Why Technology Should be Used in The Elementary Classroom

While the majority of people think that technology in the classroom is a great thing, there are some people who think otherwise. The point of my blog posts is to change the minds of those people. In my opinion, technology enhances the learning of every single student. It also allows students to be more involved in their own learning. The majority of students in the elementary classroom today have grown up with technology and know how to use it. This just makes it that much easier to integrate technology into education.
I know this may not be the most important thing to most people, but technology will make learning more fun for our students. If learning is fun for our students, they will enjoy school so much more. Technology allows us to use virtual lessons on tablets and/or computers. We can also use videos and podcasts to teach our lessons. All of these things make learning seem more fun for our students (Cox).
The use of technology in the classroom also prepares our students for the future (Cox). Just in the last few years, technology has taken over our world. I cannot wait to see where technology is in the next five to ten years. It will truly be amazing. This just means that we need to get our students familiar with technology because they will more than likely be using it for the rest of their lives.
One of the greatest things about technology is that it allows students to learn at their own pace. This is especially important for students who have special needs and students who learn at a quicker pace. Almost every single app allows students to move at their own pace. Technology also allows students to repeat their tasks over and over until they understand the information.
Technology allows students to share their work with people all over the world. While I definitely think that this should be closely monitored, I do think that it is a great idea for students to have "tech pals". Tech pals are email pals that are very similar to pen pals. This is a great way for students to learn about many different cultures (Conley, Mullin, 2003).
I have only provided just a few ways that students can benefit from technology in the classroom. I am sure I will talk about more in future postings, but I just wanted to get a few ideas out there. I am a firm believer in using technology in the classroom, I even use it in my three year old preschool class. My kiddos love to play educational games on the iPad. I hope that my posts encourage other teachers to use technology in their classrooms. I also hope that this changes the minds of technology's opponents.
REFERENCES:

Conley, B., & Mullin, T. (2003, November 7). Benefits of Technology in the Classroom. 1(1), 1-2. Retrieved September 18, 2016, from http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?doi=10.1.1.497.5273&rep=rep1&type=pdf 

 Cox, J. (n.d.). Benefits of Technology in the Classroom. Retrieved September 18, 2016, from http://www.teachhub.com/benefits-technology-classroom