Media Coverage of Technology in the Classroom

Media Coverage of Technology in the Classroom

When I compare the ways that the media portray the benefits of technology with the needs of public schools, two or three interesting issues arise.  For starters, public schools are clearly obsessed with raising test scores, in particular, the scores of the bottom third of students.  And how do they attempt to do this?  Typically the approach is old school--give the kids more standard reading, writing, and math assignments.  But it seems that advertising for technology focuses on everything but the old school approach.  So I guess the first thing I’ll be looking for as I study media coverage of technology is “Do the media focus on creative and progressive approaches to teaching through the use of technology?”  To that I could add, “Do the media imply that technology is the best way to raise skills and test scores?”  

Perhaps a more fundamental question is, “What is the intended audience in media coverage of technology in education?”  My guess is that the advertising is aimed at progressive, hip teachers who are often at odds with the administration, the very people who will fund purchases of technology for schools.  These are the kinds of teachers who feel that there are much more important things to be doing with students than running through exercises and problem sets.  I’m curious to see if the advertising is, indeed, geared toward these teachers, because if it is, it indicates to me that the assumption is that it is teachers who bring about change in education, not administrators, that teachers lead the way and that what they have to figure out the right ways to ask for new technology.  And what that usually boils down to is convincing the powers that be that these new computers and video cameras and smartboards will help raise test scores (and I’ll bet the research is pretty divided on that).

Another question I have is, “Why Apple?”  If you think about it, Apple products are predominantly owned and used by upper middle-class people, aren’t they? (This is approximately 20 of my 190 students.)   I’m typing this document on my friend’s MacBook Pro, and it occurs to me that she and every single other Apple computer user I personally know are white and upper middle-class.  Of the 25 or so people I know who own iPads and iPhones, only one of them doesn’t fit this demographic (but she does come from a wealthy family, of course).  So, part of me wonders if maybe technology needs to be shown to be a tool for the common man and if it should also be shown to meet the needs of the common man.  Is technology portrayed as a tool for the common man?

In particular, I’m interested to see if media coverage of technology emphasizes creative uses of technology in the classroom.  I’m interested in this because I firmly believe that we need to teach creativity and critical thinking in schools, but it doesn’t seem to me that the powers that be really believe this, although they do give lip service to it.  And it’s my belief that technology greatly helps teach students to think creatively and critically.  Maybe media portrayals of technology will change the course of education from the bottom up.