Running head: MAXIMIZING ADVANTAGES AND MINIMIZING DISADVANTAGES 1

Maximizing the Advantages and Minimizing the Disadvantages of New Technologies

Kirsten Brandler

Loyola University Maryland

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In his ten principles listed on pages 192-193, Neil Postman (1995) lays the foundation for

a framework with which to understand technology and by extension technology in education.

Postman describes the biases of technologies, which create advantages and disadvantages for

different users. From an educational perspective, Postmans framework requires educators to

carefully analyze all potential technologies to identify the ways they will benefit or harm

individual students. A new educational technology is only worthwhile to implement if it will

primarily benefit students and if the potential harm to students can be minimized.
Postmans ten principles emphasize the ways that every technology has simultaneous

advantages and disadvantages that affect each person in different ways. Postmans list begins

with the idea that all technological change is a Faustian bargain (p.192), emphasizing an idea

that echoes through the following nine principles: every new technology involves some level of

disadvantage. He then delineates many of the ways in which technology provides both

advantages and disadvantages.

According to Postman, each technology brings various biases ranging from emotional to

sensory because of the different ways they are created and used. Technologies vary significantly

in their structure and purpose, but all of their components influence the way that people use them

and the way people think while using them. Regardless of whether it is explicitly clear, each

technology conveys a message about what people should value, and the technology therefore has

the power to significantly change what someone thinks, feels, and does. Technology users need

to thoughtfully consider the ways that a new technology will influence their thoughts and

behavior before deciding to use it and after starting to use it. Adults need to also consider the

technologys effect on children prior to allowing children to use the technology. This additional

responsibility for adults is especially important in education, as educators must assess the

potential benefit and harm that new technologies can create for the students in their care.
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In the world of education, this framework requires educators to consider the many

implications of bringing a new technology into the classroom. Although educators should

mindfully select all pedagogical tools, it is particularly important to carefully consider the effects

of a new technology before using it with students because, as Postman (1995) notes in his fifth

principle, a new technology does not merely add something; it changes everything (p.192). A

new technology in the classroom can completely transform the learning experience for students.

The hope is always that all students will benefit from the change, but this framework for

understanding technology in education is a reminder that there will more likely be students

whose capacity for learning is diminished by the implementation of the new technology. The

students cannot be expected to anticipate and counteract the detrimental effects of a new

technology; rather, it is the responsibility of educators to analyze educational technology with

this framework in mind and ensure that students benefit from technology as much as possible.
Particularly in diverse classrooms, teachers must consider their students individual needs

and the ways that implementing a new technology will have different impacts on individual

students. Students with physical disabilities might struggle with the manual dexterity necessary

to use a specific technology, whereas students without these disabilities may have no difficulty

with same tool and could benefit from the efficiency the new technology allows. Operating under

this framework, educators must then carefully evaluate prospective educational technologies to

determine various advantages and disadvantages for individual students in their classrooms.
If the teacher believes the advantages of a new technology collectively outweigh the

disadvantages and the students will on the whole benefit from its implementation, then it is

worthwhile to introduce the new technology; however, it is then the responsibility of the teacher

to find ways to minimize the disadvantages the new technology will create for individual

students. It is also important for teachers to recognize that every student will most likely benefit
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from the technology in some ways but suffer from it in other ways. Even a student who primarily

benefits from the technology will likely struggle with it in another way (whether the student

realizes it or not), and the teacher must find ways to help students counteract the unique

disadvantages that apply to them. This framework places a great deal of responsibility on the

teacher, as identifying (and developing plans to lessen) the many potential disadvantages for

students requires significant time, but the process also ensures that teachers select the right

technologies for implementation in the classroom and devise ways to enhance all students

learning. It may not be possible to make a technology beneficial for every student, but it is the

teachers responsibility to try.

To illustrate how teachers can identify some of the advantages and disadvantages of a

potential new technology, I will discuss two technologies currently used in many schools: digital

note-taking apps and electronic textbooks. Each of these technologies provides both advantages

and disadvantages for students, but the disadvantages can be minimized if they are

acknowledged and if steps are taken to reduce them.

Many schools particularly those with 1:1 or BYOD programs have students using

digital note-taking apps in place of handwritten notes in notebooks. At the school where I teach,

students bring their own iPads and are required to install the Notability app for digital note-

taking. Not every teacher requires students to use the app, but students are required to have it. If

a teacher is trying to determine whether he or she should require students to take their notes on

Notability, he or she must first consider the ways that this tool will impact student learning both

positively and negatively.

Many students benefit from the organizational system Notability can provide. Instead of

having to keep track of numerous notebooks and individual pieces of paper that can be easily

misplaced, Notability allows students to keep their notes for all classes in one place. By backing

up their notes to Google Drive (or one of the other cloud storage options within the app),
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students can eliminate the concern of ever losing their notes. For most students, Notability will

help them keep their notes organized in a single place and may encourage them to create similar

organizational systems for themselves in other parts of their lives. For some students, though, the

opportunity to back up files to cloud storage could deprive them of the chance to develop the

responsibility of caring for their belongings and keeping them safe. The teacher would then need

to find alternative ways to ensure that students learn responsibility. These alternative approaches

could potentially involve the new technology or could come from a non-technology lesson that

helps students develop this skill.

Another aspect of digital note-taking that teachers must consider is the dexterity required

of students. In order to take notes efficiently with an app, students must have both the physical

capability to operate the app and enough familiarity with the features of the app to use it as

quickly as they could take the same notes on paper. Many students struggle with writing on a

screen using a stylus because students have only very recently started learning to use a stylus at a

young age. Todays high school students learned to write on paper, not screens, and many have

difficulty writing quickly with a stylus. Similarly, students with physical disabilities may not

have the capacity to write with a stylus. In both of these situations, accommodations could be

made to minimize the negative impact of the technology. For example, students could take their

notes on paper but use Notabilitys photo feature to digitize them afterwards and still be able to

benefit from the organizational capabilities of the app. They could also be granted the

accommodation of using Notabilitys voice recording feature to record the class. If they are not

able to keep up with taking notes during class, they can review the audio after class to fill in any

gaps in their notes. For students who dont feel efficient using Notability because they are not

familiar enough with it, the teacher could offer an after-school technology help session to

introduce students to some of the more detailed features of the app and to provide them with a
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no-pressure time period to practice their skills. Ultimately, the teacher must decide whether

taking and storing notes digitally will enhance learning for the majority of students and whether

additional accommodations could help the remaining students to overcome the disadvantages.
The same concepts apply in assessing the use of digital textbooks in schools. Many

schools are moving to digital textbooks for some or all classes to reduce costs, the amount of

paper used, and students burden of transporting physical textbooks between home and school, as

well as to take advantage of digital resources linked to digital textbooks. Like digital note-taking

apps, digital textbooks offer the benefit of having everything in one place. Students can access all

of their textbooks through their devices. This access allows for easy organization and relieves

students of the burden of transporting heavy textbooks between classes and between home and

school. The ability to have everything in one place can also be a disadvantage when students

need to access multiple materials. Unless they are able to use multiple devices simultaneously,

students have no choice but to switch between windows or apps on their device. This

disadvantage in the functionality of digital textbooks can slow down tasks that students could

complete much more efficiently with a physical textbook in front of them. In these cases,

teachers could try to minimize the need for switching screens by projecting a document at the

front of the classroom rather than requiring students to view it on their own devices.
A significant benefit of digital textbooks is the plethora of digital resources that are

available through the content of the text. Many parts of digital textbooks contain hyperlinks to

various web sites, articles, images, and videos that can deepen students understanding of the

material. For many students, this access is a tremendous advantage; for others, the ability to click

on links can be distracting and get students off task. This outcome is particularly likely for

students with attention disorders. Teachers must work with these students to assess the

appropriate time and context for viewing supplementary materials versus when to continue
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working directly with the text. Similarly, teachers must help all students understand the

responsibilities of using mobile devices. Specifically, students cannot surf the web, play games,

or use social media when they are using their devices for educational purposes. Having a device

open to access a digital textbook makes it very tempting for students to quickly switch to

something non-educational, and teachers must instill in students the understanding that this

behavior is not appropriate.

Under this technological framework based on Postmans ten principles regarding the

biases and inherent advantages and disadvantages of new technologies, technology users must

critically analyze the ways in which a new technology will benefit or harm the user. For

educators, this requires careful consideration of the impact of a new technology on individual

students. Postman highlights the Faustian bargain of technology: there is always a disadvantage.

It is the responsibility of educators to acknowledge these disadvantages and find ways to

minimize them for students while maximizing the ways that the technology can enhance student

learning. Although the Faustian bargain perspective may initially sound pessimistic, considering

technology with this framework in mind ensures that educators do not implement new

technologies blindly and that they do everything possible to create a learning environment

tailored to each students needs.

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References

Postman, Neil. (1995). The end of education: Redefining the value of school. New York: Alfred

A. Knopf.