Advantages and Disadvantages of Technology in Education
Although the education system has always been heavily influenced by innovations,
the explosion of new technologies caused tectonic shifts in the way the teaching
process is carried out in school. It is believed that the education system is sure to
develop further due to an outlandish growth in the number of inventions.
Therefore, people predict that abandoning traditional classroom education
altogether is almost inevitable in the near future, adding that traditional education
will not be able to adequately prepare students for the new challenges and demands
of the real world. However, sceptics often argue that people should be careful with
the immediate implementation of modern technologies in the classroom, primarily
because of the potential consequences, some of them are an increased number of
individuals who suffer from mental illness, and the regression of children’s
cognitive and academic development. Taking into account the arguments of both
sides, the list of advantages and disadvantages of technology in education can be
assembled.
To begin with, probably the main advantage is that technology provide access to an
unlimited amount of current information from a variety of sources. Not only do
students approach learning with more enthusiasm and productivity, but they also
have the opportunity to access the most recent topics and research. Instead of going
from library to library, dragging a pile of books with them, they are just a few
clicks and well-defined queries away from accessing information that can give
them additional insight into the topics they are covering at school. Thus, this
practice not only enables students to have a modern education, but it also teaches
them how to approach the search for information and read complex professional
literature.
Then, implementing technology as an integral part of education will give students
the opportunity to keep up with learning trends and acquire digital skills that are
highly sought after in the 21st century. This form of learning will be of help for
students who don’t have access to modern technology at home, which could also
potentially reduce the social gap between digitally literate and illiterate people.
On the other hand, technology is distracting both in the classroom and outside of it.
It is important to understand that students continue to use their mobile phones and
tablets throughout the day, long after they have completed their school activities.
The biggest problem here is the fact that daily interaction with technological
devices reduces attention span. Even though teachers may have good intentions,
the use of applications that have nothing to do with the teaching process itself
should be restricted.
What is more, the cost of upgrading or maintaining technology is often overlooked.
Today, when new innovations in the field of digital technologies appear almost
every month, and where upgrading software and applications continuously requires
more powerful devices educational institutions are obligated to estimate the actual
long-term costs of the investment in technology, and how it will reflect on tuition
fees that students and their parents need to pay.
On balance, there are a number of convincing arguments both in favour of and
against technology in education. However, one should be realistic, because the
advantages still far outweigh the disadvantages. So, a continuous insistence on
disadvantages should not be seen as a desire to return to traditional education, but
as a reason for caution and the possibility to better see the holes in the technologies
and methods used in education. In the end it is up to educational institutions and
teachers to analyse the disadvantages at hand, and improve the quality of teaching
both in their digital and physical classrooms.
