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WE DUG INTO THE ARCHIVES to find tidbits from previous issues of the ATA Magazine that are worth another look, either because of their relevance today, or as a reminder of how far we’ve come. You decide. Can you match the following excerpts with the year that they were originally published? 1940, 1956, 1960, 2010
1. TV AS TEACHING TOOL?
The first Alberta Conference on Television in Education will be held on the University of Alberta campus in Edmonton … The purposes of this conference are to explore the possible contribution of television in education at all levels, to provide information on the development of television in education in other countries, and to outline recent technological advances. Special study will be made of the contribution which TV can make to Alberta education.
Your guess: ______
2. THE DIGITAL DIVIDE
Having students supply their own digital learning equipment is appealing, because educational technology is costly and needs to be replaced frequently. Many supporters of this strategy are already thinking of how to best spend the dollars saved to provide a better e-learning experience for students. Students who have not been raised in an enriched environment have the most to gain from a rich [mobile]-learning environment, but in many cases they can’t afford the leading-edge technology, so they will once again sit on the wrong side of the digital divide. It is the school district’s responsibility to provide the necessities of learning, so schools will have to … provide the device if the family is not in a position to do so.
Your guess: ______
3. TRIVIAL INFORMATION
To those concerned with the well-being of children, one of the most serious offences committed by the publishers and purveyors of crime and love comics is the endless and senseless exaltation of triviality. Especially in an age such as ours, where technology has run so far ahead of cultural morality, and when clear and logical thought is so much needed, it seems pitiable that the substance of good minds must be subjected to millions of reams of triviality each year.
Your guess: ______
4. FUNDRAISING FOR CLASSROOM TECHNOLOGY
By now I may have convinced some of you of the value of radio in education, and so I shall proceed to explain how simple a matter it is to obtain one for your class. First approach a dealer or wholesaler through your Divisional Board and obtain his price list. Select the cheapest one you can get, as you require, actually, only Edmonton, Calgary or Lethbridge on the dial. The price of the radio, complete with batteries, should not be more than $30. To defray the cost of the radio it has been a good policy to combine a raffle with a dance or concert. The proceeds from these should be enough to cover the cost of the machine. The pupils by contest or sales talks may be induced to sell many more tickets than is usual for a raffle.
Your guess: ______
Answers: 1. Alberta Conference on Television in Education, May 1960 2. “Mobile Technologies in the Classroom”, Fall 2010, Gerald Logan 3. A noted American psychiatrist wonders “Are They Cleaning Up the Comics?” December 1956, Fredric Wertham 4. “Radio in the School”, June 1940, W R Wynnychuk
