Engaged Learning, Pros and Cons of Technology in Engaging Learners.

When we’re engaged in something, we do better at it. That’s as true of learning as it is anything else: an engaged student is more likely to learn and succeed than a disengaged one.

What does engaged learning look like? Successful, engaged learners are responsible for their own learning. These students are self-regulated and able to define their own learning goals and evaluate their own achievement. They are also energized by their learning; their joy of learning leads to a lifelong passion for solving problems, understanding, and taking the next step in their thinking. These learners are strategic in that they know how to learn and are able to transfer knowledge to solve problems creatively. Engaged learning also involves being collaborative—that is, valuing and having the skills to work with others

Technology can play a huge part in this: motivating, involving, inspiring, and the interactive power of it makes students develop skills that help them to collaborate, think critically.

If we look at today’s students are more tech-savvy than ever before. It’s almost like they are programmed to learn a different way than traditional past methods. No I don’t mean they are like robots, but they have grown up around technology, so multimedia, vivid images, video, instantaneous information, all of this grabs today’s student’s attention. Having technology in the classroom is not to replace a great teacher, but a combination of a great teacher and constructive classroom technology usage can result to great education. It simply makes sense to integrate technology in the classroom since it has become so integral to the world outside of the classroom and today’s students are accustomed to it.

n However technology has some limitations in engaging learners some of which are mentioned below.

1. Access To Inappropriate Content
The biggest concern when it comes to the use of technology in schools is how easy pornographic, violent, and other inappropriate materials can be accessed and viewed. This could cause big problems if the material is shared with other students while in the classroom.

2. A Disconnected Youth
This harmful effect of technology has already come to light in today’s world. Students  are attached to their screens almost 24/7, which is causing an entirely new set of social issues to pop up. This translates into the school system in a bit of a different way, however. More and more students are experiencing social anxieties when it comes to face to face interactions, but are perfectly fine socializing online.

3. The Cyberbullying Trap
Giving students access to anonymous accounts and endless contact avenues can only lead to trouble. Cyber bullying has become a real and in our face problem among young people today. This harassment has no end, which includes the class room. There is also no way to monitor or discipline students who are involved.

4. Inevitable Cheating
While having an easy access to information may seem like a great thing, it can become a real problem in a test taking environment. Cell phones have made cheating easier than ever. You no longer have to figure out how to write all of the answers down, you can just look them up!

5. A Major Distraction
Attentiveness drops drastically in the classroom when students have their cell phones or other technologies out. The focus shifts from their teacher and education, to whatever they are looking at, playing, or doing on their phones.