In 1996 or 1997, tickle me Elmo was the “must have” toy for the Holidays. There were stories in the newspaper and on TV about adults waiting in lines outside stores, sprinting to displays, and getting into verbal and physical fights over the toys. The demand couldn’t have been higher, nor the supply lower. Although I was in 7th or 8th grade, I know the company must have made a LOT of money selling Elmo. Back in those days, we sat in classrooms and copied notes off the chalkboard and overhead projectors. A few science classrooms had whiteboards. As far as I could tell, the teachers didn’t like whiteboards as much because it seemed like markers were always drying out and teachers would get frustrated as they had to pause instruction and switch markers.
In 2011, chalkboards are almost non-existent. If classrooms still have chalkboards, they are generally in the back of the room or covered with a newer whiteboard. Teachers never use them as there are so many alternatives. Many classrooms have SMARTboards and ELMOs!
An ELMO is a replacement to the overhead projector. Depending on the district, every classroom may have one of these new devices. They are designed to take “screen shots” of different things, as well as project anything and everything you put under them. They automatically focus and are very cool. While overheads needed to be manually focused and only showed the shadowy outline of anything other than markers and clear transparencies, it is clear the ELMO is the superior piece of technology entering classrooms.
In my current student teaching experience, as well as my first student teaching experience, both classrooms had ELMOs. The first placement also had a SMARTboard and relied on that technology much more than the ELMO. In my second placement, there is no SMARTboard, but the ELMO gets daily use. It seems to be an ideal piece of technology to teach students. I am slowly beginning the takeover process of teaching the entire class, but while I have been in the class, the teacher has used the ELMO for countless activities. He gathers the third graders onto the carpet and reads a book under it, so it projects the words and illustrations onto a screen at the front of the room. The teacher also uses the projector to demonstrate class activities so all students can see what are expected of them. If the teacher wants to correct paragraphs or show proper ways to do math problems, he can use the ELMO to project his writing for the whole class to see. He still has the option of using the white board, but the ELMO is ideal for showing student work to the entire class and discussing ways to improve it.
Technology is ever-changing and ever-evolving. The chalkboard was an amazing piece of technology and although recent studies have proven that chalk dust can cause cancer when inhaled, it was one of the most revolutionary pieces of technology used in the classroom. Whiteboards have replaced a vast majority of chalkboards and electronic boards, such as SMARTboards are slowly replacing whiteboards. The overhead was replaced by the ELMO and I am sure improved ELMO-like devices will continue to be released. Children are growing up in an age of technology and technology will continue to be embraced in the classroom. Did chalkboards and overhead projectors need to be replaced? No. Is it a good thing that they were/in the process of being replaced? Maybe yes. Maybe no. Change may be good and it may be bad, but one this is certain, change is the only constant. As a future teacher I am prepared and ready to deal with ever changing technology in my classroom and adapting lessons to use it to my maximum advantage. Are all teachers prepared? Maybe! Will technology eventually become what separates a good teacher from a bad teacher? Probably not, but will it play an important role? I would say yes! Would you?
