I just read a post on the TeachPaperless blog that I thought was very interesting. The author posted opinions from students on the use of technology in the classroom. I thought this was a great idea so I polled one of my classes on their thoughts. Here is what they had to say:
Student 1 - I like doing internet research and creating PowerPoints for assignments. I also like the online labs we do. I really like the class web site because it has links to help sites and I can always check it to see what the homework is or what I missed.
Student 2 - I like working on the computers but I wish we could do more real labs. The computer labs are ok, but real labs would be better. I know its because of money, but I think they should find the money to get us the lab equipment.
Student 3 - I like doing the practice work on the computer because it gives me a grade right away and it also has a help feature that will help me through the problems.
Student 4 - I love having the extra credit work to do on line. It is so cool. I go to the site, do the problems, and the answers get emailed to my teacher for grading. I was only doing it for extra credit, but I found that it helps me study too.
Student 5 - I would rather write 10 pages on a computer than 2 by hand. I also like using the graphing programs to create graphs instead of doing them on paper.
Overall, the students were very positive about using technology in class to do work. This quick, informal poll (just write down your thoughts on a piece of paper) has shown me that I should continue to use technology in class and add some more technology to the classes also.