Introduction: When paying attention to technology in an academic setting, it has become a much more prevalent tool in education. Although in secondary school, the use of technology for me was less of an active part in my everday life as a student, when I began my college career at Geneseo technology has not just become the norm but rather the agent in my everyday life. With using technology everyday, I have not only noticed the pros and cons of usig technology, but also the harsh reality that for me personally, technology is something that sets me back and takes my attention away from completing assignments and everyday tasks.
The Pros of Technology in Education: Throughout my primary and secondary education, technology didn’t really play a big role in my everyday life as a student. Besides submitting essays or presentations, my educators chose to do paper handouts instead of making everything digital. However when I got to college, it became quite the shock to my system of learning when all of my professors utilized technology for readings, assigments, and other resources for their classes. Since being almost done with my second year of college, I have not only realized the importance of technology in education, but also its prevalence in today’s world as I prepare for my future career. One of the main pros that I have come to realize in college when using mainly technology to learn is the convienece of it all. Having assignments, readings, exams, and other things for courses all in one place makes it easier not only for the professor to grade, but also for the student to access what they need without having to keep track of multiple paper handouts. One thing that always annoyed me in high school was the fact that I had multiple papers that I needed to keep in specific folders for all of my classes which could be very hard at times when things are being moved around constantly. However, this semester when taking Literature in A Digital Age, I have learned how to take notes on Visual Studio Code which is way more convienet and keeps me more organized than having multiple notebooks for my courses. With that is also the fact that taking notes on a computer is way more efficient than handwriiting everything. Typing everything is way quicker than writing notes by hand which has been beneficial when taking notes on what the professors in my courses are saying. Lastly, the benefit that I think more people need to start paying attention to with the use of technology in education is the sustainability purposes Since everyhting is digital, this cuts down on the paper usage which is overall better for the environment. However despite these postive sides of technology in education, I have come to realize that there also negative sides when becoming dependent on technology in an academic setting.
The Cons of Technology in Education: In my second year of college, I have not only seen and experienced the benefits of using technology in school, but also the cons. For me I have always loved writing everything down. This not only helps me to remember things better, but also is a keepsake for me to look back on when I am older, much like Thoreau’s manuscripts from Walden. The individuality and uniqueness of someone’s handwriting cannot be replicated by the use of typing on a keyboard. This is something I payed attention to and closely realized when transcribing documents from Thoreau’s writing, it felt almost fake when typing out someone’s handwriting from their diary entries. Although the information, thoughts, and ideas, are all beneficial and important for the world to see and learn from, it almost made me sad for Thoreau that his handwriting was being made into a more legible text. If it were me, I do not think I would be okay with someone transcribing my handwriting because it takes a way the uniqueness of my words. On a more surface level observation of the cons of technology in the education system, it is not alwayas reliable. Many system glitches or other software issues can arise that make it difficult to access webistes and or assignments on a computer. Then there is the newer issue of the use of artificial intelligence. I think students and even some have come so dependent on technology for completing assignments or creating lesson plans that it has back tracked peoples knowledge and critical thinking skills signfinantly. In addition to thee negative sides of the usage of technology in education, I have come to realize that technology has significantly impacted my attention span.
In Relation to Attention: Over the years not only when using technology for school, but having access to it everyday with my personal phone I have closely payed attention to how much it deters me from completing everyday tasks, more recently than ever before. Something that in particualar catches my attention is the simple buzz of my phone alerting me I have a notification from soemthing on my phone, whether it is a text or social media update. This simple alert distracts me from whatever I may be doing whetehr that is homework, cleaning, or trying to just be offline for a once. I have also noticed for me personally that I end up checking my phone even where there isn’t a notification that something has changed or happened. This has gotten worse over the years with social media, I think people including myself has been living vicariously through social media and paying attention to what everyone else is doing that we forget to think about the fact that we should be paying attention to our own lives. When analyzing Walden all semester, Thoreau payed close attention to nature and the inhabitants of it, documenting and writing by hand all that he observed from the big details to the minute. In today’ world, i think we as a society do these same things, but rather in a more negative light that doesn’t contribute anything positivie in the ways Thoreau did. I think as a society we need to redirect our attention away from technology and focus on our surroundings in the same way Thoreau did all of his life.