OPINION: Online learning due to COVID-19 shows the limits of technology in education
1 min read
Americans used to love technology in education.
Facebook, Twitter, Apple, Amazon — tech giants such as these were viewed as having a positive effect on the country in 2015 by 71% of Americans, according to Pew Research. The positivity was shared by the education sector. For example, the Los Angeles Unified School District attempted in 2014 to purchase 700,000 iPads for classroom use.
Privacy scandals such as Facebook’s Cambridge Analytica fiasco precipitated a drop in positive associations with tech companies. Still, 67% of Americans believe technology has improved their lives, according to an Ipsos poll last year. And now, in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic and school cancellations across the country, we’ve been forced to move our education system online.
If we’re not careful, America could once again fall in love with tech-heavy learning. But this would be a mistake. The coronavirus pandemic is illustrating that there should be limits to the use of technology in education. […]