People learn in so many different ways. I am a visual learner, which means that I learn best by seeing things. However, some people learn better by listening, reading, or practice. All of these different learning styles must be addressed in a classroom if you want to reach as many students as possible. Technology makes this easier for teachers to do.

            Say that I want to teach an art history lesson about Andy Warhol and all I had were some books on him. Of course I would show them the pictures, tell them about the artist, and possibly even have them make a screen print.

            However, if I had access to more technology I could do a slide show showing more of his works more easily. I could have my students watch one of his films or some of the interviews that he did. I could then have them take photos and use similar methods to those used by Andy Warhol; separating the image in two or three color groups with a photo editing program and then make a screen print.

            I would argue that the use of technology would serve to greatly enrich the students’ experience and make it more fun as well as addressing each of the different learning styles.

            The use of technology in this instance would also help them develop skills that would be useful in the job market. When you can show someone how to use something, give them a reason to learn it, and make it applicable to their daily lives, they will be more willing to learn it and will retain that information more readily.

            So many times as teachers we get caught up in what students must know and we forget to let them know how they can us what we are teaching them. Informing a student how he or she can apply knowledge will change the educational tug of war. No longer will you be trying to cram information down your students’ throats, instead they will be asking you for it.