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Posted by:
Kirsten Peterson
University
Newton, MA
Topic:
Development Appropriateness is Key
Message:
There are definitely two staunch camps on this issue, but I feel strongly that technology, when used in developmentally-appropriate ways, can offer a powerful tool to enhance the learning process for children eight and under as they explore the world. As with most things in life, technology in excess can be hazardous to the overall education environment. But more often than not, the introduction of technology into the early elementary classroom brings with it the potential for new and powerful learning experiences. One of the key concerns, of course, is technology training and professional development for teachers--simply placing computers in elementary classrooms is not a magical cure-all for struggling students. However, when technology is integrated into the day-to-day curriculum in a structured manner, teachers have at their disposal a fresh and compelling set of instructional tools.
As children gain independence in the primary grades, technology also has the potential to substantially expand the classroom environment. Science software can provide individualized enrichment for curious students; popular titles like Creative Wonders' Schoolhouse Rockcan engage students in novel, creative ways; classics like Jump Start's MathBlasterand the Learning Company's Reader Rabbitcan provide ongoing remedial support for children in danger of falling behind.
One primary teacher I know recently received a donation of two dozen books-on-CD-ROM and added them to her classroom shelves, expecting to use them to occupy the more advanced reading groups as they finished assignments ahead of the class. Instead, the CD-ROMs proved to be most popular with three non-readers in the room who quietly asked permission one afternoon to use the software so that they, too, could participate with the class during silent reading time. A bona fide lesson in language? Perhaps not. But a confidence boost, powered by technology that will impact learning for months to come? Beyond any question.
At this particular elementary school, two computers per classroom is the norm, and students visit a larger lab once each week for more specialized instruction. Beginning in kindergarten, classroom teachers explain in simple terms how computers should be treated (with soft fingers, because plastic can break) and how CD-ROMs should be handled (with gentle, clean hands, never touching any flat surface). Children brainstorm computer etiquette alongside other classroom rules each fall, and by the first and second grades, many turn to technology as easily as to the classroom bookshelf as they look for answers to puzzling questions. What is unusual, however, is that many of these students come from some of the city's poorest neighborhoods, and few have access to technology in their own homes. The chance to play and learn with computers in school, then, provides the children with an opportunity to begin to bridge the socioeconomic gap that, in many parts of the nation, has created the technology "haves" and "have-nots".
While digital divide issues are often postscript in the technology-in-primary-education debate, I believe this is perhaps one of the most important outcomes of building a wired primary classroom. Allowing all young children--regardless of background--to explore technology at their own pace in a structured classroom environment helps to ensure that those children will be on equal footing when they begin to use educational technology in earnest farther down the road.
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