Electronics in the Classroom

For many years teachers banned calculators from their classrooms, and they were correct to do it. Children have often found mathematics to be a difficult subject, and they tried to use their electronic math machines to avoid learning it. While it is important to ensure students learn the basics of how to arrive at the correct answer, modern education has brought mathematics to higher levels where electronic devices are now a necessity.

Mathematics has not been the only subject where electronic devices were an issue for educators, and the ability to write went through a similar series of issues. Rather than learning how to compose grammatically correct sentences with all the words spelled right, students attempted to rely on word processing programs to avoid the work of learning. It took some time, but they eventually came to realize their computer programs could not replace a good knowledge base.

Science classes have usually seen benefits from the ability to acquire and use machines, and computers have been generally welcomed within their walls. Unlike other academic disciplines, many advanced science concepts require computers to help with problem solving. Students must still understand the basics, but these are not generally adaptable to computer software for simple problem solving. The student must first know how to program their information into the device before they can arrive at a correct answer, so this negates their use of the device to bypass the basic learning needed.

Over the last few decades, educators have learned there are ways to stop students from using electronic devices to bypass the basic learning they need for any subject. Computers and calculators can be programmed to ensure students must know the basics before they can be used to solve complex problems. Spell and grammar checks can be turned off, and calculators are welcomed for solving complex equations instead of performing simple addition and subtraction.