of that “gosh darn phone” that education has taken a turn for the better in the 21st century.
Works Cited
Bay Atlantic University. 2022. “How Does Technology Impact Student Learning?” Bay Atlantic University. June 3, 2022. https://bau.edu/blog/technology-impact-on-learning/.
Richardson, Kerri Elizabeth. 2024. “How Has Technology Changed Education?” Purdue University College of Education. January 1, 2024. https://education.purdue.edu/2024/01/how-has-technology-changed-education/.
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