As I look back at my past with technology, it brings back some very fond memories! I have always had a passion for technology. I can remember building a model of a computer using many big boxes and contact paper for one of my science fair projects, with one of those wonderful floppy disks. I also remember my dad bringing home his first cell phone, which came with its very own big bag! I thought that was the most amazing thing- (more amazing than my purple corded phone in my room!) My computer at college consisted of a word processor with a green screen. I realize that these memories show my "age", yet it is so important to see how much we have grown! Today I cannot find enough tools of technology! Whether I am on my MacBook, iPad, Blackberry, or a combination, I fill the need for constant connection. I feel it is so important to stay up to date with what is going on at all times. This past week for our MAET class, we were asked to watch the videos "Digital Nation" and "Growing Up Online", which focus on the impact of technology on our students' lives. As I was watching both of these videos, I was viewing them with two perspectives- as a teacher, and as a parent of two children that are fully immersed in technology today.
As a teacher, I find myself often agreeing with the wonders that technology has brought to our society. We have the opportunities to connect and find information right at our fingertips. Students are fully engaged with technology at home, and will continue to be immersed in the future. It is important to recognize how as educators we can add to the impact of technology in their educational pursuits. I also see that students now need to be stimulated it ways they have never been stimulated before, due to technology. I also believe it is so important to teach students how to be responsible and safe on the internet. After all, it is not a matter of them going on the internet or not, but how they go about navigating the web. We need to discuss digital citizenship in our classes. I have also found that students are very engaged and motivated by using technology in the classroom. I agree it should not be used, "just because", but to rather serve a purpose. I believe we can sit all day and discuss the pros and cons of our "digital nation". However, our use for technology is not going to go away. We must accept its strengths and weaknesses and learn to find a balance. I also find myself distracted by all of the ways to connect via twitter, Facebook, texts, etc. Yet, I find it also such a powerful and amazing tool! I love the fact that while I am at home I can connect and learn from other educators throughout the world in my own family room. Professional development is available twenty four hours a day. "Digital Nation" also shared how IBM uses second life to participate in meetings with others throughout the world. As an educator I wonder if this is something to come in the future of education.
As a parent, I often catch my own kids watching tv and playing their ds or iPod touch at the same time. My daughter will be on the computer playing a game, while also participating in a discussion with her friend on the phone. I often will tell both of my kids to just focus on one thing at a time. The idea of multi- tasking is something we hear about a lot now. However, it was amazing to see in the video, "Digital Nation" that when the students were tested in multi-tasking, that they actually received poorer results than doing one task at a time. The video went on to say that we need to "be our most creative selves, not distracting ourselves to death." I can sit there and talk to my children until I am blue in the face about what life used to be like when I was a child- no cellphones or texting.. yet that simply doesn't represent life now. We can go back generations and talk about what life used to be like, but that doesn't help us deal with life today. It is hard enough to encounter the day to day battle with my ten year old as to why I don't feel she is ready for a cellphone, when so many of her friends already have them. My goal is to teach my children responsibility about technology. It is also important to discuss with them the impact of their "digital footprint " and the implications that go along with it. My biggest fear was represented in "Growing Up Online" , when parents simply didn't even know what was going on with their children online. It was very depressing to see the negative effects that can exist with the constant connectivity with children. This video made the point that in the past when something bad would happen at school, students could go home and get a "break" from our peers. Now due to constant connectivity, some students cannot escape bullying or harassing. Many students mentioned that their parents had no idea as to what they were doing online. Another parent referred to the social media sites and the internet at the "New Wild West". I kept wondering how it came to that point. As a parent it is so important to continue to role model practices and be active in the role of technology now and in the future.
Both my children and my students know my passion for learning and technology. I will always be conscious to show the values, as well as the responsibility of using technology. It is important to embrace our future, as well as to inform. Finding that balance is a goal for myself, as an educator and as a parent.
No comments:
Post a Comment