Silicon Valley teacher: Don’t confuse educational technology that helps kids learn and doesn’t – Washington Post

For years now school reformers have been touting the power of technology to transform education. Kids can learn better, faster and anywhere they want if only school districts would invest enough money in technology and allow teachers to learn how to integrate them into lessons.

But while educational technology has been extremely helpful for some populations of students, including some with disabilities, the overarching promise that enthusiasts predicted has not yet been borne out. There are a number of reasons for this, including poor training of teachers, poorly designed technology and technology that quickly becomes obsolete.

Here is a piece on this subject by Kathy Liu Sun, a former high school math teacher who is now an assistant professor of education at Santa Clara University in Silicon Valley, California.

[The new magical thinking about high-tech in schools and why its a problem]

By Kathy Liu Sun

I live and work in Silicon Valley, so its not surprising that technology has found its way into our math classrooms here. But is technology really supporting our students to learn? Just because something is labeled as technology doesnt mean it supports good learning.

In my recent work in local schools, I have observed that teachers are having their students work on computers for the entire math lesson. Proponents argue that computer-based lessons allow students to go at their own pace and expose students to content they might not otherwise have an opportunity to see. But these benefits come at a high cost.

One of the most pressing problems is the content and focus of these digital lessons, which are often simply digital replications of traditional lecture based math lessons. (You remember these: teacher at board showing you example after example, followed by practicing a similar problem with different numbers twenty times over.)

Whether delivered digitally or in person, this type of instruction sends the wrong message about mathematics. It teaches students that mathematics is about mastering a set of procedures, rather than viewing mathematics as a creative subject that is about problem-solving and sense-making.

Research has shown that such an emphasis on mathematical procedures is not supportive of student learning and fails to help students to draw connections between key mathematical ideas, think critically, and problem-solve. These skills are particularly important for 21st Century citizenry and long-term achievement outcomes.

While your seventh grader engaging in digital math lessons might be learning pre-calculus procedures, she may not have any understanding of the underlying concepts that will be critical for future success.

Instead, lets consider how technology might genuinely support mathematical sense-making and problem-solving. A recent study conducted at Stanford University found that students who played a game that focused on the relationship between numbers, rather than memorized math facts, led to better learning outcomes.

[The overselling of educational technology]

Good educational technology, implemented at the appropriate time, can enhance math learning. Here are a few things to look for when examining technology to support mathematics learning:

When the latest technology-based learning program rolls out at our local schools, lets be sure to critically examine the type of mathematics learning it supports.

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Silicon Valley teacher: Don't confuse educational technology that helps kids learn and doesn't - Washington Post