Chapter 1: Digital Blog Post #A

The first concept in the first chapter that I found astounding was that number of statics about how young children actually start using technology. I am part of the iGeneration, as mentioned in our textbook, so I grew up with technology from the age of about 5 or 6. The amount of technology we had in the early 2000's isn't anything compared to the amount technology available to children today. There isn't a day that goes by where I don't see a child, no older than 5, on an smartphone or tablet. There have been days when I'll be out at a store or a restaurant and a child will be bothering their mom or dad. When the parent wants to "entertain the child", instead of playing with them, they'll hand over their phone to entertain the child. When children are exposed to technology since such a young age, this can have both positive and negative effects. Technology negatively affects children's social skills, physical development, and vision development. However, there are also positive effects of technology on young children. Such as boosting motor skills and the educational value that technology offers.

Second, our role as teachers and educators are to prepare students for their future as advancing students and adults by teaching them 21st century skills. If you think about it, from kindergarten, first, second, and third grades our teachers taught us basic skills that we would need throughout our lives. In kindergarten we learned our letters, counting, and the basic lesson of sharing is caring. As we moved on to first, second, and third grade we built upon these basic skills by learning how to write, read, add, and subtract. And as we moved on through our education to 12th grade we were continually taught by our teachers that, once again, built upon the skills we have previously learned. The video below explains in simple terms a major key component of 21st century skills, the four C's.

Lastly, the work of a teacher can expand multiple environments; both in the classroom and online. In Table 1.1 (Maloy, et al, 2013, p. 7), "Educational Uses of Technology by Teachers and Students", lists the different way that educators can use technology both in and outside of the classroom. It is no surprise that teachers use technology in the class from educational purposes. Maybe showing the class a video of a science experiment or using a website to pay a review game before a tests. I had an idea of how much work teachers did outside of the classroom, I didn't realize that almost all of that work is done using technology. 

In conclusion, the amount of technology available to both teachers and students seems to be endless. And maybe in 5 to 10 years, the amount could grow exponentially. As a student just beginning to learn about all of the resources that will be available to me as a future educator, I know that this course and our textbook will teach me countless things that will be valuable to me in the future.   

Resources:

"Children and Computers - Advantages and Disadvantages". (2012, 18 March). Retrieved May 14, 2016, from http://www.toddlerhub.com/children-and-computers-advantages-and-disadvantages/

Maloy, R., O'Loughlin, R., Edwards, S., & Woolf, B. (2013). Transforming Learning with New Technologies. 2nd Edition. Boston, MA: Pearson Education Inc. 

Thoughtful Learning. (2014, October 6). Preparing Students for College and Career. Retrieved May 14, 2016, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DMN6kl_BavY