I admit it—I have a strong bias toward information technology in the writing classroom or any classroom for that matter. I also have some caution in its use as well. For the benefit of context, I think we all know that information technology is everywhere—it has in some ways become nearly transparent. It lives in our midst, sometimes in unrecognizable ways—at times we are its master and at times we are its slave. It is not going away; will not go away. Our students have access to it and are using it for various reasons at younger and younger ages.
About my bias—just a few words about where I’ve come from may highlight my bias toward technology. I have a degree in computer programming technology. I worked several years in corporate information systems teaching employees how to use fourth generation programming language to retrieve and format departmental data. I also spent time maintaining an online “end user help” system for a business management system network. Further, I have developed online self-study programs for employees who work in technical fields. Thus, you can see the source of my bias. From my experience, I can say without a blink of the eye that information technology and information systems surround and support nearly every aspect of work in the workplace. Information technology is accepted and used by nearly all employees in the business where I worked.
Therefore, as a teacher, I view technology as an invaluable tool for managing the information I need as a teacher. My assignments are created electronically, my grades are submitted electronically, and I communicate with my students electronically. My students word process their essays (electronically) so, in effect, they are technology users as well. In addition, through information technology I have at my fingertips a world of resources to call upon at a moment’s notice. At the campus where I teach, every classroom is equipped with a computer, Internet access and overhead projection equipment. So, if you also teach in an environment like this, I say “go for it”. Use these tools to bring the outside world into your classroom.
My caution about the use of technology in the learning environment has to do with the amount of time students spend reading text online versus from a printed source (book). While attending the Indiana Teachers of Writing Fall Conference (2008), I sat in a discussion titled “Transporting Kids into the ‘Reading Zone’”. While the focus of the discussion was about teaching reading as documented in Nancie Atwell’s The Reading Zone, Dr. Faye Plascak-Craig, a psychologist from Marian College, spoke a little about brain research and adolescent brain development regarding prolonged periods of reading text from a page versus text from a computer screen.[i] According to Dr. Plascak-Craig, research is showing that the adolescent brain responds and develops differently based on the source of the text. Prolonged reading of text from a computer screen inhibits brain development in ways that keep students from achieving “the reading zone” as they read. Entry into this “zone” is desirable while reading a book since it serves to transport the student into the story coming from the book. Given this, they are better able to develop deeper meaning from what they are reading—they personally experience the story and the characters in the book. She prefaced her comments by saying this is a new area of brain research and concluded by urging teachers (and parents) to consider the amount of time students spend reading text from a computer screen.
[i] My recounting of Dr. Plascak-Craig’s presentation is anecdotal, as I am recalling it from memory and do not have a handout from her session. What I remember most about her talk is the undesirable side effect of the large amount of time adolescents spend in front of electronic sources such as televisions and computer screens rather than reading from books.
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Naomi, your background should prove valuable in your teaching this younger generation. Your caution is well taken, too. Perhaps further research will dispel this difference that the psychologist noted (I attended that session, too), but we can do our own research in a way. Have our students read online and on paper and note the differences, much as we did in class with our writing experiment. I think helping students be aware of how technology functions in our lives is crucial precisely because it has become so transparent. Steve
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