Computers in the Classroom a Dangerous Path!

Recently I was involved in a discussion about devices for a Bring Your Own Device program. I was suggesting certain choices including MacBooks, Windows machines, and Chromebooks.  It was mentioned in the conversation that many teachers utilize Safe Exam Browser and that maybe  Chromebooks were not a good option because they don’t support its use.  According to the Safe Exam Browser website:

“Safe Exam Browser is a web browser-environment to carry out online exams safely. The software changes any computer into a secure workstation. It regulates access to resources like system functions, other websites, and applications and prevents unauthorized resources being used during an exam.”

Basically, the safe exam browser allows the teacher to create a “testing” environment that blocks the rest of the world out during an exam.  WOW! That is Amazing!  Where do I sign up? I can hear teachers all over the world exclaiming. However, using the Safe Exam Browser is, in my opinion,  a dangerous path. Before I get into why I say this I have a few questions.

• What are we preparing kids for, college or to be a productive member of society?
• What are computers for in the classroom?
• What kind of learning is truly relevant to the needs of our current and future society?
• Does the “Testing” environment created by the Safe Exam Browser enable skills relevant to the needs of our society?
• Where in the “real world” are we presented with a problem where access to tools that could help us solve the problem are blocked?

I think you can already tell where I am going with this.  As educators, we are preparing our students for jobs that don’t exist.  They will be solving problems that we don’t know are problems because they also don’t exist.  Pedagogical practices of the past are no longer relevant and can possibly hinder a students ability to become a productive member of society.  I am talking about REAL learning, not memorization and regurgitation for a test.

I was great at the education game when I was in school.  I remember vividly sitting in the back of the lecture hall in Botany 105 with my professor’s slide printout in hand, taking notes. We listened and wrote down “important” things that would be on the test.  I remember, studying my notes for a week or so before the exam and cramming the night before.  I got an A+ in that class, therefore, according to my transcripts I learned a lot about Botany.  However, that is not the case, I don’t remember a thing about Botany because the pedagogical methods employed, did not focus on actual learning.

This type of “learning” does not help our students with the ever-changing environment in which they will work.  Content should no longer be the focus of the educational environment.  We should be ensuring our students are getting practice with the 4Cs and doing work that is at DOK levels 3 and 4.  However, the majority of testing environments, are usually at DOK Level 1 and 2.  These levels are no longer enough for the needs of our society.  If teachers are going to make a choice about a tool to use in their classroom that creates an unauthentic environment that never occurs except for in a school, I say they are taking their students down a dangerous path!

I ask educators to seriously consider the approaches they are taking to learning.

I hope that the technology you decide to use is backed by sound pedagogical practice, which assists your students’ ability to incorporate the 4Cs as well as other 21st century skills, and not on its ability to block out the rest of the world during a test.

Thanks for reading

Dr. Shannon Doak