NetDay Results

Are you a digital native or a digital immigrant?
I think that young adults of my age are in a particulr situation of not quite being on or the other. I would say we certainly lean more towards digital natives we definately cannot hold this title with certainty. Technology as we know it has been completely revolutionized since we were young. Kids today do not still play the game pong nor do they know what it's like to write a document on a computer without a mac. Young adults of my age all remember what it was like to not have a computer in our homes as well as not having a single one in the classroom. We do however have the advantage of in a way, growing up with the innovations. We remember the switch from Windows 98 to Windows 2000. In a way I think it makes us comfortable with the idea of new technology but at the same time appreciate it even more than the young digital natives.

What impact will this have on you and your teaching?

Technology will have a large impact on my teaching. It seems that every time you turn around there are new systems or products being created to help education improve. The results of the survey helped me to realize how important students deem that technology is. I never really took into consideration how technoloy was taking over my life, let alone how it dominated the lives of the people who are growing up knowing nothing else. This survey has helped to give me a good understanding that my teaching methods must include technology because students find it more interesting and the most helpfull tool that they have. At the same time I do hold in esteme traditional methods such as library research. I think that you really can find almost anything online but there is a certain reward in diving into a library and finding the information yourself and reading it in an actual book from a credited source.

What are your reactions?

I think the thing that most surprised me was the responses from the K-3 kids. It literally shocked me that 30% of kids in these grades have their own email account. I just find that so hard to believe. And the fact that 39% of these kids had their own cell phone was absolutely fascinating to me. I, myself did not even have my own cell phone until I went to COLLEGE. To me this part of the survey certainly showed me the difference between my own age group and the children who are being born into this new era of technology. My biggest reaction was simply the fact that this survery certainly reinforced the fact that technology is super important in the classroom. No matter what age or grade you intend to teach technology needs to be a part of your lesson plan. It helps keeping kids engaged and it is what they have been raised with.