Does Technology has led to a more equitable society? Debate #2

Introduction

Technology has the potential to alter education. It can help instructors and students strengthen their bonds, innovate learning and work together to fulfill the accessibility gaps. No doubt technology improves learning experiences to meet the needs of all students. Technology is not only beneficial in the education sector but it helps an individual to grow professionally.

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Agree

In the video by Nicole, Tracy, and Stephen, I agree that technology helps impaired students in learning and creates equitability. Technology has done a lot in the health sector and it helps in mobility by providing wheelchairs and hearing aid. In addition, technology has increased opportunities and decreased the gap among people. When implemented correctly, technology can make a significant contribution to educational equity. It lowers obstacles to learning resources, helps students where they are in various learning settings and needs, and gives educators a better understanding of the learning environments they are creating.

With the help of technology world’s literacy rate is increasing and education is becoming less location-dependent. Students can download resources and play educational videos/games on devices. Technology has widened access and one can use multiple applications to ease their life. A tablet that does not have access to the internet is also beneficial. It can be used for writing, animation, filmmaking, and photography. However, once you include it in the internet, the possibilities are endless. With the help of the internet, students can increase their search and download useful study materials

Disagree

From the classroom’s debate, group 2 came up with strong relevant points where technology doesn’t lead to a more equitable society. For example, if there are many family members, it becomes difficult to manage less number of devices. Also, some parents can not afford to purchase multiple devices for their kids. Also, the “Digital Divide” that was discussed in the classroom, explains that despite having access to devices sometimes lack of skills in students or teachers prevents them from using the technology. Moreover, some parents or teachers do not have good knowledge of using applications, laptops, and so on. So the kids do not get proper guidance from home. As per the study discussed in the class, in Africa, 43.2% have internet access in schools but there is lack of funding for the computers. Socio-economic status widens the gap for the use of technology. The language on the internet is mostly English and sometimes it becomes difficult for non-natives to understand things faster.

On the other side, fake news and disinformation have been around for a long time, but with rapid technological improvements, people are finding it difficult to keep up with what is true and what is not. Low self-esteem is linked to FOMO and social media anxiety. Although much research has been done on the subject but is still an issue.

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Conclusion

Technology ultimately changed the world as we know it, accelerating development in many sectors and increasing equality and opportunity for people of all socioeconomic backgrounds. Misuse of technology is to blame for the majority of the damage caused by technology. Social media is the best example to describe it. It is the duty of each person to understand the drawbacks of technology and use it wisely. Technology is a boon if it is provided to everyone and used efficiently.

5 Comments
  1. Great post Amanpreet, I quite enjoyed the read! Your thoughts on technology are very in line with my own, concluding that misuse is the number one culprit for many of the issues our world faces with regards to technology. It seems to be the same old story when it comes to advancements in science and technology, what was created/discovered in hopes of bettering society, seems to be slowing tearing it apart.

  2. I do not think that technology is to blame, but the user is. However, when we don’t put an emphasis on it in schools and teach kiddos from an early age, they are going to make a lot of mistakes, both small and large. Thefore, I think that we need to do a better job focusing on teaching kiddos how to use technology properly.

  3. Hi Amanpreet!

    I enjoyed your reading your blog post. I too, agree with that technology has its benefits to society that has made it more equitable, that being said I also see the major downfalls. Regarding, health care and science (in Canada anyway) technology is more so equitable, however there are still barriers in place for lower socioeconomic status individuals. I do not see equitability in the classroom regarding fair use of technology. A lot of our platforms are on Google classroom, Blackboard, or Microsoft Teams which all require technology and WIFI to have access at home. This being said students are at a disadvantage to focus more of their time on concepts they struggle with to advance if they do not have access to these technologies at home. Regarding your point to being the duty of the person to understand the drawbacks of technology – I strongly believe this needs to be taught to youth. If we do not present the downfalls of technology or warn youth about these we are doing them an injustice and ultimately setting them up for failure (just my opinion).

    Thank you for your informative blog post and perspective!

  4. Hi Amanpreet,

    Great summary of the debate topic. I agree that the misuse of technology causes many noteworthy issues, and I would add that internet access is another major adjacent topic. These topics are so interwoven with technology itself that it’s difficult to keep the topics separate! Hence the complexity of the topic, I guess.

    Since technology is here to stay, I think your argument emphasizes the importance of our role in helping students create a responsible digital footprint and develop the skills needed to critically review the reliability of information on the internet. Like Kelly stated, we need to do a better job teaching students how to use technology properly.

  5. Great summary of the arguments! The recent issues that have occurred with our school division, being cutoff from technology, has affected our lives immensely as teachers. I need to remind myself that not everyone has the same advantages with accessibility to technology as I do, socioeconomic status and funding being the major factor.

    As other comments state I also feel that the misuse of technology can be changes through teaching and guiding our students on using technology for the good.

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