SRF 3

When Technology Meets Subject Matter

Incorporating the Computer as Method

 

 

Brief  Description: This article is the third in a series entitled:” When Technology Meets the Subject Matter Disciplines in Education”.  The author builds on her two previous articles to emphasize the need for educators to concentrate on conceptualizing ideas of how the computer can be successfully included in the teaching of the disciplines and therefore as a method to educate. Ms. Norton makes several recommendations to educators including: teachers be given the time and freedom to restructure their curriculum and technology before computers are given to the students; and schools and administrators should reorganize and restructure the educational system to include new  types of learning that need to emerge with the advent of the computer. None of the above can take place without change that includes the ability to create what the author terms “animating ideas” that can guide decision making about computer use in the disciplines.  The author posits four animating ideas to reflect upon and use in what she terms a transdisciplinary approach to thinking about the disciplines in conjunction with the computer.

 

 

Theme: The central theme of the article can be found through first understanding the computer as metaphor and as discourse. The metaphoric structure applied to the computer offers a blueprint allowing both teachers and students to see the disciplines as dynamic entities. Understanding the computer as discourse adds to both the student’s and teacher’s ability to expand their knowledge and possibly make an impact on the shape and construction of learning. The above conceptualizations lead to a curriculum that can be “problem-centered” in that it allows students to “do”, to use the computer to find solutions to the “problem”.  The article challenges teachers and administrators alike to think about the use of computers not as an add-on to teacher-centered or student-centered learning about the disciplines but rather as central to changing successfully how educators teach and students learn.

 

 

Author’s Perspective: For many years, teachers, students and parents have expected that the addition of the computer to the educational field in the form of a computer lab or several computers located in the classroom could instantly improve learning and transform the field of education. According to the author, these predictions and assumptions have not proved real. The author recommends allowing teachers more time to learn and use the computer in attempts to include it in the curriculum where it can transform teaching and learning. It may be necessary to think about restructuring not only the more traditional “centered” curriculum but also restructure class time, spaces and educational priorities to take advantage of what computer technology today and in the future might offer. The author presents four animated examples and ideas on how the computer can be used successfully to bring students into real life problem-solving activities they encounter in several of the disciplines: 1) knowledge of the disciplines  should be taught and understood in a more wholistic way; 2) in addition to more traditional linear methods of teaching the disciplines, symbolic forms found in music, visual and mathematical concepts should be included; 3)  exploring the processes which give form to the events, ideas, and experiences presented in the disciplines in addition to understanding the disciplines taught is essential; 4) understanding the principals at work in addition to the outcome and contents of a discipline need to be included; and 5) students need to develop a collection of strategies for thinking about what they learn in addition to the learning in and of itself. 

 

 

Did I Agree: I agree with the author that the computer has not come close to many educators’ expectations of revolutionizing the educational theater. Rather, for many, it has become one more thing that teachers need to add to their classroom space and include in their lesson planning; and one more item administrators need to include in their budget. Allowing teachers to learn, investigate and develop lesson plans that involve both the teacher and the student will expanding both of their learning capabilities.

 

Did Selection Enhance Understanding of Technology: This selection did enhance my understanding of technology and technological and educational issues that are currently impeding our educational system. As often happens, the technology is produced before the student is ready. The capabilities of technology are still in an embryonic state and beg all of us involved in education to find ways to enhance and challenge the learning process so that it becomes real to the student and assists them to continue to find ways to learn and apply what they learn to everyday life.

 

 

 

Recommendation of Reading:  I would recommend this trilogy of articles to teachers, parents and students alike, who are interested in exploring ways of thinking about and using the computer to teach, explore, enhance their understanding of the disciplines as well as experimenting with “problem-centered” learning.