The Pro's and Con's Of Using The Internet For Education

Living in the information age we have access to more information at quicker rate than any generation before us. There are both positive and negative side effects that come along with the use of the internet in school. Keeping both the positive an negative in mind can help parents and educators evaluate whether or not their child should have access to the internet and to what extent.

The internet has made it easier for students to do research for their school work than it has ever been. This can be problematic if students are unable to distinguish between good and bad sources of information. Some sites provide valuable correct resources for students while other sites are filled with inaccuracies.

Students also have the ability to reach out to other students world wide through the internet. often they can collaborate on projects and be useful allies to one another. However, students can run into fraudulent individuals posing a students from other countries.

The area of distance learning is probably the most effected area of education since the expansion of the internet. Students who participate in distance learning no longer have to mail correspondence the old fashion way. The students can now connect directly with their teachers and with other students through virtual schools and e-mail. Plagiarism has always been a problem in secondary education. Many times this is due to a student's lack of understanding of what constitutes plagiarism. No longer do student copy things from another student or the book. Students are now able to obtain entire papers on variety of topics on-line. There are now paper submission services that will check a student's paper to see if it was obtained on-line. As with anything the internet surely has its positives and negatives. Generally, with careful supervision it place in the classroom is appropriate and beneficial.