Technology in Education: Good or Bad?

The hottest topic in education today has got to be technology. Well, come to think of it, technology is pretty much the hottest topic in any field nowadays. I mean, movie producers are scrambling to include 3D technology to their blockbuster hits, iPads are selling like mad in the international market, and the newest digital camera has an extra LCD screen at the front of the camera, so that people can take their own pictures without having to risk snapping an out-of-focused photo of themselves. Etc. Etc. Without technology, life would be boring.

Likewise with education. Kids that have grown up surrounded by technology are not going to sit down obediently for 6 hours or more in a day listening to a teacher preaching from the textbook and scribbling notes on the board. It would take more to capture their attention and make sure that whatever we teach register in their minds. Therefore, teachers are always encouraged to make full use of technology in the classroom to maximise the learning experience. But the question is, exactly how big a part does technology play in the teaching-learning process? Does it complement the teacher or does the teacher take a step back and let technology run the whole show?

Some 6 or 7 years ago, when the Malaysian government decided that Science and Mathematics in all schools should be taught in English instead of in the national language, which is Malay, many steps were taken to ensure that this major change in the national education policy would be successfully implemented. Among them was equipping schools with laptops, LCD projectors and teaching softwares, which was hoped to arouse students interest in these two subjects and help them master the topics through interesting animations, colourful graphics and interactive activities.

If used correctly, these softwares would certainly engage the students and make learning more fun, apart from relieving some of the stress that comes from their lack of proficiency in English. Looking at animations and graphics would help them understand better than to just listen to the teacher talking and have no idea what he or she means half of the time.

Sadly, some teachers 'hide' behind the technology. They come into class, put the CD into the laptop, turn on the projector, and let the CD run. Students merely watch the presentation and listen to the narrator teaching them about a topic. There was no interaction between the teacher and students during the whole learning process. Needless to say, the students learned little and hated the subject. One disgruntled student complained to me that if that's how teachers are asked to teach nowadays, then anyone can be a teacher. All they need to do is to make sure that the CD runs properly from beginning to end.

As they say, too much of a good thing is a bad thing. No doubt technology is good, but it can never take the place of a teacher. Humans are social beings; we need to communicate and interact to get our ideas through. So, it is up to the wisdom and skill of the teacher to have a balance between using technology and human interaction to make a lesson work. Technology is just a tool, and like any other tools, it works best when it is used in the right place at the right time.