The Classroom in 2050
Schools are acquiring new technology all of the time. It started with overhead projectors and then computers and is now evolving into a way of teaching. There is now e-mail, the internet, on-line classrooms and information at the touch of a button. In the future classrooms will be run with technology. By the year 2050 it will be possible for classrooms to be run solely with technology, but the need for social interaction will keep kids physically attending school. "But schooling is more than just learning. Despite all the new technology in 2050, school remains a social occasion, even if sometimes that interaction is through a wall-sized display module" (McQueen 2006).
The technology that is about to enter schools in the near future will allow children to interact and learn with children in other coutries. In foreign language classes they will be able to speak to children of different cultures and hear the language as it is spoken by the children of that country. "They wear wireless headphones and enter their own acoustic bubble, hearing the original sounds of the language in one ear and an auto translation in the other” (McQueen 2050). Children will also have their own computers called e-books that will allow them to upload their homework and have access to all kinds of information. These new computers will be used with hand gestures, voice recognition, and touch screens. There will be no excuses for forgetting your homework. “A computer-generated teaching assistant checks the work, flagging good examples to the human teacher and poor efforts language tutor who starts the lesson using stored records and works at the level and speed of each child.” (McQueen 2006). Having a computer check the homework will allow the teachers to know what area students are having trouble with, and the technology will help the child in the areas they need help with to prevent falling behind.
There is also talk about children having ID chips implanted in them. This could turn out to be a controversial issue because many parents may not want a chip to be implanted in their child. The ID chip may be very helpful, and increase safety. Scanning the ID chip will allow children access into the school, as well as taking out library books, logging onto computers, and buying lunch. As soon as the child arrives to school in the morning a text message will be sent to the parents letting them know their child is there. The parent will also receive a message at the end of the day to inform them that their child is on their way home. This will let parents know if their child never made it to school and will cut down on teenagers skipping school. This would also prevent anyone from entering the building that does not belong there.
The chip will help students buy food and keep track of the calorie intake of each student. This may help with the obesity problem in America. The student scans the chip and whatever he/she buys is added on to a smartcard which will probably be prepaid. A record is kept of all the food intake the child has had and a daily log of all the activity the child has participated in throughout the day. "Lunch has taken on a new meaning. The meals look the same, but provide the exact nutritional and calorie content needed by each child based on their record of activities and other food intake reported by the implanted chip” (McQueen 2006).
What children eat and the activities they partake in throughout the day all have an impact on their ability to learn. A child who eats a granola bar for breakfast and then runs around in gym class and recess will not learn as well as a child who ate a full nutritious breakfast and particiapted only in a little physical activity. “Awareness of the need for stress management, nutrition, exercise, and relaxation must all be built into the learning process” (Banburg 1997).
The possibilty of having same sex classrooms may be explored along with uniforms and all year round schooling. North Carolina is now focusing on having year round school with nine weeks on and three weeks off. “All students and teachers attend school for nine weeks (45 days), then are on a three-week vacation (15 days)” (US Department of Education). This may be very difficult with parents trying to find babysitters as well as teachers who enjoy the benefit of going away for the summer, and enjoying the hot months off. There are two different types of year round schooling. One type is single track where the students go for nine weeks and have three weeks off. The other is multi-track where the sessions are based on a twelve week period. “Alternatively, in a multi-track 45/15 design, students are normally divided into four groups. During a 12-week period, all students receive nine weeks of instruction and three weeks of vacation, but only three of the four groups are in school at one time, while the fourth group is on vacation. When the vacation group returns, another group leaves for a three-week vacation” (US Department of Education). This may make teaching a little harder for teachers where they would have different groups of kids all the time all on different levels and learning different things. It would also mean that the teachers would constantly be switching or would have to work all year round. Parents would also have to find babysitters sporadically, and many children would not be home the same time as their friends making carpooling and babysitting harder.
Schools will also have to change what they teach and how they teach it. The twenty first century is going to have higher standards of learning than ever before. Students will need to know how to use all the new technology that is being invented as well as how to deal with the constant change in the workforce when they graduate school. Technology is taking over a lot of jobs that used to be taken care of by people. The competition for jobs is much greater than it used to be with so many people being laid off and hired temporarily. More and more jobs are requiring a college education.
Without the proper education kids will not be prepared for the upcoming society. “Stated in the simplest terms America's schools, as presently organized, are incapable of providing the kind of education that our children will need to live productive lives in the 21st century” (Banburg 1997). Recent research in brain function has shown the different ways of how people learn and the teaching methods that are effective and those that are not. Males and females use different parts of their brains when learning, and have different interests. “Boys tend to hate English and foreign language for the same reasons girls love it” (Kimmel 2004 p 170). Schools will have to reform their curriculum to prepare students for the evolving world.
Research has proved that males and females use different parts of their brain when performing different actions. “…perhaps both males and females use both halves of their brains, but use them differently” (Kimmel 2004 p34). The things that females would use the right side of their brain for are different from what a male would use it for, and vice versa. Educators should start taking this into consideration in their teaching methods. There is also a wide variation of maturity levels. Just because children are the same age does not mean they will be at the same level and maturity. “…there can be a five-year difference in maturation between any two children of the same age. Expecting equal achievement on the basis of chronological age is inappropriate” (Banburg 1997).
Classrooms in 2050 will be different but not drastically. Many college classes will be on-line as well as the possibility to go to high school on-line. The new technology will be the biggest change. Students will know more about new computers and technology than older people. The main goal for the upcoming years should be to change our method of teaching. Schools and educators need to take into consideration the fact that boys and girls mature at different ages and learn differently. Having hands on learning seems to be the most effective and the use of memorization should be decreased.
Bamburg, Jerry, “Learning, Learning Organizations, and Leadership: Implications for the Year 2050”.1997. http://www.newhorizons.org/
Kimmel, Michael S. The Gendered Society: Second Edition. Oxford University Press 2004.
McQueen, Craig. “Class of 2050. Discover What Schools Could be Like in the Future” The Daily Record. March 15, 2006. http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/
“On Teacher and Teacher Education”. US Department of Education. ERIC Clearinghouse. Washington.
1 comment:
I think that technology is a very efficient way to aid in childrens learning, but I do not think it should replace teachers. "The need for social interaction will keep kids physically attending school." These children will only attend when they want to, simply going to mingle with their friends. Their minds won't be focused on learning, and they certainly won't be focused on learning once they get home. I also think that an all technological school would frustrate many children who need the one on one interaction with a teacher. What about the children with learning disabilities? All children learn differently and not all can use technology with the same skill that others can.
Obviously teachers will have to run this technology. Many older teachers of today do not even have a cell phone. It would be difficult for these teachers to keep their jobs if they can't even learn how to use their computer, let alone a whole classroom of technology they won't physically be in.
In today's society more and more classrooms have a number of technological items in them. But, many of the teachers in the classrooms don't know how to use these items (CNN). If our schools become based on technology, it's going to force these hard working teachers out of a job they've probably had for the last thirty years.
The one idea that shocked me the most was having the students implanted with chips so they could access certain things in the school. I would never want a chip implanted in my child, you never know what kind of side effects that could cause. Are we becoming so lazy that we can't even do the slightest thing manually? It seems as if we all might as well be robots soon.
I'm not saying that the idea of more technology is a terrible one because it does have many great aspects, such as for communicating with people in other countries. I just don't think it should be taken to an extreme, we still need teachers physically present to keep children motivated, offer different learning strategies, and to offer support.
CNN. More Classrooms Wired, Teachers Falling Behind. Retrieved on August 9, 2007 from http://www.cnn.com/TECH/computing/9902/23/computers.classrooms/index.html
Jennifer Marino
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