This post is part of an ongoing series of chapters from the book CHOICE. Please view this post for an introduction and table of contents. To keep up with each new chapter published, please subscribe.
Once a student is in high school, they have figured out their learning style. They know what works best for them. If you want technology to take off in your school you need to start young.
You don’t have to roll out a 1-1 program in grades PreK-5 first, but make sure these grades have access to technology. Students can’ have limited technology use in school, then be given a laptop when they get to high school and be expected to know what to do with it. They will treat it like they do a personal device, because that is all they have had. And oftentimes, they will prefer to use their personal device.
Students need to learn how to learn with technology in younger grades. This doesn’t need to be taken to an extreme. I’m not recommending out K-4th graders should be on computers all day, but they should know about computers and have experience using them as a educational tool. Not just for games and videos like they may do at home.
If your habit is to use technology as entertainment, you can’t expect a person to suddenly change to using it for education just because the school gave them the technology.
Author Comments
Providing a peak behind the curtain of the thought and writing process.
In my original notes, this chapter was titled Learning How To Learn. I must have really liked that title because I already named a chapter Learning How To Learn.
It’s a really important part of education though. So much of education, standards, and curriculum is based around what to learn. The real goal is how to learn. Once a student understands how to learn something, they can learn anything.
Give a man a fish, he eats for a day. Teach a man to fish, he eats for life.