Substitution Isn't 21st Century Teaching

Substitution Isn't 21st Century Teaching

Simply having a computer doesn’t make one a better educator. Not having one, doesn’t make one a poorer performing student. Rather, substituting one technology for another can be a game of smoke and mirrors. Sure, a typed paper is easier to read, looks nicer, presents as more professional. However, the contents may still be garbage. Anyone knows that a pig dressed in pearls is still a pig, so why is it that there are those out there who think a computer-written paper is intrinsically better than a hand-written one?

I remember back to the sad days of Desert Storm, before my students had computers available to them in school. As part of a letter-writing unit my sixth graders earnestly wrote by hand heartfelt, meaningful, tearjerker letters to the soldiers serving overseas. To this day, I wish I had kept every last letter. Never since have I read such moving pieces of prose and poetry.

Today, my students all have personal digital devices. What amazes me, however, is that my students are not better writers or grammarians because of this access to technology. One might think that the students’ papers would all be perfect, due to spell check and grammar check, but no. That is not the case. I have to teach my students how to edit their work and explain to them that if something is underlined in red, there’s a reason for it!

All in all, technology substitution can give a teacher a false sense of their students. I’ve seen it too many times. A teacher says, “But you have an iPad, you should be able to do such and such,” while the student stares back blankly. Just because a student has a computer doesn’t mean that he or she doesn’t need effective instruction. One does not equal the other. Ultimately, teachers still need to teach, despite technology.

As an educator, I have learned to be a 21st century teacher, I must adapt and move my students forward to collaborate, stretch their minds, and become innovators and creators. Whether or not I have technology is irrelevant to the quality of instruction I provide. That being said, technology, when used appropriately, moves my students forward to realms they might not be able to reach before. That is why I am a true 21st century teacher, for I, too, stretch, grow, and utilize the technologies available to enhance my lessons, present knowledge in ways that motivate students to do more, not more of the same.