How can technology help develop higher order thinking and problem solving skills?
I think one way that technology helps to develop higher order thinking and problem solving skills is by allowing students to have relatively easy access to necessary information. Also, the use of technology helps students to organize that information into a presentation of learning in a fast, creative way. For example, several websites were suggested by Lorrie Jackson in her techtorial that allow students to demonstrate their progress through several levels of learning. I especially liked the Biography Channel and plan to use it with my class. We have been discussing famous people and how they changed society.
In the article on CARET discussing student learning, research results were given that showed a growth in higher order thinking and problem solving skills in students who used technology more so than those who did not (or at least didn’t use it as much). Using technology exposes students to a vast amount of information quickly and easily. It also provides them with tools to sort, process, and present this information in a variety of unique ways. I think this is what promotes the development of higher order thinking and problem solving skills. Also, let’s face it, technology is intriguing. What student doesn’t want to play around with a computer or website to see what they can do? In harnessing that intrigue, teachers can use it to spur on student learning. As mentioned in the article on CARET, students who used collaborative technology developed higher order thinking skills and were better able to understand and effectively present information on a civil rights topic. Using technology allowed students access to various discussions and points of view on the topic, therefore broadening their understanding of it. Technology, in providing students with tools, enables students of all ages to create and present thinking in so many ways. It also broadens a student’s thinking and exposure beyond that of his or her own experience. This practically pushes students to think on a deeper level.
From the reading I was thoroughly convinced that using technology did help develop this, but I would have liked some concrete examples. Many statistics were given, but after establishing the fact that technology does develop these skills, I had hoped the writers would give specific examples of how students used technology (for example explaining projects they made and websites they used).
References:
http://eduscapes.com/tap/topic69.htm
References:
http://eduscapes.com/tap/topic69.htm
Hi Meredith;
ReplyDeleteI was somewhat challenged in the findings by CARET as well. It seemed that the article was a "promotional piece" for HOTS and did not provide great evidence that technology was the sole reason students did better. I kept thinking that perhaps the "carrot" for higher learning was the joy of surfing the net and the ease of finding sources on the internet as opposed to walking the rows in the library.
I must say that higher learning skills has great merit when acheived...but...
...I think once technologies become more satuarated in society and become the new norm in schools, the higher learning will begin to taper off. I still believe it's more novelty than actual concrete operations that will maintain consistent higher learning.