Emerging Technology

As technology becomes more prominent in the classroom, I believe the role of the teacher will change slightly. Growing up in elementary school, we used computers, televisions, movies, and cassette players, as well as text books, chalk boards, and worksheets. Still, the classrooms use basically the same technology, just adding a smartboard, laptop, iPad, and other technologies in some classrooms. However, as the emerging technologies become more popular for classrooms the teacher will not be teaching as much. I believe that the teacher will still be needed to make the lesson plans, make sure the children are paying attention and learning, and make sure the technology is working properly, but I do not believe the teacher will be standing in front of the classroom teaching the students as much. In the future, a day of teaching may include getting there early to make sure everything is set up and working, forming a list of daily tasks on his/her computer that will pop up onto the students computer, make sure all of the students are there (although by this time they may have sensors to see if each student is present), pushing play for daily announcements, watching the students to make sure they are on task, and answering any questions that may arise.

If this is how schools will really perform daily, every teacher should be concerned. School districts are already laying off several teachers. With technology growing, and students knowing how to use it, teachers will become less useful.