Pros and Cons of Technology Effects On Writing

“This fluid use of writing for both personal and school work is being fueled by technology, and aPew Research report released today showed just how significant an effect technology has on how students write.

Image by Pew Research

“In my experience the extended audience provided by online writing encourages students to be more deliberate and thoughtful,” said one teacher surveyed. On the other hand, another noted that “the informality of the written word and how students use the language is the downside of technology, but the upside is that students are communicating in the written form much more than I ever did at their age,” said another teacher.

Many teachers reported that students are more willing to offer feedback and advice to peers through a shared document. And they approach the writing process more fluidly. “I have seen students more willing to go back and revise or improve their work in order to provide more clarity when using digital tools than when they are writing it on paper,” a teacher said.

What’s more, many teachers felt students don’t have a good understanding of fair use and copyright laws,  and don’t digest complicated texts well. In both categories, more than two-thirds of teachers rated their students “fair” or “poor.” Students have difficulty discerning the original source of online content and citing it properly.”

Read more at http://blogs.kqed.org/mindshift/2013/07/how-do-tech-tools-affect-the-way-students-write/