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Impacts of Technology: Preparing Students for Independence
Impacts of Technology: Preparing Students for Independence
Samantha Kally
In recent years, technology has become more prevalent in classrooms across the United States, and Flagstaff High School is no exception. Since roughly 2019, Flagstaff High School has been working to implement more online work for students because of its accessibility. This switch is possible through the school distributed iPads that are provided to each student.
As the internet has evolved and shown more prevalence in our day to day lives, there has been an increased need to evolve with it.
The importance of teaching our youth how to use technology has been widely implemented and accepted into our schools’ systems. With the introduction of tools that are built to provide more organization and accessibilities to the classroom, it would seem as though this is for the best. However, there are growing concerns with how beneficial the use of technology really is and if it is better to make things so easy for students to access.
When looking at the developments of how to use technology at Flagstaff High School specifically, almost everyone I spoke with said the switch was really made in 2019. The push to implement the Google Classroom platform into the classes was strong, but this switch was fully solidified during the Covid-19 pandemic.
It was the spring of 2020 that the school got enough funding for every student to be loaned their own iPad. In an interview with Mr. Baxter, a teacher at Flagstaff High School for 10 years states that, “I wouldn’t say it was a matter of philosophy, necessarily, like, suddenly enough teachers wanted to put stuff virtually on iPads.” He continued, “but it was the fact that at one particular time the school district had the money and the technology.”
With this shift in online work becoming more prevalent, concerns continue to rise. Mr. Baxter expressed that while the iPads create more accessibility in the classroom and are a more environmentally friendly option to paper work, there are several things that are considered a lost practice now. He went on to say, “I still think there’s some good critical thinking and, it’s not exactly a skill, but it’s like patience and attention to detail in looking up the definition in the old-fashioned dictionary.” He continued, “locating and pursuing that answer in a more independent way is still healthy and good.”
This sentiment is echoed by other teachers at Flagstaff High School as well. “The craft of writing is getting lost for students who 
don’t make it an individual, important thing,” Mrs. Stearns said during an interview. Being a teacher at Flagstaff High School for nearly three decades, she has seen all sorts of new technology get implemented into our school. She continued to voice why things being hand written is so important by emphasizing that “students remember what they write down and they’re more articulate and personable … when they’re writing down notes, they’re more succinct, they use their own words, they engage with the information.”
Mr. Roche-Baron, an English teacher at Flagstaff High School went on to speak more positively about integrating technology in the classroom. As technology develops, so does the expectations on how to use it. When asked about why teachers are making the switch to more online work, Mr. Roche-Baron said “well, I think there’s a push to prepare you for the future with technology.” He continued to talk about the benefits of having programs such as Canvas, an online program that organizes class work turn-ins and grades in one place. He said that the platform assists with the attendance problem at Flagstaff High School, allowing students who miss a class are able to stay up to date. “They don’t miss out on that learning.”
While teachers find online programs such as Canvas useful, the feeling is not shared among students. Avery Frost, a senior at Flagstaff High School, expresses her discontent with the use of multiple platforms. “I’ve seen schools that do it all on canvas,” she went on to say “the app is fine.” She went on to say she was upset with the grading system at Flagstaff High School. That the grades on Canvas are often inaccurate, inconsistent, and always dependent on the teachers’ preferences. She doesn’t like that she has to look in multiple locations such as Canvas or Synergy to hopefully find an accurate read on how she’s doing in school.
Despite differences in opinions between students and teachers, technology in the classroom is here to stay. Learning to adapt to a world with technology is a necessity now; the only way we can improve is by exploring how we teach it.