Impact of Computers in the Classroom
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This paper is a discussion of the impact of computers in the classroom. Computers have been slow to become part of American public schools, becoming common only after they had become an integral part of the business world and, later, the home market. However, they are now so widely accepted that they are an important factor in all educational plans for the new millennium. They provide an invaluable and sophisticated tool for teaching, but they must be used effectively, by teachers trained in computer technology and by students skilled in taking full advantage of their diverse benefits. They can give classrooms access to distant sources of information, allow students to learn at their own pace, and permit teachers to connect curricula in unique and creative ways. They can also limit educational opportunities, perpetuate misinformation, and isolate their users. Computers are an essential part of the classroom of the 21st century; they must be used well in order to assure that their impact is positive. The first machines that were true programmable computers appeared in the 1940s. Designed for military applications, they were enormous, expensive machines, capable of performing very simple mathematical functions. As technology was refined, computers began to have business applications; eventually, they became affordable enough for large corporations to consider using them to analyze production data, process payroll, and handle other jobs requiring the manipulation of nu
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ir hand" (Wulf, 65). The U. S. Department of Education has established an Office of Educational Technology, and most public schools in America now own at least one computer, usually housed in a computer lab. An estimated 90 percent of all schools' computers are connected to the Internet, allowing students access to sources of information and locations far beyond the local library and the neighborhood in which they live.
Yet experts argue that, in order to have regular access to a computer, schools need at least one computer for every five students. Thomas A. Glennan and Arthur Melmed (1996) estimate that only 4 percent of all schools in America have that critical ratio; most are far from being able to give their students much meaningful log-on time (18).
Many students across the country make up for this by having access to computers at home, but experts worry about disadvantaged students who do not have the luxury of such personal resources. Elliott Soloway argues, "The kids who don't have computers at home will be at such a fundamental disadvantage. It will be as if they don't have a pen or paper" (Winters, 1999, January 25, p. 61). Soloway administered a test program that placed computers in disadvantaged homes in Detroi
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Some common words found in the essay are:
Elliott Soloway, , Steve Wulf, Eventually American, Educational Technology, Glennan Melmed, Arthur Melmed, Corporation Winters, october 27, 1999 january, melmed 1996, 21st century, 1999 january 25, Department Education, january 25, winters 1999 january, winters 1999, glennan melmed 1996, wulf 1997, 1997 october, melmed 1996 estimate, educational technology, allow students, 1997 october 27,
Approximate Word count = 1275
Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page)
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