Monday, March 18, 2019

Teaching with Technology: Good or Bad?

We are living in a century where almost every day a new technology is being invented. With today’s technology, scientists are always discovering new things about our universe!
Thanks to technology, we can achieve what the older generations could only imagine.
What I want to talk about today is how do we teach with technology? Is technology something we can use while teaching? And my answer is YES, it is. I think being able to teach with technology is a must have skill for every 21st century teacher. The important thing is to know that while there are so many advantages of teaching with technology, there are also some disadvantages. Therefore, how we integrate technology into our teaching is very important.

For instance, students can use technological devices/softwares to practice their pronunciation or translation skills. These are just two examples of its benefits. On the other hand, allowing our students to have access to technology in the classroom can quickly become a distraction for them. It is our duty, as teachers, to make sure our students know how to benefit from it.

In my previous experiences with technology as an English learner, I can’t say that any of my English teachers integrated technology to help our learning; they either struggled to use it themselves, or used it to teach old things with new ways, like using the smart board to show PowerPoint slides instead of writing the information on the white board. Yes it saves times. But it doesn’t provide any help to the learners; which is what it should be focused on in the first place.

As an English Language Teacher candidate in the 21st century, I am planning to integrate technology into my teaching. I think if we are confident that we can help our students with whatever tool we can find, we should try it. A good teacher must develop him/herself according to today’s sources and find the best way to integrate it into his/her teaching.

What is YOUR opinion on this topic? Do you agree/disagree with me? Please comment your ideas and let's have a conversation! 

photo sources: click here , and here

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