The benefits of having technology in the classroom heavily outweigh the drawbacks of not having any in the classroom.

Using technology during class time allows students to collaborate on projects and share ideas that they wouldn’t be able to do with just pencil and paper. Students can present their work on online forums and apps such as PowerPoint, Google Slide and Prezi, which allow students to work together both in and out of class.

“We use technology to write and collaborate,” Marketing teacher Andrew Bell said. “I use it to present some of my own stuff. We use it to create skits and plays in class. We use it to help look up information to help research topics and explore ideas.”

Allowing technology in the classroom, such as laptops and cell phones, in class can increase the possible resources for both teachers and students. Students like Chinnu Alli (11) and Cameron Allen (12) understand that not only does technology aid in researching information, but it also provides students with a certain interaction and control over what they learn.

“It gives the teacher more materials to work with and it gives the students another dimension to their learning,” Alli said. “You can’t replace human interaction with classroom technology, but I do think that if we need to go the extra step, if a student needs something else to help with their learning, then it’s a helpful tool.”

With technology rapidly improving year after year, students should be able to maximize its purpose in school.

“The way I see it, the entire world is at our fingertips when we use technology, no matter what kind it is—

it’s just easier,” Allen said. “I think that it has more of an interactive kind of feel to the classroom. It makes me feel like I’m actually looking for the knowledge and finding it out for myself.”