English- Argumentative Essay PDF

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Argumentative essay on why technology training should be implemented in college....

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Training Students to use Canvas at Everett Community College 74% of teachers believe that technology is the way to go when it comes to retrieving, completing, and submitting assignments in schools and colleges (Murray). Corey Murray, an editor and writer of EDTECH, believes that using technology not only motivates students to work harder, but that it is also a more efficient and organized way of submitting and reviewing given tasks. Educational facilities, as well as workplaces, have started using technology in their day to day life to perform the functions needed as part of each person’s job description. From a blog written by Guthrie Jensen and his consultants, it was found that “40% of employees with poor training leave their jobs within the first year” (Jensen). This statistic although large, does make sense. A person who doesn’t feel well equipped to complete tasks would only feel bad about themselves and frustrated. They would feel that in order to do their job well, they would have had to be properly taught in the first place. This is similar to the feelings that take place in students that do not have a training program to instruct them on how to use Canvas, the necessary learning management system. They start to give up their motivation and get frustrated with the tasks they are given, because they don’t feel that they have adequate training that would help them use Canvas. Because the use of technology is so prevalent, educators all around the world have integrated it into schools. There is an abundance of systems that are used for many purposes, all with different layouts and rules. For example, Google Drive, Microsoft Word, and Excel are all very commonly used at home, in the workplace, and at school. They don’t all work the same, so one must learn how to use these systems before relying on them. This makes it very difficult for a person to use a specific learning management system, especially when they are new to a

school. Students have been unable to turn in assignments online just because they were never taught how to do so in the first place. Not only does this affect the students that attend schools that are using technology to do their work, but it also can falsely reflect on the instructor and their ability to teach. 5 out of 6 of the students I talked to at EVCC revealed that they have had difficulty using Canvas, the learning management system, on at least one occasion, and that they had to use it a lot and seek help from others in order to do what was expected of them at school. At Everett Community College, The Center for Transformative Teaching is available for all teachers to be well trained on how to use Canvas. People at Everett Community College are so intent on making teachers as effective as possible, and they see all of the benefits that having training would bring.

However, this commitment ends with the teachers.

Students need

something like this so that they can be just as effective when it comes to using Canvas. The school community would be stronger if everyone felt confident about the learning management systems that they were using. In addition, because students lack the knowledge of how to submit assignments and retrieve them in the first place, their grades suffer. This can prove to be very detrimental to their future plans, such as other classes and programs that are dependent on good grades. Not only that, but it also takes away from many people’s time. There have been cases of very dedicated students, such as my friend Mercedes, that have spent hours watching videos on how to use programs like Canvas. In doing so, they are forced to neglect other personal and school related tasks. It also takes up time from teachers and school staff that are asked for help from students that are confused. This lack of instruction regarding Canvas isn’t efficient for anyone involved. While the Everett Community College website does offer some assistance for using Canvas, it

can be confusing because of the large amount of links that go to further links. Also, it can take a lot of time simply finding the correct one that pertains to the specific problem that the student is facing. These problems could be solved by having training offered for all students that desire it. A training program would allow students to be adequately educated on how to use them before school starts. It would ensure that confused students would not have to take time out of their day researching how to use the different parts of the required learning management system. Spending a few hours mastering the system at the beginning of the year is nothing compared to trying to track down Canvas experts and watching tutorials for hours in an attempt to get help using different aspects of the site. It also saves the time of the teachers and staff that have to help confused students. In my personal experience, after asking more than once for help on how to get to the right page on Canvas, one of my teachers got quite annoyed with me. She explained that her time is to be spent solely on teaching and meeting with students. So not only is it a big waste of teacher’s time, but it also doesn’t necessarily get the student to where they need to go. Having good training would also make it so that students were more motivated, and as a result their grades would thrive rather than suffer. Knowing that they were fully equipped for the tasks that were thrown at them, students would be able to do assignments confidently instead of feeling helpless and discouraged. Finally, having training would also allow students to learn more because they wouldn’t be getting behind from not being able to retrieve and submit assignments. A good training system that would benefit all students, teachers, and staff involved would include workshops. These would be places where people would meet at a class to get fully educated on Canvas, instructed by someone that has had lots of experience using the necessary

learning management systems. It would be a place for new students to ask questions and get the help they needed on specific matters regarding the program. In addition, students at the college should receive emails if there is ever an update with the program. Along with emails that let the students know when there have been changes, there should be simple tutorials attached in video or written form that help demonstrate how to use the system with such changes. This would alleviate the exhaustive search for links. The tutorials would be specifically about what the students are bound to need help on, and then they would not have to spend all this time researching and trying to find the right videos that would instruct them well. The largest benefit of implementing a good training system would be that it would be a time saver for everyone. The article Best Education Software goes in depth about the uses of technology in schools, telling that “Education software also saves administrators and teachers a ton of time on administrative tasks, like grading, and gives them the opportunity to find more creative ways to improve their respective outputs” (Moran). The software saves teachers time when grading, however this time is only really saved if it is not being taken up in other areas, such as when students ask those teachers for help using the software. Technology provides many useful tools that can make the learning experience better and more efficient, but in order for it to do so, people need to be instructed on how to use it. Academic Technology tells that “DoIT Academic Technology advances the University’s mission, strategic priorities, and the Wisconsin Idea by wisely applying technology to current and future academic environments” (Regents). This organization works hard to provide academic opportunities for students using Canvas. By demonstrating how to make the most of this technology, they are ensuring that the time of those students and the people around them is well spent. By mastering how to use this technology,

students have to spend less of their own time trying to teach themselves and don’t have to take the time of others, when in the past they were having to ask for help. My English instructor Dana Harker came across Socrative, a system that would make learning enjoyable to students. Unfortunately, because students would need to be trained how to use it, she had no choice but to set the idea aside. Teachers are forced to let go of good ideas that would benefit students and allow them to appreciate their learning simply because of the time they would have to take from the main subject they were trying to teach. This would not be a problem if it was included in the training before school started. Having a training system in place at schools would allow students to become more motivated and not get behind.

The article Undeniable Statistics that Prove the Value of

Employee Training has many facts about the values of companies having training for their employees, including the fact that “with a good employee training, your workforce can learn how to manage stress better and be more efficient with what they do. This, in turn, helps them reach their full potential and be happier employees who are involved with the greater goals of the company” (Jensen). Simply from good training, employers can transform their employees into efficient workers that make the most of their time, as well as making the work environment a good one. Those are important aspects for companies that want to improve in what they are doing. This concept is the same for students that receive training. The article What is Successful Technology Integration? explains that “when technology integration is at its best, a child or a teacher doesn't stop to think that he or she is using a technology tool -- it is second nature. And students are often more actively engaged in projects when technology tools are a seamless part of the learning process” (Lucas). When people are in a good working environment and know how

to use the given learning management systems, they are motivated to go out of their way and work hard to do things that are beneficial to themselves and others. Mastering these systems allows a student to feel confident to do any task that they are given in school. Training students to use different learning management systems for educational purposes also allows them to learn more and maintain/improve their grades. One survey found that 65% of teachers think that using technology for educational purposes shows the students something that could not be demonstrated in any other way (Murray). Technology has been integrated in schools because of the many great learning opportunities that it offers.

When the use of

technology is mastered and becomes second nature, the student is able to benefit and find online resources that help them learn more than they could without it. Through a study, the article Does School-Related Internet Information Seeking Improve Academic Self-Efficacy demonstrates that students can only have a positive attitude towards their learning tools and environment if they know how to make the most of what is around them (Shen). This knowledge can come from teachers or well educated students that have been trained on how to use the learning tools. If people knew how to use technology the right way, there would no longer be the worry of how to retrieve and submit assignments. As a result, they would no longer be stressed about getting bad grades. Hence, when the use of technology is mastered and students are able to have positive attitudes toward their learning, more learning can take place and their grades can improve. Integrating a training program for technology use must take place in Everett Community College because it uses the learning management system, Canvas.

This would include

workshops, meetings that could take place in a computer lab about a week before school starts. All students could be alerted via email that such workshops would take place, where they could

practice for themselves on the computers how to use Canvas and possibly other commonly used online systems. There would be mentors there to instruct students on what they would need to know and to give help to those who may have had questions. Each student could go home with a manual that would answer the most frequently asked questions. Along with this, every time there is an update to the system, all students attending the school should get an email alerting them to the fact, as well as have linked videos and tutorials that easily demonstrate how to use Canvas with these changes. Members of Student Life, a team of students that understood the system, could be in charge of making sure that these things took place. Some people may say that having workshops, emails, and manuals made would be a waste of people’s time. However, they are misguided because it actually does the opposite. Having an adequate training program set in place makes it so that time is saved in the long run and students do not have to ask for help at times that are inconvenient for themselves and their fellow students/teachers. It also saves time for the students that are spending hours of their time researching how to use the needed technology program, as well as the time of their family and friends that try to help them out. So in the end, having some prep time that allows all students to feel confident about their abilities would actually save time for everyone later. In conclusion, having a training program that would teach students and teachers to properly use technology in school would be more efficient for everyone involved. It would save time by teaching everyone at one time to use technology as second nature, make students more motivated because of their confidence in how to use their learning materials, learn more by knowing how to make the most of the provided technology, and ensure that students do not get behind and can maintain their grades because they have the ability to keep up to date and have

access to all of their assignments. There is an overwhelmingly large percentage of teachers that believe in the values of using technology in school. This can be done successfully with a joint effort between dedicated students, teachers, and any willing mentors to help out with the training. This would prove to be beneficial to all teachers and students.

Works Cited

“Center for Transformative Teaching.” Everettcc.edu. 8 December 2018. Web.

Jensen, Guthrie. “Statistics that Prove the Value of Employee Training.” Insights: Jensen Blog. Philippines: Makati City. 20 November 2017. Web.

The Guthrie

Moran, Courtney. “Best Education Software.” Online Learning Platforms. 20 November 2018. Web.

Murray, Corey. “Survey: 74 Percent of Educators Support the Use of Technology in Schools.” Technology Solutions That Drive Education. 6 February 2013. Web.

Lucas, George. “What Is Successful Technology Integration?” Edutopia, George Lucas Educational Foundation. 5 November 2007. Web.

Regents, Board of. “Software Training for Students.” Division of Information Technology. Wisconsin. 2017. Web.

Shen, Cai-Xia. “Does School-Related Internet Information Seeking Improve Academic Self-Efficacy? The Moderating Role of Internet Information Seeking Styles.” Computers in Human Behavior. September 2018. EBSCOhost. Web....