Book chapter

"Harlem Snapshot: Schooling in New Technologies"  pp. 143-149 in Children and the Media, Everette E. Dennis and Edward C. Pease, editors. New Brunswick, NJ and London, UK: Transaction Publishers, 1996 -- and available through Google Books.  By the 21^st century, this mid-1990s glimpse -- originally published as a 1994 journal article -- of learning technologies seems dated but still reflects both how these technologies continue to evolve and how their effective use remains a question.

Page 144: "What the students' experiences suggest are not just the wonders and potential of these technologies, but also the consequences if their benefits are not made widely available."

Pages 148-149: "While a look at PS 125 does reinforce some of the widespread optimism about technology's educational impact, the experience there also evokes the magnitude of obstacles that remain. As important as the hardware is, advanced computers and interactive networks are of limited value without a sufficiently redesigned curriculum that fully integrates them. . . . Keeping in mind what a recent national study suggested -- that students score best in states that spend a high percentage of education monies on teachers -- policy-makers should be wary of primarily technological solutions. Educators understand the need for a more comprehensive approach, but only a fraction of schools have the will and the money to move forward. Clearly, the power of technology is finite and easily exaggerated; human and fiscal elements will continue to play a major, perhaps deciding, role in the educational equation. Yet . . . interactive multimedia tools in themselves are becoming increasingly important, and children unable to share in them will be at a disadvantage. . . . Universal access to the digital highway will be merely a minimum requirement, not a panacea. Still, it is encouraging to glimpse what the new media might bring. While the results of the digital revolution will remain uneven and uncertain for years to come, there are real, positive dividends to be secured, lively imaginations to be captured -- not just frightful scenarios to be avoided."