Perils+of+Technology

=**PERILS AND PROMISES OF EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGY**= Pepperdine University's Online Masters of Educational Technology Program: written by Cadre 9

Table of Contents for Perils for Technology

 * 1) [|Introduction]
 * 2) [|Challenges of Technology]
 * 3) [|Cost]
 * 4) [|Obstacles Technology Must Overcome in a Learning Environment]
 * 5) [|Time Issues and the Unreliability of Technology]
 * 6) [|Use and Misuse of Technology]
 * 7) [|Technology Administration]
 * 8) [|Security]
 * 9) [|Potential Problems to Avoid]
 * 10) [|The Incorrect Use of Technology]
 * 11) [|Misallocating Funds]
 * 12) [|New Technology]
 * 13) [|Maximum Access to Technology with Minimal Use]
 * 14) [|Using Technology As The Answer For Everything]
 * 15) [|Safegaurds in Using Educational Technology]
 * 16) [|Technological Help and Programs]
 * 17) [|Continuous Evaluation/Review]
 * 18) [|Maintaining Interpersonal Interaction]
 * 19) [|Maintain Level Playing Field Among All Students]
 * 20) [|References]
 * 21) [|Links]

=1.0 Introduction= //Western society has accepted as unquestionable a technological imperative that is quite as arbitrary as the most primitive taboo: not merely the duty to foster invention and constantly to create technological novelties, but equally the duty to surrender to these novelties unconditionally, just because they are offered, without respect to their human consequences. ~[|Lewis Mumford]//

In the late 1980’s three impulses guided the implementation of technology in the school system: bringing students up to par with the demands of technical skills in today’s workplaces, increase productivity and efficiency of learning, and to learn collaboratively (Cuban, 1993). However, these impulses were not effectively established thereby causing perils of technology.

In a fast-paced world where educators often feel outpaced by rapidly advancing [|technology], perhaps, it is time to take a look at a different side of technological advances. Technology is the "process by which humans modify nature to meet their basic wants" [|http://www.nae.edu/nae/techlithome.nsf/weblinks/KGRG-55A3ER?OpenDocument)] Technology is viewed as tangible objects, including computers, and in particular the focus on access to hardware at the expense of effective pedagogy. (Earle, 2002) What are the challenges that we face as educators and learners as a result of efforts to [|integrate technology] into the curriculum? What does research and past experience tell us to avoid as institutions press forward through the myriad of hardware, software, and related ethical issues that did not exist thirty years ago? Based on these challenges, experiences, and research, what efforts should be made to move the use of technology in education toward its greatest potential?

=2.0 Challenges of Technology= To find the answers to these questions, we will begin by looking at five key challenges. First, we will consider the rising costs related to technology used in learning institutions. Second, we will look to the obstacles technology must overcome in a learning environment. Next, we will discuss the unreliability of technology and time limitations in the classroom. After that, we will consider the use of technology in a system which promotes acquisition before training educators for implementation. And finally, we must look at how decisions are made regarding technology acquisitions and applications in a top-down administrative environment.

2.1 Cost
A growing [|national initiative] to promote technology as one answer in school reform has begun to reflect upon the rising costs of providing the necessary components to keep up with this trend. Researchers who have studied this inclination provide us with alternate insights into the growing movement. Todd Oppenheimer believes that the high-tech industry and the business community have fostered a "high-tech habit" among the school districts to whom they have donated equipment (Oppenheimer, 1997). After delivering and setting up the computer systems, "the companies often drop their support" (Oppenheimer, 1997). The district or school is left with the daunting responsibility of "maintenance of the computer network and the need for constant software upgrades and constant teacher training -- the full burden of which can cost far more than then initial hardware and software combined" (Oppenheimer, 1997). This leads to a cycle of "handouts from other companies," grant writing to cover costs, and turning to the community by asking voters to levy additional taxes (Oppenheimer, 1997). With technology constantly updating, and software changing, a trend which has captured the attention of many. Additionally, a great portion of educational budgets have to be focused on the refresh of hardware, software, network systems, and staff training for the continual upgrades. The money used in these efforts, Cuban says, has been pulled from other educational programs and from extra-curricular activities (Cuban, 2001). In addition, Cuban questions the academic value-add for technology as compared to the dollars spent. “Even with little evidence that investments in information technologies raise test scores or promote better teaching, most school managers use the rhetoric of technological progress to establish legitimacy with their patrons and the private sector” (Cuban, 2001). According to the National Education Technology Plan, “over the past 20 years, America has invested hundreds of billions of dollars in education. For the 2003-04 school year alone, expenditures at local, state and federal levels on elementary and secondary education exceeded $500 billion. Despite the investment, the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) reading scores have remained essentially flat during the same 20- year period” (2004). Also, while many may argue that technology is an useful tool for learning which can potentially bring all students to a level playing field, Stoll emphasizes that implementing technology will result in an exorbitant cost to the school system. The increasing cost of technology is due to the constant need to upgrade computers, staff training, and the development of a technical support team to maintain the systems. Ultimately, the cost of technology will force economic control within our society, which can lead to a knowledge gap and can cause an economic gap in the future. Thus, it is a lose lose situation.

2.2 Obstacles Technology Must Overcome in a Learning Environment
The implementation of technology in learning environments has not been free from criticism. The obstacles that are generated through criticism could be created by many of the other discussion points we will be exploring. These obstacles can be seen as regressive or counter-productive to [|child development] or learning. By identifying the challenges first we will be able to better determine the potential impact of the different discussion points and how they fit into the potential perils of technology.

Judah Schwartz, a professor of education at [|Harvard] and a co-director of the school's Educational Technology Center believes that computers can cause a lack of creativity and isolate students from social interactions. Computers can also cause students to miss out on real world experince, as well as limit their knowledge to only the useage of the tools (Oppenheimer). As children rely on computer programs as a tool to do some of the work for them, many of their basic skills will dwindle such as penmanship, spelling, grammar, and drawing (Stoll, 1995). According to [|Clifford Stoll] this can "foster a golly-gee-whiz attitude instead of a critical thinking" environment often dulling minds. By providing programmed instructions, computer technology does not praise creativity and art (Stoll, 1995). Many of the educational games in the classroom emphasis drilling and "many of these games bow to the tyranny of the right answer" (Stoll, 1995). One of the selling points about computers in the classroom is that it will help make learning fun and enjoyable, thus captivating the students and motivating them to want to learn more. The fear of making learning fun through technology, is that students may loose sight of the fact that learning is a challenge and will often entail a lot of hard work. Finally, it is important to note that our students do not fully comprehend computers as a device for learning and higher level thinking. In his explanation of how students interact with computers, Foti states that, "it is quite clear that, while students aren't afraid of software tools, they don't have a good understanding of how computers work, how they are controlled, or even how they communicate." As educators, we try to prepare students for a lifetime of learning. Since computers are here to stay, we need to overcome the challenges delineated below that technology in the classroom presents.

Some other challenges are that computers break down in ways that the teacher nor student can fix immediately. It is difficult to speak to a group of students with computers on their desks - you can't see everyone, because their monitors are in the way. Also, the keyboards and screens compete for the students' attention. If a student is lost or can't find the control key, the teacher must squeeze behind a row of students and point the right place (Stoll, 1995).Also, it is clear that Hardware, software and infrastructure requirements may be steep. Technology and software require time and effort to master. This can be an impediment for instructors designing a course, and for students, who may need to spend time mastering the technology or software in addition to the course materials.

2.3 Time Issues and the Unreliability of Technology
Learning and acceptance of technology is often very challenging for today's teachers. Their limited class time and challenging schedules do not provide enough time for them to embrace technology. This includes training, equipment maintenance and dealing with the antiquated technology that currently exists in the classrooms today. Any breakdown can cause a class to waste valuable time, and often times they would rather shift gears towards a non-technological back-up, or attempt to troubleshoot and fix the problem. As the computers age, there are more and more breakdowns, causing more interruptions and wasted time in the classroom.

In schools that use [|computer based training] (CBT) or Integrated Learning Systems (ILS), teachers rarely have time to look at the student assessment data from the system. This data on the system is how the teacher can identify any learning benefits for the students (Pflaum, pg. 191). Because most schools do not have a 1:1 ratio of computers to students not all students have equal access to the computer. Larry Cuban stated it best when he said, “Because of the limited time in centers, not every child was guaranteed a turn at a computer” (Cuban, 2001). In this scenario, it is equivalent to not having enough books for the students to study. While some researchers believe that there is some very good software content that can have an important impact on children learning, if teachers don't spend the time to preview the software to identify desired outcomes and make good choices, students may be wasting time playing games witih minimal value.

2.4 Use and Misuse of Technology
One major challenge with any technology is inappropriate usage--either not using it as intended, or overusing it. This challenge preys on the inexperienced teacher and could have negative effects on children's health and learning experience. The same problems that can effect adults can effect children, such as proper ergonomics, straining eyes, or developing antisocial behaviors. These are serious challenges that need to be considered when deciding how computer technology will be used in classrooms.

There is a very large amount of [|software] on the market that is sold as educational, but if the teacher is not proficient with technology or doesn't have extra time to research and assess software, they may be using detrimental software. "Judah Schwartz, a professor of education at Harvard and a co-director of the school's Educational Technology Center...acknowledges that perhaps 'ninety-nine percent' of the educational programs are 'terrible, really terrible' "(Oppenheimer). In addition, schools that try to adapt technology into its curriculum often cannot integrate it effectively into the classroom. Often times computers are mainly used for class preparation rather then direct instruction (Shields, Behrmam, 2000). When technology is used to occupy the children's time, we run the risk of giving them access to information, but not having the savy to interpret it. It is also understood that schools primarily use computers for productivity tasks such as typing and research rather than as learning machines (Foti, 2007) .According in to Clifford Stoll, "lacking critical thinking, kids are on-screen innocents who confuse form with content, sense with sensibility, ponderous words with weighty thought". He also feels that technology can inhibit the child's imagination and creativity. It also impacts their ability to learn using their minds, not the computer (Stoll, 1999). If technology is not optimized effectively in a classroom, then it can be easily misused in a non-productive way and the learning can be reduced to just cutting and pasting.

There are also psychological issues that have arisen, such as a report published by the [|American Psychologist] in September 1998, which explores the issues associated with our increased interactions over the Internet. It is entitled “The Internet Paradox – A Social Technology That Reduces Social Involvement and Psychological Well-Being?” In their report, they “found an average increase in depression by 1 percent for every hour spent on-line per week. Knowing this, we must proceed cautiously with introducing our children to technology that increases loneliness, depression, and decreases the number of close friendships. Technology is touted as a means to connect our children to the world. Time spent at a computer prevents them from developing motor dexterity and emotional attachments. Also, computers are interactive, but only with one student, so social skills don’t have much of a chance to develop (Stoll, 1995). Additionally, kids are spending more time in front of computers than participating in physical activities, which can have a number of physical effects. Computer use may be related to increased problems with obesity and staring at a computer screen for too long can damage children's vision (Shields, Behrmam, 2000).

By not learning from past technological advances in education, there is a disconnect with how learning from past experiences will improve present and future situations. As explained by Earle, the promises and possibilities of technology hardware has overshadowed the need to view technology as one of the many mediums used to create value in a integration of technology into curriculum. (Earle, 2002)

2.5 Technology Administration
A recent call has heralded that technology must be integrated into the curriculum in order that students may be prepared for the world in which they will live as adults. In fact, some form of integration is mandated in the curriculum of most school districts in the nation whether using the [|ISTE standards], state standards, or those written locally. Unfortunately, many teachers remain unprepared to answer the call. As educators given the responsibility of implementing a mandated curriculum, their voices are not heard regarding their needs to carry out these plans, yet they are blamed when such integration falls short. "Seldom have teachers been asked what works best for them in various circumstances with different students. Because technology vendors sell to administrators, teachers often end up using machines that are far too complex for their classroom needs" (Cuban, 2001). Often times teachers are told what to do by administrators, but are not given the assistance needed to implement technology use in the classroom (Tyack and Cuban, 1995). Such help may come in the form of voice in the design of technology plans, or in the form of staff development programs specifically geared toward their needs (Cuban, 2001). Differing priorities between administrators and teachers has led to challenges in integration of technology into instructional purposes. Teachers would like to see funding be allocated to providing more computers in the classroom, as opposed to teacher training, which is the viewpoint of administrators. (Earle, 2002)

2.6 Security
A key part of implementing technology in any environment is maintaining security in the environment. One of the most recent problems with security is identity theft. This is especially true in educational environments because students usually have very clean credit records and our the perfect targets for identity theft. A recent article in SC magazine talks specifically about the identity theft problem (Carr 2007). The article specifically talks about the dangers of peer-to-peer file sharing, proxy servers and the difficulty in locking down unmanaged computers and laptops.

Most people see the necessity of securing computer and networking equipment. Machines cost money, and therefore have value unto themselves. But if you take a moment to consider why organizations are so willing to spend large amounts of money on technology--to store, access, and transmit information--the value of the information becomes more apparent. After all, it makes no sense to spend vast amounts of limited resources on a system for processing information unless the information itself is of value. And because information has become so useful, it's not only the hardware and software that demand protection, but also the data. When information is lost, damaged, or otherwise unavailable when needed, it can have a serious effect on the day-to-day operations of an education organization. And when the information at risk is an individual student record, the consequences can be even more serious. What would be the damage, for example, if student report card files were modified inappropriately or confidential student aptitude scores were revealed improperly? (Szuba 1998)

=3.0 Potential Problems to Avoid= New innovation and techniques usually bring of positive improvements and benefits to users. However there are always potential pitfalls and problems that can easily arise. The use of modern technology in educational instruction is still a fairly new practice. There are many potential problems that should be avoided in order to harness any of the potential benefits of using technology and new techniques. There are five areas that have the potential to reverse any positive aspects of technology. Incorrect use, financial misallocations, replacing human interaction, minimal or non-use, and using technology as an answer for all problems are areas that deserve examination as they threaten the successful implementation of technology into a learning environment.

3.1 The Incorrect Use of Technology
Like any tool, technology can be used incorrectly or in ways that do nothing to benefit the student. Administrators and teachers should avoid these pitfalls in a successful integration of technology into the curriculum. Just as the film projector and VCR could be improperly used for respite from actual "teaching" in years past, the computer as "Edutainment" may focus on more entertainment then education. Edutainment is using the strategies that seem to make computer applications to help students learn. This software often defines learning as drill and practice and it is unclear what a computerized multimedia presentation adds to education. Some worry that this approach to learning will reduce student's creativity. Oppenheimer (1997) questions this outcome: "One small but carefully controlled study went so far as to claim that Reader Rabbit, a reading program now used in more than 100,000 schools, caused students to suffer a 50 percent drop in creativity" (Oppenheimer, 1997). Some educators question the value of early childhood exposure to computers, particularly in the years form preschool to third grade, when a child is most impressionable (Oppenheimer, 1997).

> “In pressing early childhood teachers to use computers with eye-catching software for tykes, zealous parents > and educators have not transformed preschools and kindergartens into new and different versions of > ‘good schools’. Rather, they have watched a technological innovation get reinvented into a benign addition > to traditional early childhood programs” (Cuban, 2001).

Such additions into the classrooms might have serious ramifications. Specialists in early childhood development value the whole development of the child using their senses to learn-- emotionally, intellectually and socially -- before introducing something as "technical and one-dimensional as a computer" (Oppenheimer, 1997). Oppenheimer further argues that the human and physical world holds greater learning potential than computers. Indeed, using technology to replace real world experiences, when available to a student, sends the wrong message: "that the mediated world is more significant than the real one" (Oppenheimer, 1997). The impressionable nature of young children makes some worry about the trend to use technology to advertise, not educate. In many of the programs made available to schools at no cost, students of all ages are bombarded with banner ads (Cuban, 2001). And a lack of understanding on the part of both teachers and students threatens a generation of students reared on Internet research: being unable to distinguish the legitimacy of the information available on the Internet. Using unscholarly sources for educational information leads to a confusion of students. Also with ready access to sites that sell student essays, students can use technology to cheat themselves out of learning. Students need instruction in how to evaluate what they find and to appropriately cite Internet sources. In addition, students are often confused by what is valid and credible information, often citing sources that are written on blog spaces or from student-created sites. With such wide open access to wikis and wikipedia sites, students are taking the information from these sites as factual, allowing little room for what past encyclopedias and books worked hard to prevent.

3.2 Misallocating Funds
Administrators risk causing more harm than good by spending valuable and limited school funds on technology purchases. It is important to prioritize and spend the limited money properly (Stoll, 1995). In the late-nineties, Todd Oppenheimer reports, school districts across the United States slashed programs in art, music, and physical education in favor of purchasing classroom computers (Oppenheimer, 1997). Ironically, teachers polled at the time often supported these cuts:

> "U.S. teachers ranked computer skills and media technology as more 'essential' than the study of > European history, biology, chemistry, and physics; than dealing with social problems such as > drugs and family breakdown; than learning practical job skills; and than reading modern > American writers such as Steinbeck and Hemingway or classic ones such as Plato and > Shakespeare" (Oppenheimer, 1997).

The backlash, according to Oppenheimer, has at times been strong, at times based on additional studies. A series of studies suggested that "music and art classes may build the physical size of a child's brain, and its powers for subjects such as language, math, science, and engineering -- in one case far more than computer work did" (Oppenheimer, 1997). Shop classes, a source of hands-on engineering, have nearly been eliminated, removing a practical, vocational educational offering in favor of computer literacy (Oppenheimer, 1997). The replacing of real-world experience with the "multimedia razzle-dazzle" offered by computers may communicate to children and teachers a belief that technological simulation is superior in cognitive benefits to real-world experience.

The money spent on initial implementation of technology in a school as well as the long-term costs associated with maintenance and upkeep can cause a misallocation of funds better suited for better purposes within the district. "In appropriating substantial funds for sustaining technology in a given district, administrators often leave other pressing needs unmet" (Cuban, 2001). The "high-tech habit" Oppenheimer believes imprisons schools in software licensing contracts and annual upgrades might not provide the benefits that technology promises.

3.3 Maximum Access to Technology with Minimal Use
Even when schools have technology available, some do not integrate it into curriculum or the classroom in any meaningful fashion. Clifford Stoll equated computers of the classroom of the 1990s to the filmstrips he has watched as a young student:

> "'We loved them because we didn't have to think for an hour, teachers loved them because > they didn't have to teach, and parents loved them because it showed their schools were > high-tech. But no learning happened" (Oppenheimer, 1997).

In some schools, Cuban reports, computers are used for basic word processing and internet browsing rather than tightly integrating computers' multimedia capabilities into classrooms of the future (Cuban, 2001). Teachers are partly to blame. Many are stuck at what McKenzie, (2000) termed Stage 3, or "electronic traditionalists," educators who see implementation of technology in the classroom as "an extension of traditional classroom functions" (McKenzie, 2000). Cuban agrees, stating, “Most teachers adapted an innovation to fit their customary practices, not to revolutionize them” (Cuban, 2001). With a lack of instruction from teachers who are equally mis-equipped for properly integrating technology into the classroom, the computer becomes nothing more than an expensive typewriter, according to Cuban (2001). To illustrate Cuban and Mc Kenzie's previous observations of teachers not being properly trained to a level of "techno-constructivist" technology and having maximal access but minimal use for change in schools, The Assistant Principal of Compton High School (In 2001) explained she had an entire computer lab filled with Macs equipped with Photoshop. This expensive program, was essentially unusable because the current teacher and students did not know how to use the program. They were able to have a Photoshop instructor come to the school and spend one day working with the teacher and students. However this oversight in expecting that the purchase of software is sufficient, and not investing the money in teacher support for learning is an ongoing problem.

3.4 Using Technology As The Answer For Everything
Technology cannot be treated as the silver bullet or answer to all of education's needs. Cuban warns against making broad claims that technology in the classroom can raise test scores (Cuban, 2001). The engagement that a computer creates might help the students' learning experiences, for "just because it's on a monitor, kids pay more attention." (Cuban, 2001; Oppenheimer, 1997). But using technology as "a swift fix for problems that have historically faced educators" will not solve the problems educators might hope it will (Cuban, 2001). Instead of being an end-all answer, technology will often solve a "non-problem," according to Stoll, in the process creating "a slow of new ones." (1995) Exposure of young children in particular to technology has troubling implications. "'They don't link ideas,'" complains one teacher, of her students, "'They just write one thing, and then they write another one, and they don't seem to see or develop the relationships between them" (Oppenheimer, 1997). Jane Healy (1999) warns that unproven technologies "may offer lively visions, but they can also be detrimental to the development of the young plastic brain.". Stoll additionally warns of over-stimulation that computers can cause for children as well as adults (Stoll, 1995). For older students the biggest worry is complacency and thoughtlessness. Alan Lesgold, a professor of psychology and director of a learning center at the University of Pittsburgh, calls the computer an "'amplifier,'" one that "encourages both enlightened study practices and thoughtless ones (Oppenheimer, 1997). Oppenheimer warns that this model has the potential, through "thoughtless practices" to "dominate, slowly dumbing down huge numbers of tomorrow's adults" (1997). Stoll observes that good teachers will continue to be good teachers whether or not they use computers in their classroom, just as bad teachers will remain such with a computer in the classroom or not. Thus, computers in the classroom "are not the panacea for the educational system" (Stoll, 1999). Stoll complains about computer technology being more of a detriment, and that they really do not do anything. Yet, in reality the blackboard (old fashioned type that requires chalk) is also a kind of technology. In and of itself it does nothing. A teacher can fill it with lots words that signify nothing, or write a short haiku expressing a depth of feelings or a math equation expressing a philosophical view of the universe. The board, or the computer is just the vehicle for the content provided by the individual or group to express themselves. The key to successful implementation and realistic expectations of technology in the classroom is teaching students to be critical, reflective thinkers. Common sense should prevail. Students are unsure of what to do when not given direction or a grade. "This concept has gone out the window as computers can provide kids with many of the answers quickly without being challenged mentally" (Tyack and Cuban, 1995).

=4.0 Safeguards in Using Educational Technology= Looking at the challenges educational technology presents and the potential problems that need to be avoided the logical route is to develop some safeguards while using educational technology. In this section, we identify four safeguards for educators to implement that will allow students to take advantage of all that technology has to offer in a safe and fair manner. 1) Provide teachers with technological help as well as programming to keep pace with today's student. 2) Support continuous evaluation of the role of technology in every classroom to monitor the role that technology is playing within the school. 3) Remind teachers to never overlook the human aspect of teaching by showing teachers how to best integrate human interaction alongside technology. 4) We identify different ways that schools can maintain an even playing field in regards to technology for all students regardless of SES status.

Teachers have the greatest influence of how educational technology is used in the classrooms, therefore, it is important that they are as knowledgeable about the content as the person who wrote it. According to Stoll, it's impossible to browse the web without swimming in a river of flashing advertisements (Stoll, 1999). It's important that when we delegate assignments that we are prepared to expect the unexpected, content can be confusing and misleading, students may not be able to determine conscious reality from virtual reality. Parent's, teachers and practitioners must be confident that they understand the dangers of distributed learning.

4.1 Technological Help and Programs
How then, with the growing demand for technical proficiency, can educators be brought to a place of comfort and efficiency in classroom technological use? Possibly the first and most critical factor will be in providing increased on-demand technical support for the hardware and related applications (Cuban, 2001). Only with reliable hardware, software, and network infrastructure, will teachers move beyond using technology for running the business of classrooms only. Moving hand-in-hand with the reliability concept is the need for support personnel who are readily available to classrooms when problems arise. After the hurdle of reliability is passed, the next area of concern may be professional development. Teachers spend a great deal of time planning for successful learning experiences in the classroom, but without appropriate training in available technologies, most cannot be expected to integrate them successfully into activities (Cuban, 2001). Such training must include not only hands-on technical elements with experts, but also offer opportunities for collaboration with successful users as well as time for planning and reflection. Follow-up for training is just as critical as the training itself, and successful programs often offer such combined opportunities. Will technology be readily infused with reliability and training alone? Most likely it will not, unless teachers are given a buy-in in some fashion. Cuban suggests that this is possible as evidenced in the TLTC program in Berkeley schools which, designed and anchored by teachers, seemed to show progress in several areas until federal funding disappeared (Cuban, 2001). "There are," he notes, "a few instances of reformers taking teachers' perspectives seriously, especially in using technologies that build programs around their classroom expertise" (Cuban, 2001).

Educational technology is not necessarily designed with the user (teacher) in mind. Using the state and national standards, programs are designed assuming that it is generic to fit all the needs of educators and learners. With out the input of the necessary people, educational hardware and software will render itself useless to the masses.

4.2 Continuous Evaluation/Review
It is not with a blind eye that educators should view the use of technological innovation in the classroom. A constant vigil must be observed concerning its value and applications. Checks and balances should follow these applications in order that optimal learning opportunities are provided for students. There are no proofs that computer math programs, for instance, actually are successful in teaching math at all, Stoll suggests, questioning why there should be so much emphasis on using this method of teaching. Evidence, he says, should come in the form of true data in order to support infusion of such strategies. (Stoll, 1995) [|Howard Gardner] in //Frames of Mind: The Theory of Multiple Intelligences// discusses the the styles of many [|types of learners]. With a focus on technology application for mathematics as suggested before, the question arises whether all learning styles can be met in this format. Educators not only focus on math, but on research with the easily accessibe Internet. Stoll questions, however, whether evidence truly suggests that this is an effective means of teaching. He also questions what problems may be created when teachers and students spend even more time connected to electronic devices (Stoll, 1995). The potential of these perils of technology are real and the consequences of unawareness or irresponsibility are great, thus it is up to the educational community to implement the checks and balances he calls for (Stoll, 1999).

Continuous Evaluation of technology also requires a cohesive school community which must reach a consensus on what the ultimate goals are of technology in education. This cohesive school community must know its student demographic and must find answers to some tough questions. In a June, 2000 interview, [|Larry Cuban] specified, "The questions really break down into: What are we after? How can technology help? What do we have to change to make use of it?"

4.3 Maintaining Interpersonal Interaction
It is very important to remember that the use of technological innovation in an educational setting should compliment and support the humanistic based instruction that is already taking place. Realize that while technology has its place in learning, we must be critical consumers such that we avoid making claims that technology belongs in every aspect of education. Technology has its place, but we can never lose the human touch—the “psychic” elements of teaching. (Cuban, 2001) Computers can remove a great deal of the interpersonal interaction that comes from working as a member of a group or community. In most working environments, interpersonal skills are pivotal to good work relations, deal making, communication, and success. Communication quality can actually diminishes rather than increases with technology. “E-mail and postings to network newsgroups are frequently ungrammatical, misspelled, and poorly organized. After trolling up and down the Usenet, from alt.best-of-usenet to zer.z.telecom.modem, I rarely find prose that’s articulate and creative”. (Stoll, 1995) Additionally, the relationship between an instructor and their students is part of the ongoing emotional growth of each student and should not minimized away as unimportant. The computer can be a barrier to close teaching relationships. When students receive assignments through e-mail and send in homework over the network, they miss out on chances to discuss things with their professor. The students are learning at arm's length. (Stoll, 1995) Finally, a well thought out and balanced approach to technological innovation in the classroom in critical in complimented instruction, not replacing it. We should build a balance between the real world and cyberspace, and students should get the proper dose of each, which in itself is yet to be determined (Stoll, 1995). The lack of guidance and close interactions with educators, student revert to cheating, copy and paste method of learning. Students and educators must connect to have "moral literacy" as well as "computer literacy".

4.4 Maintain Level Playing Field Among All Students
Although substantial progress has been made in installing computers in schools and in convincing the public that facility in using them is vital to students’ success in school and jobs, there are quantifiable social inequalities in the use of computers in schools. Students from high-income families have far more access to computers and to sophisticated uses of them than do students from low-income families. Black students use them less than whites, females less than males, and pupils whose native language is not English less than those who are proficient in English. Charles Pillar, who investigated use of computers in schools for the magazine //Macworld//, lamented “the creation of the technological underclass in America’s public schools.” He observed that “computer-based education in poor schools is in deep trouble. Inner-city and rural school districts lack the training and social support to use computers effectively. In most cases, computers simply perpetuate a two-tier system of education for the rich and poor. (Pillar, “Separate Realities,” pp. 218-219) Providing more technology grants to lower SES schools keeps students on fair playing grounds regardless of socio-economic status. “To ensure that poor and minority children will not be left behind in the technological expertise” technology has brought about a social inequality between the schools that can afford computers and those that cannot. (Tyack and Cuban, 1995) The final disappointment that Stoll illuminates is the myth that the Internet would help to make a more egalitarian society. He writes, “The myth holds that our networks are the ultimate in democracy –all voices can be heard. Bytes have no race, gender, age, or religion” ( Stoll, 1995). However, “for all its egalitarian promise, whole groups of people hardly show up on the networks. Women, blacks, elderly, and the poor are underrepresented” (Stoll, 1995). The clear academic advantage of students who have had computers at home with those students whose only encounter with technology has been at school is significant. “It was clear to us that having a computer at home added considerably to the child’s competence and confidence” (Cuban, 2001).

=5.0 References= Carr, Jim "IT security and education: Schools around the cuntry find the right technology to protect networks," (May 9 2007). Retrieved from ([|http://www.scmagazine.com/us/news/article/656502/it-security-education-schools-around-country-find-right-technology-protect-networks)] Cuban, L. (1993). Computer meet classroom: Classroom wins. Teachers College Record, 95(2), 185-210. Cuban, Larry. (c 2001) __Oversold and Underused: Computers in the Classroom__. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press. Earle, Rodney S. "The Integration of Instructional Technology into Public Education: Promises and Challenges" __ET Magazine__, January- February 2002, Vol. 42, No. 1, pages 5-13 Foti, S. (2007, May). Did We Leave the Future Behind?. //Phi Delta Kappan//, Vol. //88, Issue 9//, 647,715. Retrieved August 8, 2007, from http://tinyurl.com/yuusb2 Gardner, Howard. (1983) __Frames of Mind: The Theory of Multiple Intelligences__. New York: Basic Books. Levin, Doug, Arafeh, Sousan, Lenhart, Amanda, Rainie, Lee (2002). "The Digital Disconnect: The widening gap between Internet-savvy students and their schools." Retrieved August 10, 2006. http://www.pewinternet.org/pdfs/PIP_Schools_Internet_Report.pdf Healy, G. (1999) Endangered Minds: Why Children Don't Think-and What We Can Do About It, New York, NY, Touchstone., McKenzie, W. (2000) "Are You a Techno-Constructivist? Retrieved August 10, 2006. http://www.educationworld.com/a_tech/tech/tech005.shtml Oppenheimer, T. “The Computer Dillusion,” __The Atlantic Monthly__, July 1997, Volume 280, No. 1; pages 45-62. Pflaum, William. (2004) "The Technology Fix: The Promise and Reality of Computers in Our Schools." Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development (ASCD). Shields, M.S., Behrman, R.E. "Children and Computer Technology," vol.10. (fall/winter 2000). Retrieved from ([|http://www.futureofchildren.org/information2827/information_show.htm?doc_id=6979)////] Stoll. Clifford. (1995) __High-Tech Heretic: Reflections of a Computer Contrarian__. New York: Random House, Inc. Stoll, Clifford. (1995) __Silicon Snake Oil__, (2nd ed.) New York, NY: Doubleday. Szuba, Tom (1998). "Safeguarding Your Technology" Retrieved August 10, 2007. http://nces.ed.gov/pubs98/98297.pdf Tyack, David, Cuban, Larry. (1995) __Tinkering Toward Utopia: A Century of Public School Reform__. Cambridge: Harvard University Press. U.S. Department of Education. (2004). Toward a new golden age in american education: How the internet, the law and today’s students are revolutionizing expectations (Publication No. EAE0003P). Jessup, MD: No Author.

=6.0 Links=

http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_go2084/is_200203/ai_n6801474 A look at enrollment in college technology courses http://www.eduref.org/Virtual/Qa/archives/Educational_Technology/Effects_of_Technology/negeffects.html Negative effects of Technology http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/os/technology/index.html US Department of Education official site http://www.techlearning.com/ Up to date stories on education and technology http://people.uis.edu/rschr1/et/blogger.html University of Illinois at Springfield http://coe.sdsu.edu/eet/ The encyclopedia of Educational Technology http://www.mff.org/edtech/ Milken Family Foundation http://chronicle.com/infotech/ The Chronicle of Higher Education http://scholar.lib.vt.edu/ejournals/JTE/ The Journal of Technology Education http://www.campus-technology.com/ Campus Technology http://cnets.iste.org/ ISTE national education review http://www.ataccess.org/resources/nochild.html NCLB: Implications for Assistive Technology http://www.sreb.org/programs/EdTech/OtherTopics/ruraleducation.asp Current technology topics http://www.educationworld.com/a_admin/admin/admin122.shtml Technology in Schools: Does it make a difference? http://www.nae.edu/nae/techlithome.nsf/weblinks/KGRG-55A3ER?OpenDocument Definition of Technology