Learning and Leading - Feburary 2013

Here’s what other ISTE members had to say about this topic. Participate in our reader poll at iste.org/LL.

YES

NO

When, as adults, we need to solve problems, create solutions, be critical, or attempt to explain something, we use internet-based resources as a matter of course, and we use them critically, strategically, and effectively to complete the task and move forward. Why would we deny our children this capability during their education when it is so essential in the real world?

—James Cash is an instructional technology resource teacher with the Peel District School Board in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada. He credits Seymour Papert’s Mindstorms: Children, Computers and Powerful Ideas as inspiration for a lifelong interest in ed tech and cognitive psychology. Follow him on Twitter @cashjim.

check all their new Facebook posts
and finally sit down to use the internet
as a tool.
My last major problem with allow-
ing students to use their smartphones
is that we cannot monitor or filter
what sites they are viewing because
they run through their cell providers’
internet and not the school’s. Good
luck convincing students to use the fil-
tered school internet when they have
the unfiltered internet as an option.
Cyberbullying during assessments,
here we come.

—Jeffrey Starr has taught math in the Baltimore County Public School system since 2004. He is the full-time technology liaison and Student Government Association co-advisor at Dundalk High School in Maryland, USA.

Practice Makes Perfect

I often give open-internet tests and quizzes in my 1: 1 classroom. It helps students hone their search skills and ensures that I am asking higher-level questions. Students will forget what they don’t use, so they need repeated practice using the internet to find the information they forgot.

Jennifer Roberts Adjunct Faculty, University of San Diego San Diego, California, USA

The Sum of Knowledge

Testing is a tool that measures acquired academic knowledge. Allowing the internet, or any other resource, during testing would bias and invalidate the test. How can you measure the amount of information the student truly knows if you allow searchable material to guide the student’s answers? Moreover, testing is a culmination of one’s knowledge, not a time for research.

Diana Bidulescu Media Arts Magnet Coordinator Galveston, Texas, USA

Trial Run

My English class at Sandvika High School in Oslo, Norway, participated in May in a national trial for using the internet during examinations initiated by the Norwegian Department of Education. This has given me time to think about what is important and how to prepare for this type of exam. The tasks during the exams should be made with searching in mind. Students should no longer be required to regurgitate facts and figures. Instead the emphasis should be on their ability to sift through and analyze information.

Ann S. Michaelsen High School Administrator/Teacher Oslo, Norway

Technolgy Can’t Do It All

Information at your fingertips has changed the way we work, and the teaching and testing we do should reflect that. But there are some things you should not be allowed to use the internet for, based on real-world application. Would you want your brain surgeon consulting WebMD during your surgery?

Jeff Hough Business Consultant, Idaho State University Pocatello, Idaho, USA

What Are You Measuring?

This is like asking if calculators should be used on math tests. If you want to know a person’s problem-solving thinking and process, then using a calculator is fine. If you want to know how well they can add and subtract, then no.

Janet Wall Career Development Professional Washington, DC, USA

The Internet Has Its Limits

Students are getting more and more dependent on the internet every day. We, as teachers, should limit the use of it up to a certain point. We cannot leave everything in the hands of technology.

Catalina Elena Oyarzún Albarracin Director, Academia de Inglés Coihaique, Chile

More Important Than Memorization Memorization of facts shouldn’t be discouraged, but it should not be the test of intelligence, skill, or ability. As an employer, I would rather have an individual working for me who could identify an issue, investigate it, form a plan, and execute it successfully.

Clarena M. Renfro Technology Integration Coach Glen Falls, New York, USA

Brains on Empty

Empty-headed people produce empty-headed thoughts. Just because the internet has information at your fingertips doesn’t mean your brain should be void. There has to be a foundation of knowledge. Many students depend on technology instead of leveraging it to elevate their game.

Keishla Ceaser-Jones Inside Account Executive, Compass Learning Austin, Texas, USA

Time to Adapt

When I started teaching, I was partial to clay tablets. This made life pretty difficult for me, and finally I was told that I could either change or be fired. The school board claimed teaching using old-fashioned technology would not benefit students. So I changed.