Blocking Personal Technology in Schools

How in the world are we supposed to be promoting technology in schools when schools prohibit the use of the very tools students are most likely to use? It seems that when a school system does not understand some new technology, or when they get burned by a few students who misuse the technology, their knee jerk reaction is to stop all usage of the technology completely. Talk about throwing the baby out with the bath water. This reaction not only retards legitimate uses of technology, it also hinders advancements in using the technology for educational purposes. Prohibiting the use of technology does not stop students. They just use it in covert way. They open up their cell phone within their purses or backpacks. Students access forbidden sites through proxies.


I do believe that there needs to be controls and limits on the use of personal technology in schools. Students should not be able to access pornography in school, and talking or texting in class during a lecture is just plain rude.

School need to develop sensible rules for the use of personal technology. This is a great opportunity for schools to teach students that their personal technology can be used for more that entertainment and texting each other every 5 minute. If we don’t, who will?

What do you think?

Welcome

Welcome to my first blog.

Over the next few months I hope that you will journey with me as together we learn about the wonder world of Web 2.0 and how to introduce blogs into our classes and to our students. Like many journeys, they are much more enjoyable and rewarding when you have companions traveling with you. So please join me and share your journey with me.

P.S. The picture is of me reading my Kindle on Shadow Lake in Vermont. (The Kindle was in a Ziploc bag to protect it from the lake.) Yes, I did eventually venture away from the dock.