Helen Webb

Professor Dean
5/7/14
Literacy Research Paper
The Paperless Classroom
As technology dominates various areas of daily living in many societies, it is only natural
that these technologies find their way into the classroom. In schools throughout the country,
technology in the classroom is becoming the norm. Computers and tablets are being
implemented in many, if not all of the major subject areas. These concerns are relevant to K-12
teachers and administrators as well as the communities where these students will grow up,
participate, and eventually gain employment. In the kindergarten classroom where I am
completing a field placement for another class, each student has one to one access to an iPad,
which is used in many subject areas throughout the day. This paper will examine the effects of
the increased use of technology in elementary classrooms on student literacy development and
the students relationship with reading. Specifically, how is the above going to affect students
who are being presented with these devices early in their elementary education?
The idea of emergent reading occurs when students first develop an interest in reading
and begin to understand the concept of print. Students also learn other components that are
critical to their future reading, including how to hold and interact with a book, as well as learning
the alphabet and some high frequency words. According to Gail Tompkins, in her book
Literacy for the 21st Century, children are usually readers and writers in kindergarten (115).
Some students who have access to ideal reading conditions are at this point even before they

enter school. Students who are read to regularly and involved in conversations are likely to have
an advantage over students who do not have access to this type of nurturing environment outside
the classroom. When the use of a device that is not available to all families in the home is
required in school, the divide is increased simply because not everyone can afford it.
One factor which affects students is the information to which they are exposed through
technology and how that information is processed. In his article, Changing Technology=
Empowering Students through Media Literacy Education, Berlinha De Abreau argues that
students education needs to evolve with societal expectations in order to attain relevant skills
which will serve them in the future. This is a perspective not unlike that of the teacher who runs
the paperless classroom. Both individuals agree that education needs to advance with the
changing times, and that teachers are doing a disservice to students if they are not adapting their
curriculums to be applicable to students future employment and participation in society. The
paperless classroom was developed with the notion that for future generations, the use of paper
and pencil will one day become obsolete, so why not teach young students with this in mind?
Abreaus article illustrates the contrast between two schools of thought as they relate to the use
of technology for the purpose of education. According to Abreau, the Protectionists, who
enforce censorship, believe that by giving students access to technology, teachers are exposing
them to information which may cause potential harm or disruption. Abreau argues that by this
way of thinking, The teacher becomes the provider of the information or the vessel of truth
which will in turn create a gatekeeping mentality (27). Gail Tompkins would call this a teacher
centered mentality where the focus is not how students process information, but rather how they
retain, then reproduce the information that is directed at them by the teacher (19). Conversely,
there are the proponents of Media Literacy, who believe that the role of the educator is to teach
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proper and effective use of this technology in order to empower students to become
knowledgeable and effective users of such technology in different contexts. Media literacy serves
as a doorway between student and teacher (Abreau, 30). These two perspectives represent two
of the major players in the debate regarding technology in the classroom. Does this access pose
more harm or help to our students? Specifically, how does the abundance of information affect
students ability to read and process information?
It is reading time in the paperless classroom. A student wanders past the bookshelf to
the iPad station. Once she is back to her seat, she selects the appropriate app and logs in to her
preexisting account. Right away she is presented with a letter that represents her reading level,
and a selection of prescribed books for her to choose from. The student selects a book that is
interesting to her. She is given the option to listen to the book, read the book silently, or read the
book aloud into a microphone.
In the above scenario, instead of the student and teacher interacting together with a book
in an environment which encourages community and growth, both teacher and student are
interacting with a computer. From the computer, they both receive and provide feedback which
can then be analyzed and represented by numbers or letters on a chart. The use of language
almost becomes irrelevant. This contradicts the language development skills that the students are
working to build.
The online reading program Raz-Kids has recently been implemented at the school where
I am completing the field placement. The program allows students to read independent level texts
at their own pace. Many books often allow the students to listen and follow along as the text is
being read to them. There are many benefits of this access for students. First, it allows them to

hear the text while they are looking at the words. This increases students familiarity with sight
words, and also allows them to hear what smooth, fluent reading sounds like. Students can also
reread books within their reading level. Finally, they can complete the assessments on their own
with immediate feedback. This program is appropriate for every age and stage of elementary
development, as it addresses 27 different reading levels for students from kindergarten to grade
five equivalent reading levels. Programs such as Raz-Kids are becoming more popular, as they
advertise many benefits to the process of learning to read. In such programs, students have
access to recorded books, interactive texts, and self-guided comprehension assessments (Webb,
2014).
Raz-Kids not only helps students build word recognition and comprehension, it also
exposes them to a variety of texts within each reading level, helping them to build schemata
which can later be applied to other sources. For example, early on, students learn to distinguish
between works of fiction and non-fiction by recognizing common characteristics. Because each
student is able to work at his or her own pace, he or she does not move on to more complicated
texts until each skill or principal is mastered. Most evident are the benefits for students who
require extra support and students who may otherwise excel beyond what is being taught in the
classroom. Students have the opportunity to progress independently, allowing them to practice as
much as needed before progressing to more difficult text. This enables students to build a firm
foundation on early reading skills instead of falling behind or being rushed through important
reading principals (Tompkins, 2013).
In her book Proust and the Squid: The Story and Science of the Reading Brain, Maryanne
Wolf argues, however, that kindergarten is a critical time in a childs reading development when
all of the components of pre-reading come together (94). Wolf also describes the different human
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functions that go into the reading process including the body, the mind and the brain. These are
important elements to consider when discussing the process of literacy development.
No pre-learned concept, letter, or word is wasted by good teachers. Earlier learning
becomes the stuff of more formal introduction to the world of written language. Although
teachers have been nurturing most precursors for many years, only in recent years have
systematic tools become widely available to promote the development of phoneme
awareness skills. These seemingly simple methods help children learn several difficult
linguistic concepts (1) the Moses insight that there can be a one-to-one correspondence
between a sound and symbol; (2) the more difficult concept that each letter has both a
letter name and a sound or group of sounds that it represents; and the converse that each
sound is represented by a letter or sometimes several letters; and (3) the understanding
that words can be segmented into syllables and sounds. (Wolf, 101)
If Wolf were to evaluate the reading methods of the paperless classroom, particularly as
kindergarten students, she may argue that even with all of the practical features which Raz-Kids
provides, it would not be a sufficient reading program for young students who are beginning the
transition into emergent readers. Though students are able to hear the words and follow along
with the text, a computer is not able to break up the words and explain critical patterns in a way
that a teacher can, reading with a group of students.
This paperless classroom discussion has not accounted for students who are visually or
otherwise impaired and may benefit from screen read text. Although the dialogue is specific to
developing readers who do not have diagnosed reading barriers, it is important for teachers to

keep reading technologies in mind in order to incorporate differentiated instruction so that all
students have opportunity for practice and success.
Another perspective which Wolf challenges in her book is that of Ray Kurzweil. He is the
Director of Engineering for Google. He was responsible for creating several products which
incorporate reading and technology, many of which have been used to assist people with
disabilities, particularly the visually impaired. He invented the first Omni-font optical character
recognition, the first print-to speech reading machine for the blind, and the first text to speech
synthesizer (TED Conferences). He believes that people are concerned about the challenges
facing future generations, and that they disregard the change in rate of neurological connections
which will enable them to adapt and take advantage of the new technologies that are being
implemented. He also believes that the line between human and machine is diminishing, and that
with the evolution of reading technology comes the increased rate in which information can be
processed and stored (TED Conferences). Wolf poses an argument against Ray Kurzweils belief
that an exponential acceleration of thought is altogether positive (Wolf, 213). She believes that
speed is not necessarily the goal. In fact, it is in the pausing and processing of reading that we, as
well as our students, begin to grasp and understand the material. Accelerated reading and
information exposure not only affects the comprehension of the material presented to a student,
but the ability to focus and synthesize is diminished with the increased rate of information
exposure (214).
Cris Tovani, author of I Read It, But I Dont Get It, states: Restrictive reading programs
that prescribe one method of instruction or emphasize only one or two cuing systems cant meet
the needs of every student. Dogmatic reading philosophies promote inflexibility and force
teachers to teach prescribed programs rather than the child (19). Tovani proposes that in reality,
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there are a total of six cuing systems that come into play, and readers who understand how to
implement these together get a better grasp on what they are reading. Tovani compares this
notion to a symphony. If you cut out one or two sections, even if the melody is still present, the
music loses much of its depth and character. More of these dogmatic programs are being
implemented into classrooms because of their ease of use, the ability to efficiently collect data on
each student, and the ability for students to be able to work at their own pace. Scores and
statistics are filtered through the students iPad into the teachers inbox. With a single tap, the
teacher can find out what the student is reading, their ability to comprehend the material, and the
steps needed for the student to reach the next benchmark. The teacher can then post personal
assignments for the student which can be used for assessment (Webb, 2014).
Conversely, some argue that digital text is not only a great resource, but also a great
motivator for students. In their article Using Digital Text to Promote Fluent Reading, Andrea
Thoemer argues that:
Digital texts accessed through computers or electronic tablets...offer an appealing
medium of reading text that can motivate students to want to read. Incorporating
fluency lessons using digital texts can strengthen students accuracy automaticity
and prosody skills. In turn, as students reading fluency improves, their
comprehension is also likely to improve, thus furthering their reading enjoyment
and positively affecting students reading dispositions and personas (5).
It is true that an important factor in teaching students to read is motivation, not only to
attain the appropriate skills to become fluent readers, but also to be able to develop a positive
relationship with reading as a life-long practice. If technology is something that motivates a child

to read, then it may be in the best interest of the teacher to incorporate it into his or her reading
program. In addition, Thoemer makes a valid argument that reading fluency can also benefit
from technologies. This, along with the motivation, has the potential to improve a childs reading
experience. She is not, however, suggesting that reading with the use of a tablet or computer
should replace reading practices but rather enhance the childs reading experience.
After analyzing various arguments surrounding iPads and emergent readers, I believe that
technology does have a function, as well as a benefit, to a childs literacy education. It is
important to note however, that technology should only act as a supporting resource for students,
not the focus of their reading practice. While some students may be motivated to read using their
iPad, it should not be assumed that such technology programs are so motivational for all
students. In addition, reading should be able to be generalized across contexts, situations and
environments. In order to achieve this, students need experience reading a variety of texts, not
just one prescribed program or medium. While tablets are becoming much more prevalent and
available to increasingly younger students, it is important for teachers to keep in mind that in
order to develop and expose them to an enriched reading experience, students need to learn how
to navigate both print and digital texts. The fact remains that as emergent readers, they are
learning foundational skills for working with text which will last them a lifetime.

Works Cited
About Ray TED ideas worth spreading. 2014. http://www.ted.com/profiles/174716
De Abreau, Belinha, Changing Technology= Empowering Students through Media Literacy
Education. New Horizons in Education 58.3 (2010): 26-33. Web. 8 Feb. 2014.
Tompkins, G.E. (2013). Literacy for the 21st Century: A Balanced Approach (6th Ed.).
Boston, MA: Allyn & Bacon/Pearson
Tovani, Cris. I Read It, but I Dont Get It: Comprehension strategies for adolescent readers.
Stenhouse Publishers, 2000.
Webb, Helen. Education field journal. 2014.
Wolf, Maryanne. Proust and the Squid: The story and science of the reading brain.
New York: Harper Collins, 2007.
Webb, Helen. Education field journal. 2014.