High Tech, Not High Cost
Technology Solutions that don’t Break the Bank
Featuring a media artist, a film and television producer, an advocate for the outdoors, and a robotics professor, High Tech, Not High Cost explored how creative people are adapting existing and accessible technology to design and execute projects for children that are both effective and affordable.
New Tools and New Opportunities
Panelists provided examples from their own work to combat the assumption that technology and media are cost prohibitive. Indeed, the discussion highlighted many different ways that affordable technology and media resources are being applied in classrooms, in communities, and at home.
For example, mobile phone applications are pervasive and familiar even to very young children. Educational mobile applications have been developed and are already in use. Additionally, the growing quality and shrinking cost of digital video production equipment combined with the ease of web-based media hosting on sights like YouTube and Vimeo continues to create opportunities for thrifty individuals and groups to create and publish their own media productions.
Using Technology Responsibly
One ongoing challenge noted by both panelists and audience members was the question of how to apply technology responsibly in educational settings. Panelists stressed that technology cannot be used as a replacement for interpersonal interaction, but rather should be considered accessories to instruction, not substitutes for teaching.
Similarly, when applied to the realm of play, technology may add new dimensions to traditional play activities, like using mobile GPS devices to encourage children to explore the outdoors.
