Finding space for technology: Pedagogical observations on the organization of computers in school environments

Abstract

With the large-scale acquisition and installation of computer and networking hardware in schools across Canada, a major concern has been where to locate these new technologies and whether and how the structure of the school might itself be made to accommodate these new technologies. In this paper, we suggest that the physical location and organization of computer technologies, whether in the lab, classroom, library, or even school hallway, delimits and shapes the ways in which teachers talk about and make use of computers in their schools. As with the distribution of and access to any kind of resource, the distribution and organization of computers has an impact on the frequency and quality of teachers’ integration/implementation efforts. We focus on three case studies that highlight how the structuring and re-structuring of space in schools can be a significant factor in whether and how this technology is used by teachers and students.