Off the back of One Day Digital 2013 event that was held yesterday at the Glasgow SECC,
numerous topics were discussed in regards to the current position (and future)
of Scotland’s technology sector.
One particular keynote I personally had my interest invested
in was delivered by Tom Hall, Vice-President of Educational Technology
Partnerships at Pearson. Aptly titled The
Future of Education: Rethinking the Role of Technology, Hall explained that
schools – primarily primary education – must consider the use or implementation
of technology in the classroom in order to meet the demands of a future,
technologically-developing society. Hall grabbed my attention by releasing a
daunting statistic: 65% of pupils will eventually gain jobs that have yet to be
created. This staggering prediction just shows how far we will develop in the
next two decades, but this change is not fully accommodated by the education
department just yet.
From my perspective, I can’t talk too much about how schools
have changed from ‘back in my day’, seeing as I left school a mere two years
ago. Also, coming from someone who enjoyed traditional teaching methods and
classroom set-ups, I’m not in the position to say that technology would have
made me enjoy school even more. However, now as part of the technology sector
as a student, I can see the importance of using technology in an educational
environment. It’s not the point of “learning more” from a computer that I’m
trying to argue, but more that it’s the age that we live in now and that
technology should be embraced where possible.
Digital technology is second-nature to the youth of today.
As Hall explained, using technology is "like breathing air to kids". No, I don’t
mean that they require an iPad to survive. But, from being born in an age where
they are bombarded with technology, it comes naturally to them to use
technology. Social messaging and texting instead of sending a letter in the
post. Typing instead of writing. Just a few examples that many of the older
generation have had to “adapt” to use, whereas it’s the “norm” for children.
I am all for technology to be introduced to education if I
haven’t made my stance clear yet. The big question I have is this: what
technology do we use? Hall noted that there are multiple options that education
boards have if they choose to fully implement technology into today’s classrooms.
Children may be given access to tablets and devices within
the class, and have the option to take these pieces of kit home to continue
their work. This poses the risk of equipment that is paid for by the school
going missing or being stolen, and resulting in the loss of the work of that
particular pupil. There’s also the potential target that these children become
to thieves and muggers, who would arguably not hesitate to jump on the
opportunity to steal the equipment. To me, this is a very dangerous option to
take, especially because the children would be prone to such dangers. Not every
area’s the same, and I’m not saying that it would definitely happen, but I don’t
believe it’s a risk worth taking.
On the flip side of this, children may be required to bring
their own devices to school. This, again, has the dangerous issues associated
with it as listed above, but there are further problems to consider with this
choice:
- Compatibility. There is such a diverse landscape of products on the market today in comparison to five or ten years ago. With the fragmentation of devices, operating systems, applications and software on the market, which should be used in the classroom?
- Segregation. There’s a reason why schools implement uniforms and not “bring your own clothes”. As well as identification purposes, it also absolves the potential of social classification amongst pupils: everyone is equal. Therefore, why does technology deserve to divert from this issue?
To re-iterate, I am for technology within education, and I
really enjoyed hearing from Hall about the potential of our classrooms today
(an area I have a keen interest in, as do many of my colleagues). I do feel,
however, that these questions and issues have not been addressed sufficiently
in order to fully integrate technology within education. I am excited, as a
developer, in the potential of this proposal, and will be keeping even more of
a watchful eye on the progress of this development.
Andrew Reid
Managing Director
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