Reflection on Various Technology Articles/Videos

In "A Day in the Life of Web 2.0", there was a lot of activity taking place on the part of the students, parents, teachers, and administrators.  I don't know that everyone could keep up with all of the podcasts mentioned in the article on a regular basis.

The statistics and ideas in the two videos didn't surprise me, as I had researched and used similar statistics for professional development presentations.  I do believe we, as educators, need to systematically take a look at how we present new information to our students and the skills we want our students to leave with.

The "Digital Natives vs. Digital Immigrants" article was very powerful.  Although it was written over a decade ago, the themes discussed hold true today.  I continually work with teachers to create a more interactive environment in their classrooms.  I often face comments from "old-school" minded teachers acknowledging that students today are different but claiming the students need to adapt to their style of teaching lest they move on unprepared for the next level.  In reality, my most successful lessons as a teacher were those where I embraced their differences and taught with their learning styles in mind.  I am comfortable enough with the most modern technology and am excited about  learning new technology.  In this regard, I would consider myself to be a digital native.  As I raise my daughters, however, I severely limit their screen time and discourage toys that are designed to entertain.  I want my daughters to have the ability to entertain themselves.  Knowing that many teachers they will have will be digital immigrants, I want them to have the discipline and brain template that will be successful in any classroom.  I will eventually provide them with technology tools that will allow them to be creative and interactive with their learning, but as long as they remain in their formative years, I will work to develop their self-discipline and imagination.