Ramblings et al

Wow! I never realized just how far behind the power curve I actually was until I watched the videos for this task. The pull of the web is unbelievable! But I still have to wonder…should it really be a way of life (my, much younger, sister -oh, great Facebooker, texter, blogger, etc – contends that it is.) Or should it be considered a tool to help us make the most of all the information that is out there and to share ideas? I can’t get students to use a (God, forbid) dictionary when they can use Dictionary.com (even if they have to wait half the class for a computer!) It baffles me.

I can see a multitude of avenues with which to use all of this technology to engage students in learning but in the end they still need to do the thinking. And how much thinking are they doing when they can’t seem to read a passage any longer than the three-five sentence, poorly written blog entry of a fellow middle schooler? Or the profile on a Facebook page? I want to find a way/learn how to integrate technology as a tool with true thinking and learning.

I need to seriously catch up and look at the world from a different paradigm and then decide what is truly worth it. I just can’t jump in feet first because everyone else seems to think that it is such a great thing – wikis, blogs, widgets, etc. Don’t get me wrong – I want to use technology. I like all of the flash and pop but I have kids that don’t understand the idea that text/IM language is not acceptable when you are writing an essay for grad school admission or trying to convince the CEO of a major corporation that they should stop dumping pollutants in a our oceans. I have students that don’t know how to address an envelope and don’t understand that they are the lucky ones since most of the world doesn’t have a cell phone or computer to text/email to. Frustrating!

Some old is good and they need to learn it as well. School isn’t another form of entertainment; it has a purpose. I have to close with a thought from my “Crackberry” addicted husband who said, “If, at your advanced age, you can learn to text and IM using their language, they should at least be able to attempt to write a proper letter with a correctly addressed envelope. After all you are pretty ancient!“