The first time I ever used a computer, it was a TI-99 that plugged into our television. We didn't have the internet until about 10 years later, though, when I was in 9th or 10th grade. Of course now I could not live without my laptop and high speed internet. I'm online every day - definitely too much a lot of the time. I have 2 laptops (one issued by the school), a digital camera, and I plan on buying an i-pod in the near future. I think that technology, particularly computers, has absolutely revolutionalized the way that we learn, the way that we think, the way that we speak, the way that we live.
When I think back, for example, to how I researched science projects in elementary school and compare it to my research projects in undergrad, the steps you use are so different. No more card catalogs or sifting through the library's booklet on their periodicals. It's all right there at our fingertips, whether it's a serious research project or the absolute necessity to figure out the rest of the song that you just can't get out of your head. "I'll google it."
Google, LiveJournal, YouTube, Amazon.com - this are daily parts of my life. It's bizarre to think how different my life would be without them, and it just makes me love it all the more. I can make slideshows of my students and put it to music with Windows PhotoStory 3, I can type "Mars" into Wikipedia.org and find everything my students need to know and more besides. I can look on YouTube and see raps students and teachers have written about math and science and literature (and more besides, I'm sure). And that's just related to teaching.
I have two blogs not counting this one, an account on Facebook.com, 4 email accounts, an extensive organizational system for my hundreds of favorites, and so on and so on. I just love technology.
And this is why I wish I could use it more in the classroom. It is essential that our students know how to use computers and the internet for more than talking to their friends on MySpace and listening to their favorite songs. These types of technology are becoming increasingly integrated into our lives - by the time they grow up, they will need to know how to utilize this technology in order to work and live. You already have to apply for financial aid (the FAFSA form) online - there is no paper option. What's next? We are doing our students a mahor disservice - we are harming them - if we do not prepare them to function and thrive in a technology-based society. I don't think everything should be on computers - there are times when hands-on is the best option - but computers need to be an integrated part of everyday classroom life. These resources can help our students learn more effectively, but learning to be comfortable with technology is also key.
(I find this aspect of blogging confusing. As a social blogger, it is somewhat difficult to switch codes to a more academic speech when I am so used to blogging informally. My apologies for that. I am trying.)
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1 comment:
Very interesting and thought provoking, especially the comment about changing your voice for this blog. Won't our students have to make that shift also--from their facebook/myspace voice to their academic voice--when using a class blog space. A very valuable lesson about audience and writing, I think.
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