Reflection on the use of digital tools/aids in the classroom
All Swedish primary schools are obliged to, according to the curriculum, make it so that all pupils, after finishing primary school, have the ability to use digital tools and digital media to find, collect and process information; to problem solve; to create; to communicate; and to learn (Skolverket, 2022). The curriculum specifically points out that teachers should conduct their teaching in such a way as to give each student the possibility to use digital tools in a matter that promotes and support learning (ibid.). This is particularly notable as this manner of usage is, in many cases, absent from the pupil’s natural, everyday usage of digital technologies. Also mentioned in the curriculum is the importance of utilizing digital tools in a compensatory fashion.
In order to teach digital literacy, both the teacher and the pupils need the right hardware, fit for the purpose (Dudeney, Hockly, & Pegrum, 2013). Referencing Belshaw (2011) and Selwyn (2011), the authors also explains how both external and internal imperatives exists for incorporating digital technologies into the classroom (Dudeney, Hockly, & Pegrum, 2013). Connections to the given examples of external imperatives, the schools responsibility to “prepare our students for social life, employment and citizenship” (Dudeney, Hockly, & Pegrum, 2013, s. 5) can be found within the curriculum for the Swedish compulsory school where a lot of wight is placed on the school systems’s role in preparing future citizens of a democratic nation.
From such a point of view -a wider, societal one- MIL can also play a pivotal role in regards to equal rights and opportunities. For example, Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights states that “Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression […]”, and MIL gives individuals the ability to gather and understand information and to critically engage with it to participate in sustainable development (UNESCO, 2021). The writers of UNESCO’s curriculum therefor state that MIL should be considered a public good. They reinforce that idea by referencing the Grünwald Declaration of 1982 which “recognizes the need for political and educational systems to promote citizens’ critical understanding of ‘the phenomena of communication’ and their participation in media (new and old) (ibid).
The importance of MIL in regular life and therefor in classrooms as well can’t be overstated. But just digital technologies can provide teachers with a myriad of new, exciting opportunities and help with the day to day operations in the classroom, it will also bring forth new problems and important questions. A lot of new digital technologies can have negative consequences, but as with any tool it’s often the manner of usage that decides the outcome. The quick cycle of technological innovation therefor puts new demands on teachers to have a wide and up to date skillset (UNESCO, 2018). However you as a teacher decide to use digital tools and media in your classroom, the ever-evolving nature of technology and culture means that you will have to continuously acquire new knowledge and skills to help prepare your students for the “real world”, and also be able to correctly handle new questions and situations that might arise from outside of your classroom.