Summary:
Patrick Welsh’s article, “A School That’s Too High on Gizmos” begins by describing T.C. Williams High School in Alexandria, VA, a school that is stocked with the most current, up-to-date, impressive technology that a school could want. Every room has LCD projectors, every student gets a laptop, etc. He describes the large amounts of brand new technology the school has, how much the items cost and how many they’ve bought. He makes it very clear that the school and its district is somewhat obsessed with keeping up with the newest, trendiest tech, to a point where it has become unhealthy. Welsh then goes on to quote teachers from T.C. talking about how the overabundance of technology has hindered their teaching in some ways, since they are pressured to use these kinds of tech whether or not they fit in with the teacher’s style, the curriculum, or the students’ needs. He also describes how students use the technology provided to tune out in class, using their laptops to play games when the teacher thinks they are following along. Welsh then says that, although teacher have made it clear to the administration that technology, though important, has become too large a part of the school’s focus, the administration has ignored their concerns. He ends the article with a quote from another high school’s principal, “Technology is just a tool, not an end in itself. It will never replace good teaching."”
Comments:
I can’t help but wonder what in this school district isn’t getting funding because so much money is going to technology. I think that the people in this district need to look at what areas are lacking because there is such an overabundance of technology. Are there enough books in each classroom? Kids can always use more, new books to read! Do these schools have enough staff? Is there a librarian? A resource room specialist? Maybe all this money could be spent on hiring people to help the staff make better use of the technology they already have, instead of constantly buying new tech, when it’s not needed. I can’t believe that the administrators have ignored the concerns of so many teachers, and what their reasons for doing so are. I’m glad that they have the money to burn, but it’s terrible to think of working in a school district where resources are being so grossly wasted, and teachers have so little input about how they can be used more wisely.
Patrick Welsh’s article, “A School That’s Too High on Gizmos” begins by describing T.C. Williams High School in Alexandria, VA, a school that is stocked with the most current, up-to-date, impressive technology that a school could want. Every room has LCD projectors, every student gets a laptop, etc. He describes the large amounts of brand new technology the school has, how much the items cost and how many they’ve bought. He makes it very clear that the school and its district is somewhat obsessed with keeping up with the newest, trendiest tech, to a point where it has become unhealthy. Welsh then goes on to quote teachers from T.C. talking about how the overabundance of technology has hindered their teaching in some ways, since they are pressured to use these kinds of tech whether or not they fit in with the teacher’s style, the curriculum, or the students’ needs. He also describes how students use the technology provided to tune out in class, using their laptops to play games when the teacher thinks they are following along. Welsh then says that, although teacher have made it clear to the administration that technology, though important, has become too large a part of the school’s focus, the administration has ignored their concerns. He ends the article with a quote from another high school’s principal, “Technology is just a tool, not an end in itself. It will never replace good teaching."”
Comments:
I can’t help but wonder what in this school district isn’t getting funding because so much money is going to technology. I think that the people in this district need to look at what areas are lacking because there is such an overabundance of technology. Are there enough books in each classroom? Kids can always use more, new books to read! Do these schools have enough staff? Is there a librarian? A resource room specialist? Maybe all this money could be spent on hiring people to help the staff make better use of the technology they already have, instead of constantly buying new tech, when it’s not needed. I can’t believe that the administrators have ignored the concerns of so many teachers, and what their reasons for doing so are. I’m glad that they have the money to burn, but it’s terrible to think of working in a school district where resources are being so grossly wasted, and teachers have so little input about how they can be used more wisely.
Welsh, P. (2008). A school that’s too high on gizmos. The Washington Post. Retrieved from http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/02/08/AR2008020803271.html
I taught in the Fairfax County Public School District in Virginia (very near the district in this article), which had similar technology to the schools in the article. These areas are very wealthy, and have a lot of everything (books included) and small class sizes. I had a class of 16 students, compared to the year before in Washington where I had 32 students. I only was in Virginia for a year, but it was my best year of teaching ever!
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