Technology in Schools Article

• A Silicon Valley School That Doesn’t Compute
• 1. Synopsis of the article - This article is about the Waldorf School, a private school in California's Silicon Valley that does not use any technology in the classroom. Instead of learning with tools such as iPads and SmartBoards, the students learn the old-fashioned way, with pens and paper. The school believes that people can teach children better than computers can, so technology is banned in the school. Only when students reach the eighth grade can they start learning with technology.  Many of the parents of the students work with technology and they agree with this style of education. 
  2. Identify the stakeholders (people who have a vested interest in the scenario) - The stakeholders in this situation are the students, the parents of the students and the education system. 
  3. Identify AND describe the social and ethical issues related to the article - One social and ethical issue related to this article is people and machines because the Waldorf School believes that children can learn better from people than computers. They agree with limiting computer use.
  4. Identify the area of impact (look at the front board on the left) - The related area of impact is education and training because the situation is about whether technology is good or not for young students.  
  5. What is your opinion of the issue? i.e. How does it affect you? How do you feel about that? I believe that technology is beneficial for education because it is a growing field and students will need to use it in college and in the workforce. This issue relates to me because I am able to type quickly because I took a mandatory multimedia class in 6th grade where I had to learn how to type. Knowing how to type is essential for a job because it means that you can get more work done in less time. Because I started typing early, I have an advantage over somebody who does not know how to type. 
  6. Do you agree with the Waldorf School? I agree with the Waldorf School to an extent. I believe that people do get sucked into technology so children should limit their usage and learn how to interact with their peers. At the same time, though, I believe that technology is essential and children should learn how to use it at a young age so they can have an advantage over their peers. I am also interested in seeing the effects of this style of education as the children grow older and enter the workforce. The results would affect my support of technology in elementary schools. 
  7. What positive and negative impacts have resulted with the introduction of technology into elementary education? Some positive impacts of the introduction of technology in elementary education are increased typing skills and faster work. One major negative impact is decreased social skills. Instead of playing and interacting with their friends, children are instead playing with their phones or other gadgets.