[Reflection] New Media in Classroom

"What's the place of new media in an art classroom?"

I have previously written on the wiki space against using new media in classroom. Over the semester my thought has changed. Right now I support using new media in class but with restrictions: I feel students over 12 years old may enjoy the privilege digital media. 

First of all, developmentally children younger than 12 are still developing their body and it is important to have them engage the whole body through traditional medium (hand eye coordination). Also, younger students tend to play more and distracted more by digital media than older students who are more mature and are able to control. There is a general fear that these digital medias are quite pricy compare to traditional art material so I think all in all it would be better to incorporate digital media starting at middle school.

Digital media allows abstract thinking but at the same time demands more conceptual and logical planning in order to carry out a project. With older students I feel they will be able to practice digital media more effectively and appreciate its benefit. With prior experience on traditional material students will be able to apply what they learned in terms of design and technique and creatively infuses into the digital classroom. Therefore, I support using new media in classroom starting from middle school.