How Important Is Technology In Our Classes?
(Paul's update in the summer Communicator)
If you asked our technology coordinator she’d say it’s critical. Some teachers who feel comfortable with technology would say it’s important. Others who struggle with keeping up with the latest developments would say it is not needed. There are very efficient ways to deliver instruction without it. I was somewhere in the middle. At least until I attended a recent conference!

In June, a group of DCS faculty members attended the National Educational Computing Conference in Philadelphia. Listed as a national conference it was attended by thousands of individuals, many from other countries and all of them had the same goal – to find out how to make education more effective by integrating technology. It’s easy to list ways where students use computers, an important tool of their generation, but one keynote speaker really left his mark with me on why we need to get up to speed on using technology for our students.

Think back to when your ancestors came to the US. They probably did not understand the native language. The customs and traditions they brought from their homes were different from those in the US. They were immigrants and it was important for them to assimilate themselves to the ways of the country that was their new home. Now think of yourself as an adult in the year 2005. How many features do you use on your cell phone (or do you even have one)? Do you use a palm pilot, synch it in your office, and beam data to another co-worler? Do you IM instead of phoning, or sending a note through the mail?

These are not hi-tech tools anymore. If these ideas are uncomfortable to you, then you are probably a “digital immigrant”. Like your ancestors, you are living in a land where most of the next generation uses many if not all of these tools, regularly and with comfort. This next generation has learned to use these tools often without our help – it makes their lives easier and often more efficient. They expect it to be available to them. These tools of technology are the tools of their generation and they expect that delivery of education will be carried out using their tools.

Are the basic areas of education still important? Absolutely! Proficient readers, writers and mathematicians are clearly what are most important. But how we teach this next generation these areas is where we need to think about keeping up with the tremendous amount of new information that is out there. My goal today was to have you think about whether or not you are an immigrant in this new world. Think about your children and grandchildren and the comfort level that they have with technology that you might not have. Think about how much has changed in such a short period of time. Think about where technology will be in 2, 5, or 10 years. For the first time in history, we don’t know what we are training our children for. That’s how fast our world is changing. The team that went to Philadelphia will investigate this more during the year as we analyze our practice to provide the best education possible to those who live in a different world that we adults do. We’ll keep you posted as we learn more about leaving our “immigrant” status behind.