From Textbook to Chromebook by Kennedy

From Textbook to Chromebook by Kennedy - January 2020 Scholarship Essay

As a Centennial, technology has dominated the world for most of my life. For as long as I can recall, having a cell phone, iPad and laptop have been the norm. However, having grown up in a small town and attending a school with limited resources, I do remember a time when technology was not part of my classroom experience.
Until 7th grade, textbooks were my main source of information and handwritten math problems and essays were all I knew. I remember spending hours writing out math problems and showing all the work. I also remember spending hours hand writing essays in cursive. During those years, my use of technology for school was limited to using the family computer in the evenings to do research on the internet if needed for assignments.
Upon entering 8th grade, my class was extremely fortunate to be involved in a pilot that allowed us to transition to chrome books. This was a life changing experience, both in and out of the classroom. From writing papers in cursive to typing them on the chrome and moving from writing out math problems to entering equations in electronically, my existence as a student was forever changed.
I feel like the transition from text book to Chromebook impacted my classroom experience in several ways. Typing papers instead of writing them saved a lot of time. When research was necessary, I spent this extra time searching the internet and learning more about the topic I was focusing on. Having access to the internet at certain times during school also allowed me to do more thorough research when I needed to. Beyond that, I was able to balance my study priorities and get more accomplished during school if I needed to. I also think that other students who did not have access to the internet at home were able to function at a higher level by having access to it at school.
Overall, having technology in the classroom has been a positive experience for me. I believe it allows all students to be more involved in their studies and allows them access to resources they may not otherwise have. I feel like students who have access to technology in classrooms will be more competitive in the workforce, as they will be familiar with technology and have more information at their fingertips to excel in school.