As my generation comes of age, the world is truely seeing things through techno-goggles. We carry cellphones in our pocket that should be referred to by their true names, personal media centers. Our phones can make calls, send text messages, play games, download software, play games, make blog posts, and surf the net. Computers are becoming more powerful, smaller and cheaper than ever. DVD players are now under forty dollars.
As an educator, my main course of thought is driven back to, "How can this help my kids learn the information better". Teachers are beginning to included technology in their lessons at a brisk pace. One needs to ask are teachers including technology in order to engage their students, to make the lesson better, to bring home a point, or is our motivation merely to satisfy mandates setup by our school boards. Many teachers have a passion for technology. They see the way their students' eyes light up when they discover something new on the computer. Other teachers dispise learning new things. I know it sounds pretty ironic. However, these people feel that if the students are understanding the information in the way that it is presented, then why should I have to waste valuable time to organizing a computer related activity.
The truth is that as students learn the material, we should seek every oppurtunity to retouch upon the newly learned lesson. This enrichment could possibly come from the classroom computer, classroom game, or it can be as simple as having the students draw a picture of what was learned. These types of activities keep the student motivated. That motivation to learn is what all teachers strive to achieve. If the students are excited about the material, then our jobs magically become easier.
The most important aspect of our job is the relay of information to our youth. Since many of our children know more about technology than we do;
why not choose to reach our children through the media in which they feel most comfortable?
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