Computer presentation technology allows the teacher to move through material quicker. Instead of writing notes on a whiteboard as he teaches, the teacher creates a PowerPoint. Additionally, a PowerPoint presentation incorporates images and links to the Internet that cannot be used on a whiteboard. Some teachers see this as a potential disadvantage, however, because it decreases the time students have to interact with a teacher. Instead of engaging in a discussion with the teacher as he writes on the white board, the student becomes a passive observer of the inflexible PowerPoint.
Students who use computers in the classroom learn technical skills that they will use in the workplace. Some of these might include typing, searching the Internet and creating a presentation of their own. Additionally, as students move through school they encounter technology as it changes. This teaches them to adapt easier to progressively new technology as they move into the workforce. Again, the more time a student spends on a computer the less she learns from the teacher. Time that students spend applying what they learn on the computer must be balanced with the time they spend learning new concepts.
As the student's learn new computer skills, the teacher may assign more complex assignments. For example, the teacher may require the students to create a PowerPoint presentation with links to and research from the Internet, as opposed to an oral report with research from the school library. This creates a disadvantage, however, for students who do not own a computer at home. To balance this problem teachers need to allow time in the classroom working on these complex assignments, which in turn leaves less time for teaching.
As computers become more prevalent in the classroom, teachers become more dependent upon their use. This creates a problem when the computer fails. First, the teacher wastes teaching time trying to make the computer work correctly and ensuring he has not done anything wrong. Second, the teacher must always have a backup plan in case the computer does not work, wasting more of his time by essentially planning the lesson in two different ways.