Rep. Gail Lavielle & Commission on Children Host Forum to Explore Technology’s Effects on Student Learning

State Rep. Gail Lavielle (R-143), Ranking Member of the General Assembly’s Education Committee, and the Commission on Children are hosting a forum designed to explore the relationship between the use of educational technology and student learning and cognition.

The forum, entitled “Technology in the Classroom: What Computes?”, will feature representatives of the academic, public education, and business worlds. It will take place inHartford on December 1, starting at 10:00 am. There is no charge for attendance, and all are welcome.

Discussion at the forum will explore a range of questions about technology and learning. How does technology influence young toddlers? How should educators best use technology in teaching? Are children spending too much time at school in front of a screen? Are they learning better, or not as well, with technology in the classroom? Are they thinking as independently as they could be? Does technology enhance, diminish, or otherwise affect creativity?

“Many constituents have asked me to look into the effects of technology on the way their children think and learn,” saidRep. Lavielle. “In exploring the subject during the last session, I realized that much has been said about the social and psychological effects of technology, but knowledge about its cognitive effects is less widespread. Bringing together a multidisciplinary panel of experts is a logical first approach to learning more about this area.

“Elaine Zimmerman, the Executive Director of theCommission on Children, has been an outstanding partner, and I am delighted to be working with her and the Commission on this issue,” said Rep. Lavielle. “My hope is that we’ll be able to provide useful information to educators across Connecticut about how they can best use technology to help students learn. And if there are any specific areas of inquiry that would be useful to pursue as a state, I hope this will help us identify them.”

Ms. Zimmerman thanked Rep. Lavielle for identifying and pursuing such a cutting-edge issue. “There is a new vehicle on the landscape that no one is fully steering for students: technology,” she said. “It offers new information, access, targeted learning, and interventions that open doors for diverse learners. But it also behooves us as parents, teachers, and school and policy leaders to understand the range, depth, and impact of these choices on children’s cognition.”

Rep. Lavielle said that she hopes that everyone with an interest in the subject of technology and learning, including educators, researchers, parents, students, and future teachers, will consider attending the forum.

Details on the Forum

WHAT: Forum “Technology in the Classroom: What Computes?”

WHEN: Tuesday, December 1, at 10:00 am

WHERE: Legislative Office Building, Room 1-D, Hartford

SPEAKERS AND PANELISTS:

Dr. Christopher Dede, Timothy E. Wirth Professor in Learning Technologies, Harvard Graduate School of Education

Dr. Roberta Golinkoff, H. Rodney Sharp Chair, University of Delaware School of Education, Founder of the University’s Child’s Play, Learning and Development Lab

Kristell Lavallee, Center on Media and Child Health, Boston Children’s Hospital

Dr. Craig Tunks, Director of Digital Learning and Innovation, Weston Public Schools

Students of W.F. Kaynor Technical High School in Waterbury, and Principal David Telesca

Ventine Richardson, Principal, Betances STEM Magnet School in Hartford

Johnny Barnes, Retired VP, IBM

·Representative Gail Lavielle, Ranking Member, Education Committee, CT General Assembly