Advantages and Disadvantages of Using Technology in the Sphere of Education
Information technology, in its broadest sense, "encompasses all aspects of computing technology. IT, as an academic discipline, is concerned with issues related to advocating for users and meeting their needs within an organizational and societal context through the selection, creation, application, integration and administration of computing technologies" (Information Technology n.d.). It is now a proven fact that almost all the reputed academic institutions of the developed countries of the world (along with some developing countries too) are now willing to infuse information technology in their mode of education to provide their students with some specific advantages. But it should be kept in mind that the use of technology in the domain of education has provided some specific advantages to the students along with some major disadvantages.
Technologies like the computer and the Internet technology can be very useful for a student and I have realized the fact that "One of the advantages of having computer-assisted instruction in the classroom is that the computer can serve as a tutor" (Carson 2012). Moreover, it is a fact that "Computer and other similar forms of digital technology allow the students to continue their studies at home and can act as a tutor for the students who are falling behind. New technology also allows students to advance at their own pace as they learn" (Carson, 2012). Moreover, the Internet, which can be considered as the ocean of information, when infused in the different modes of education, can benefit students to a great extent. For this regard it can be said that "perhaps the most prominent internet technology of the past 20 years has been the world-wide web" (Selwyn 2011, p.14). It is an undeniable fact that a student of this modern era, unlike the students of the previous centuries, can now access to a huge database of information regarding different subjects, research works, scientific studies, etc through the Internet and through the different types of Websites, and all these information not only increases the knowledge of a student but also helps him/her to apply this knowledge in the exams and secure better grades.
There are some primary advantages for students in using technology in the realm of education, but it can render some ill-effects deteriorate skills of a student. It has been observed that the more use of technology in the realm of education is actually deteriorating the creativity of students as now, through technologies like the Internet, students can access to ready-made answers, can copy-paste them, and submit them as completed assignments. And such processes are harmful. Moreover, being a student myself, I have understood that it is the use of technology that has brought discrimination in the sphere of education. The application of technology has divided the student community into two groups - one group which is composed of students who belong to financially sound families and hence, are able to access to the modern technologies, and the other group in which there are students who belong to families with poor economic status and hence, are incapable of accessing to the emerging technologies. And it is due to this difference that students with strong financial background are now accomplishing more success in the academic sphere than the students who lacks such financial advantage.
In conclusion, the infusion of technology in the domain of education has now become an essential factor for almost all the educational institutions across the globe. But the incorporation of technology in the realm of education is both blessed with advantages and cursed with ill-effects.
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