Blog Post #1 (Due 19 January 2011)
Discussion
An autobiography tells the story of a person's life from the perspective of the person who lived it. A technology autobiography tells the story of a life with technology: the memorable experiences with and uses of technology throughout a person’s life. Some writers focus on a particular kind of technology (writing technologies, household technologies, media technologies, computer technologies, or gaming technologies, for example). Autobiographies are normally written from the first-person point of view and depict specific instances or stories that illustrate the writer's experiences, usually to make a point about them or to show how the author learned from them.
Questions to Consider
As you plan your response here, you can jot down your thoughts about your life with technology. Here are some questions to help you discover what you have to say. In your posting, make sure you don't simply answer each question in succession without providing a thread or controlling idea in your narrative.
1. Memory: What childhood experiences with technological devices or artifacts do you remember? What do you recall about your earliest use of technologies? Were they positive or negative experiences? What stories do your parents tell about your interactions with technology? What were the popular gadgets in your household when you were young? Did you have access to the technologies you wanted to use? Who made sure that everything worked? How often did the technologies fail?
2. Literacy: Who is the most "technologically literate" person you know? What makes his or her relationship with technology unique? What behaviors or characteristics does he or she exhibit? What have you learned about your own uses of technology from him or her?
3. Social Consequences: Are there social consequences for your lifestyle that hinge on your technological literacy? What are they? How would your relationships with others be affected if you suddenly had no access to technology?
4. The Future: What do you think will be required ten years from now to be technologically literate? What positive or negative trends in technological development do you see unfolding? How do you think they will affect you?
5. Learning: How do you learn new technologies? Among your friends, are you considered an "early adopter," a "late adopter," or somewhere between?
6. Access: What technologies do you carry with you? Which ones do you have where you do most of your writing? What new technologies do you want to own? How will you use them?
My autobiography with technology- Stephanie Monroe (Part I)
ReplyDeleteI grew up in a household where technology took a back seat to a lot of things. We had the basic computers, we had two one for my parents to work on and one for the children to do their homework on. We had a Nintendo 64, and PlayStation which were only used once the homework was finished and if we had an chores they were done. My father was the person who really kept our computers up to date. The video game consoles were hit or miss. If they stopped working oh well, where as if the computers stopped working my father would spend a ton of time trying to get them working. I remember the computer used by the children was the first to die and after many attempts to get it going again it sat in the basement no one using it. I remember when that computer stopped working thinking that we were the only family in the world that had to share one computer. Of course I was wrong but when you are ten years old not much happens in your mind outside of your doors.
The most technology literate person I know is my fiancé, every time I have a problem with my computer, the television or even a remote he comes over and touches it and then it is fixed. My fiancé understands how a computer works; he has built his own computer from the ground up and on multiple occasions taken apart my laptop to get it running again. He has tried to teach me multiple times how to trouble shoot the computer but every time I get lost in what he is saying.
I will have to say I have gotten a lot better at working my phone, he has consistently asked me to get a Smartphone once I am up for an upgrade. I use his phone a lot to look up anything if we are have a dispute. If I did not have access to my cell phone I do think I would lose contact with a lot of my friends. The same goes for Facebook, I have chosen not to delete my profile completely because I would lose contact with a bunch of my friends. I have had a weekend where my phone was broken and I was waiting on a new one to arrive. I had no way of texting or calling people unless I barrowed a phone. This was terrible for me because I was so used to having the ability to just text someone and know they got it. Instead I was reduced to email and Facebook to get a message out.
I do think the Smartphone will be the only type of phone a person will be able to get in the future. Already you are seeing the trend of young students with iPhones and the shock if you do not have a cell phone. I did not get mine until I was a college freshman, my parents did not see the need of a cell phone, well that was until I got lost and my car ended up in a ditch. That opened their eyes yet I still had to wait six more months before they would say yes to me having a phone. In the future I think it would be very hard not to have a cell phone even in middle school because of the need. Many students are doing more after school and pay phones have all but gone extinct. In the future all students will be taking notes on a computer and need to learn how to write may go out the window. Already as a student teacher I saw the decline in handwriting and the fact that the third grade teachers are no longer teaching cursive. It has become obsolete and there is no use except to learn to sign your name. Even then though you can scribble and it will be called a signature now.
My autobiography with technology- Stephanie Monroe (Part II)
ReplyDeleteWhen I am handed a new technology, I need an instruction manual and about five hours to play with the new gadget. I am very much a late adopter of technology if only because it is very expensive and there is no need to go out and buy a brand new technology when there will be a better cheaper version not soon after.
I always have my cell phone on me; I am constantly texting or checking the time now that my watch broke. I still do most of my writing in a notebook. I hate staring at a computer screen, I already have contacts and my eye doctor told me in the next couple years I will need glasses as well to look at a computer screen. I would like to have the iPad once it is a cheaper version, and the nook from Barnes and Nobles. I do still enjoy having the book in my hand but for long trips when I would go through six or seven books a nook would be a great thing to have. The iPad I would use for my students in the classroom to be able to get on and practice basic skills that are boring with flash cards but can be made fun with a computer game.
Jillian Steimel
ReplyDeleteIt is hard to imagine my life without technology. How quickly technology changes is a big part of that, everything is always being updated to be bigger and better. It’s hard to imagine what the future will hold for technology because the technology I use is much more progressed than the technology I used as a child.
The first thing of think of when I think of technology is a computer and the internet. I remember when AOL first came out; I had to share an e-mail address with my sister. My parents both had their own, my older sister and brother had their own, and my sister and I shared, while the younger 4 were excluded (two were only babies at the time). It’s funny because now you can make free e-mail address wherever, but AOL you had to pay for each account. I remember first getting into chat rooms and finding other people to talk to, I thought that was pretty cool, now that’s something I would never do.
I use the internet every day, I check my e-mail constantly and have Facebook account that I am on a lot. Even the use of my cell phone and ipod are huge parts of my daily interaction with technology, they weren’t even things I thought about having growing up. I’m not sure how I would feel safe going anywhere, especially driving if I didn’t have a cell phone. When my grandparents or other people talk about “before we had those things” I get that people lived without it, I remember when my parents got their first cell phone, but it’s hard to think why anyone wouldn’t use the technology available today for convenience and safety. My mom talked about how she used to write letters home when she was in college because it was expensive to use the phone, now we are texting and calling anytime we want. My sister is studying abroad in Paris, my parents don’t even just have to rely on e-mail because they have Skype. So it’s just funny to think about how I rely on technology so much, but it really is a daily part of my life. I rely on my dad and brother to call and help me through any technological issues. I cannot even begin to think about how technology will continue to grow and change in the future.
Thinking about how it might change can be overwhelming. I adapt and learn to use technologies, but I’m not always the first one to get the best new thing, I still don’t have a smart phone. I guess I go along with what I have, and don’t want to spend the money, especially since after awhile the hype will go down and so will the prices. I also worry when hearing about all the social consequences on the internet. It’s funny to think that using social networks could make people become more antisocial because they are only spending time communicating through that space, but think about how it’s kept so many people connected. It’s great, but just like anything we’ve heard lots of negative effects, like cyber bullying and just the fear that you don’t know who you are really communicating with. I think it’s something we have to take into account, especially as future educators as a way to help are students to be cautious, but to also use the internet and other technologies for the positive. So many good things can be shared and information to be found, and just really cool ways to get involved in school work (I think of fun math games or other educational games that will get students motivated).
I am for the most part up on technology. I may not always stay ahead and always right up to date, but I use technology daily. I plan on always using it and am interested to see what comes up next. I’m excited to use it and find new ways to use it to help educate my future students, in ways that I can’t even imagine yet!
Jen Carper
ReplyDeleteThinking back to when I was growing up and how technology played a role in my life, I realize that I had very positive experiences with technology. For as long as I can remember technology has been a part of my life starting very young. My sister and I had a gaming system that we would play and other little gadgets and toys that used technology to teach various things. Looking back in my mind, technology has always been fun! My dad was the “go-to” person when things weren’t quite working right and 99% of the time he could fix them. Because of this, he has always been the most “technologically literate” person I know. He likes to keep up with the latest technologies and how to use them. He is also good at figuring things out, testing things, and trial and error which I think adds to his positive relationship with technology. I have definitely learned not to get frustrated so fast if something technological is not working the way I want it to; he has taught me to try to relax a little bit and figure things out one by one which usually does the trick.
I like to stay in touch with people and sometimes (if not all the time) that involves technology. The internet and cell phone are my main resources for communication through technology and if these were suddenly cut off, it would be a challenge to reach many of the people I currently engage with.
In the future, or ten years from now, I feel like technology will not only be everywhere (it mostly is now) but even more saturated into the lifestyles of everyone. I think technology will keep filtering down to younger and younger students and children. Even thinking back to when I got my first cell phone (9th grade—a hand me down from my sister), this seems “late” to get a cell phone when thinking about how young kids are these days that get their first cell phone. I think this trend will continue in the future. I see some positive trends in technological development such as more thorough use in the classroom. I also see some negative trends such as more potential threats/predators for children using the internet. Also, the lack of communication could be seen as a negative trend as more people spend more time on the internet instead of making personal face to face connections.
I am a visual learner so it really helps me to watch someone else use the technology before I can really see myself using it or understanding how to use it properly. Among my friends I am probably right in the middle; I use the typical college technology really well but could definitely learn more. I always have my cell phone with me which I guess is considered a Smartphone type of cell phone (email, internet, etc.) I also use my laptop all the time for writing and communication purposes. I also just received an iPad for Christmas and am super excited about learning even more about; I currently use it but there is much more potential. I want to learn about ways to utilize this tool for both mine and my students’ benefit.
Lindsey Stevenson (Part I)
ReplyDeleteTechnology has always been a huge part of my life, from as far back as I can remember. For me, it is hard to imagine my life without technology in it! I grew up in a house that always had at least one computer, which was used for mostly homework and business but sometimes for entertainment for my parents, my sister and I. I can remember my dad being the one who was in charge of fixing the computer if it had a problem, which as far as I can remember was not too often. I was also the go to person when we got new programs or games for the computer because I was able to just play with the programs and figure out how to use them instead of reading the manuals, I am very much like that today as well. When I was younger, I can remember it being really cool to have a screen name and to get on AIM after school and chat with friends. I can also remember using technology in the classroom as far back as kindergarten, but not on the same level as it is used in elementary schools today. Then as I moved into middle school, a personal laptop (Mac) was given to each student, as I mentioned in class last week. This was a learning experience for everyone involved because there was always new problems’ arising since this was the first time this program had been used. I would say that I mainly learned the basics of using a computer from word processing to PowerPoint presentations. Then when I entered high school they got rid of the Mac’s and gave each students instead a Dell laptop to use both at school and at home. I would say that we probably didn’t take full advantage of these laptops because we just used the basic features, and most teachers did not try very hard to implement this new piece of technology into their lessons. Overall, I learned to be very comfortable with using technology and more willing to try out new technologies.
The most “technologically literate” person I know would have to be my boyfriend; he is usually able to fix any technology problem that he is faced with. I think a lot of this knowledge came from being a computer engineer major for a year before switching to civil engineering, and from simply playing with any technological gadget he can get his hands on. He can do things on the computer that simply blow my mind beaus I have no idea what he is doing, but this has been beneficial because he has “fixed” my computer multiple times! I have learned to not be afraid of technology because of his outlook, since he knows how to fix most problems he is not afraid of messing something up because he is usually able to fix it.
Lindsey Stevenson (Part II)
ReplyDeleteI always have my cell phone with me wherever I go, and although I do not have a Smartphone I hope to get one in the near future. Since Verizon announced last week that they will now carry the Apple I-phone I am hoping to get this phone! On the average day, I spend countless hours on my Dell laptop working on school assignments mostly but I also use it for personal purposes such as online shopping, email, and social networking (Facebook). I cannot imagine my life without my cell phone and a laptop because I have gotten so used to using it in practically every aspect of my life. I truly cannot imagine my college experience without the use of e-mail, both to keep in touch with friends who don’t go to school here and for professors to update students quickly about changes or announcements. In the future I would like to switch over to using a Macbook instead of my Dell laptop because I feel like it would allow me to be more creative. I would also like to own a Kindle in the future because I love the idea of having so many books right at your fingertips and all in one place. Among all of my friends I think I am the one is most willing to try out new technologies and I am the most comfortable when it comes to using technology in everyday life. I would be considered an in between adopter I am not necessarily the first person with every new piece of technology because I usually wait to see other people using it and try it out before I decide to adopt to new technology.
Technology also very much affects my social interactions with other people. My main forms of communication with my friends and family is through text messaging and e-mail. I would also say my favorite form of communication is texting because for me it is a fast way to communicate with people without dialing their number and talking to them. My other favorite technological way to communicate with friends that are far away is through Skype, I have been using the method of video chat to communicate since I was a freshman in here at JMU. If I suddenly had no access to technology I feel like my world would be turned upside down and my relationship with friends and family outside of JMU would be greatly affected because I would not be able to easily communicate with them in a reasonable amount of time.
I see the future of technology to be very exciting although I have no idea where it will take us in ten years, the possibilities are endless! Ten years ago I would never have thought that I would be able to video chat with people who are hundreds miles away or even on the other side of the country. I think that since technology is continuously changing that in order to be technologically literate in ten years that people will need to be up to date on the latest advances in technology and they will definitely need to be willing to adopt and use technology in every way possible. I think that the future of technology will have a positive impact on my life as a teacher because it will make my job more exciting because I feel like I will be able to engage my students more effectively if I am able to implement the most recent pieces of technology in the classroom.
Lydia Porter (Part I)
ReplyDeleteThere are many technologies that I always remember being a part of my life such as an oven, refrigerator, freezer, washer, dryer, and telephone. If there was ever a problem with any technology in our home my father would fix it. If he was not able to fix one of the appliances such as washer, dryer or refrigerator we would have a repair person come.
Some of my early memories of technology include playing games on a Macintosh computer. One of my favorite things to do on the computer as a child was to play around in Kid Pix. I also remember when my parents bought a program in the early 90s called "The Miracle Piano," which is a computer program to teach piano using a piano keyboard attached to the computer. My father was able to keep the program running until 2010 by transferring it from computer to computer as needed.
As long as I can remember, there has always been a computer in our home; not necessarily the most recent computer, but there was always something there. We were often the recipients of old computers and my father and later other siblings would work to get them running again.
Through out my school years, I had at least some exposure to computers. I remember going to the computer lab as early as first grade. I remember playing an alphabet game and later doing typing assignment.
In middle school I had my first exposure to the internet. Several class assignments included gathering information from the internet. We did not have internet at home during this time so the research was done either at the school or public library. Sometime during my high school years we set up dial-up internet at home, but use on the internet was generally limited to school work.
When I left for college, I bought a used desktop computer which I used for my first two and a half years of college before it stopped working at which point I bought a laptop.
As far as I can remember we have always had some sort of television in our home although it was not always hooked up to television services. The only type of television service I had at home was analog. We never had cable. The only time I have had access to cable television was in my freshman dorm room. We owned many VHS tapes. I remember my father frequently fixing our VCRs when they did not work, which happened on a regular basis. I believe it was sometime in high school when we first obtained a DVD player. We still have both although neither are in prime working condition.
Lydia Porter (Part II)
ReplyDeleteAs a child I remember listening to music on a record player and a tape player. I can still listen to both of those types of media when I visit home. We also have some CD players now as well. A couple of my siblings received the first MP3 players in our home in 2009. I have not yet acquired a similar device for myself.
My whole life, my mom has owned and used a camera. At first it was the kind that used film. Then she would use both her nice film camera and some disposable cameras. Eventually when her film camera began to have difficulties, she switched to a digital camera. I used some disposable cameras until college when I became part of the PictureIt! JMU program for which I needed a digital camera.
If you have not yet gathered, I am not one of the first to obtain the newest technology. I was a junior in college before I ever owned a cell phone. I got a pay as you go phone which I still use today.
My life would be completely different without technology. Life would require a lot more forethought because you would have to make arrangements before hand. In some ways, I think life might be better in the sense that I would actually spend more time interacting face to face with people. However, it is likely that the number of people I would interact with would be significantly decreased.
Technology is an ever changing thing in our world and therefore, I will have to continue to learn. It is hard to foresee what changes might come to technology in the next ten years, but I would guess that computer keyboarding skills will still be useful at that point. I don't expect I will keep up with all of the different technologies that become available in the next ten years. I like to keep face to face relationships alive and well and so I may decide to forgo owning some types of technology because I do not see them as necessary to my life. However, I am much more likely to learn about and use technology in my classroom as I see ways that it can enhance learning.
Jessica Riley (Part I)
ReplyDeleteMy earliest memory of technology is probably from kindergarten. I can remember having a computer in the classroom, but we didn’t use it very often. My family didn’t get a home computer until I was in third grade. Until that time, my dad would go up to my mom’s school (she was a 4th grade teacher at the time) every Friday night and bring home one of the computers from her classroom so that she could work on it over the weekend. So you can imagine my dad’s excitement when my parents decided to get a computer to have at the house full-time! J I recall picking up on things quickly when it came to the computer. I was always the person who would install the new programs or games. My parents would always ask me how I knew what I doing, and I always told them, I didn’t really know, but I knew I could figure it out. That’s how I really learned to work a computer was to just play around with it long enough and eventually I knew how it worked!
Once we got a computer at home, my life was constantly consumed with technology. I would do homework, or talk with friends on AIM, or make a birthday card on the computer. I can still hear that dial up sound that would play as my computer hooked up to the internet. Then, in middle school we were given our own laptops to use in school and at home. This greatly influenced my technological knowledge because we were given Macs and at home we had a PC. So I learned how to use both kinds and feel comfortable with either of them. In high school they switched to Dell computers and by that point we had gotten a Mac computer at home, so still I was working with both kinds. As students we didn’t really use the computers for that much good. It just meant that while you were taking notes for class, you could also be on the internet at the same time. It got to the point where they had to block most websites because students were playing games or communicating with each other by means of their laptop. I do think though that I feel much more comfortable knowing how to do certain things on Word or Powerpoint compared to my friends who did not have computers throughout middle and high school. In fact, in one of my classes freshman year, we were assigned to make a powerpoint presentation and out of the four people in my group I was the only one who really knew how to make a Powerpoint. I was shocked at the time, but looking back, it’s because I had made plenty of powerpoints for high school because we had the laptops and my other classmates had not had that same experience.
Jessica Riley (Part II)
ReplyDeleteThese days the main use of technology for me is to communicate with my friends and family. I just recently got a phone, not quite considered a Smartphone, but one that allows me to access my email, facebook, and twitter because my life had gotten to the point where people were sending me emails that I needed to get right then, not at 7pm when I got back to my apartment. Mostly everyone I know has a Facebook and some of my friends have a Twitter account as well. I use technology all the time to keep in contact with people. In fact it’s to the point where when I sit down at my computer at home, I first check my email, facebook, and twitter, and then proceed on to what I was originally on the computer to do. This isn’t something that I’m proud of, but it has become a habit.
I like that through social networking I can keep up with my friends who don’t go to the same school as me, or my family who lives out of state. Some people say that I could do that by picking up the phone and calling them, which I do at times, but because of newer technology I can see pictures of my cousin’s new puppy without her having to spend money on developing pictures and mailing them to me. Instead she can post them on facebook, or even better, I can Skype her and see the puppy myself.
Down the road, I would love to get an iPhone now that it has come to Verizon and an iPad. I also want to get my own flip camera to use, but until I can afford all of those I’ve got a phone that does enough of what all of those technologies. Because I’m sure that by the time I can afford it, something even better will have come out! It amazes me how far we’ve come with technology and how quickly it changes and becomes even better. Now that I know how to use it to communicate with others, I’m excited to learn how I can better use it in my classroom to enhance my students’ learning!
Ann Lefeve (Part I)
ReplyDeleteThe record got stuck just as Sleeping Beauty reached her crescendo. I pulled the arm of the small, Disney-clad, plastic record player up, and replaced it so that the poor, warbling princess could finish her song. It was a daily occurrence in my house: before I took a nap, I would listen to Cinderella, or the Jungle Book, or any other Disney record in my room. I was the paragon of sophistication, alone on my pink rug with my own, personal, record player. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, my family had the edge on technology: not only did I, at four years old, have my own access to music, but we had a projection TV, a VHS player and fast rewinder machine, and something called a CD player whose “open” button caused two sliding glass doors to part, revealing what looked like a tiny fork-lift, and into which was inserted strange discs that played the terrible, classical music my father listened to. He had bought it around the same time he had a white phone installed in the arm rest in his car, and once in a while he would let me call mom from the garage – I couldn’t believe it: a phone… in a car.
Since that time my family always looked to my father as our archetype of nerdy-enthusiasm over gadgets and gizmos that would make our lives “easier.” My mother rolled her eyes, and continued to use her electric typewriter when my father bought us this Macintosh:
She continued to roll her eyes when, a couple of years later, we came home to find out that we had a second phone line that plugged into the back of a strange thing called a “modem,” which in turn, plugged into the computer. It made odd noises, but we had AOL, right in our own house. At Dad’s request, I was enrolled in “computer camp” that summer, where I learned to type (I can now type 90 words a minute, thanks in part to that experience, and in part to AOL Instant Messenger), and learned how to use Simple Text, Paint, and how to play the game “Lemmings.” He was, and always has been, ahead of the curve in terms of technology. We had a DVD player when they were still incredibly rare, and when I had a gigipet in elementary school, he took it apart to see how it worked. His curiosity meant that from a young age, I learned about and experienced technology before most of my classmates.
Ann Lefeve (Part II)
ReplyDeleteThe world now is obviously a different place from the one in which I grew up. Technology then was perceived by most people as an idle curiosity held by a few harmless, but lonely individuals who couldn’t get dates with real people. Today, “cool” people have the newest version of the iPhone and probably create websites that raise money for children in Uganda while drinking a socially responsible latte. The world has become inextricably linked to technology- not just in terms of social referencing, but in the way we eat, entertain ourselves, and communicate. My own life depends utterly on my use of technology – not only because those with whom I went to college all communicate via our collective gmail listserv, text, and skype, but because my job literally starts and ends on my computer screen. Even something as basic as the phone has informed the way I’ve grown up and the way I communicate, and I doubt that I or anyone else of my generation would fare long without one. Most of us can’t even remember life before there was caller ID, much less cell phones or smart phones. I don’t know how I functioned without using google on my blackberry. Even my 60 something mother, who once thought computers were a waste of money, now reads the newspaper every day from her iPad. Similarly, my 3 year old goddaughter can scroll through her dad’s iPad faster than I can.
It’s hard to say how either end of the age-spectrum learns how to use the ever-more pervasive technologies around them. I used to watch the Jetsons reruns as a kid, and now I regularly talk to my friends and family on a screen that rings from my computer when I’m getting a call, but I can’t remember when I made the transition from thinking that video-phone technology was tantamount to flying cars, to using it every day. I suppose we learn, to an extent, by necessity. When a product floods the market, it somehow becomes the standard: the choice is to get left behind and thereby isolate yourself, or to take risks and intuit your way through the available options (which, incidentally, is evidence not only of a growing understanding of technology, but of marketing and the human condition).
Ten years ago, I got my first cell phone. Today, in addition to my MacBook, on which I do virtually all of my communicating and school work, I carry a smart phone, use satellite radio in my car, and read books from my Amazon Kindle. I always want the newer version of what I have, and if it hasn’t come out yet, I read about it on geeky apple-related websites. The options have become so varied and “space age” that I’m not sure what the next surprise will be, or from where it will come. Some argue that phones will eventually be hard-wired to our ears in some capacity. The idea seems absurd, but just a couple of years ago, so did “tablet” computers. The possibilities really do seem to be limited to nothing save the human imagination.
Hannah Lanis (Part I)
ReplyDeleteI believe that my generation has a very unique relationship with technology unlike any other. People my age grew up using or watching others use tape cassettes and cds, mp3s and iPods, VHS tapes and dvds, 8mm camcorders and digital recorders, the first personal computers operating DOS and laptops accessing WIFI, industrial size cell phones and iTouches, manual cameras and digital cameras, dial-up internet and broadband, and the list goes on. While older adults obviously lived through all of this technological advancement in the last 25 years, it was my generation that first transitioned from child to adult when these technological leaps were being made so quickly. As we were learning how to read or add, many of us were also learning about these new technologies. Having grown up learning and using the various technology, we have a different perspective then those older then us; however, we are also able to reflect on the evolution of the technological boom.
I would say that I was exposed to a lot of technology growing up thanks to my dad. Although he is not the most technologically savvy person that I know in my life (I myself have surpassed him with certain types of technology), he did a very good job introducing me to and familiarizing me with different technology so that I could thrive later on. My dad has always been a very avid photographer. As his most enjoyable hobby, he could (and still does) go into our backyard and take pictures of the same flower for hours. If he would do that with a flower, then how do you think I used to fair as his most prized subject (that is until my sister was born). At my home there are more then ten photo albums of my childhood up until the age of about 3. After that my mom got tired of making albums and now thousands of pictures of me are in dozens of boxes. Furthermore, there are countless of hours of me on 8mm tape stored in my dad's office. Having been photographed and videotaped so much as a child, I became very comfortable with that kind of media and I even became interested in learning how to use it. My dad bought me my own point and shoot camera and he allowed me to take some video using the camcorder (under supervision of course).
When my life was not being documented through film, he taught me to use a computer. My dad had a PC that had a small screen and deep monitor and operated DOS software. I remember him teaching me how to type in the codes on the black screen so that I could play the math and reading games that he installed (Math and Word Rescue were my favorite). In the mid-90s when he bought a Windows 95 computer, I remember him and my computer teachers in school teaching me how to use the Start Menu and all the other things that are so natural to use now, but were new then. Windows was so exciting to me though because with the new processing power I could play more detailed games like The Sims and Roller Coaster Tycoon. My parents had never bought any video gaming systems because they wanted me to be an active child (although when I was 13 my dad found his old Atari system and we did play with that for a couple of months) and so these kind of games were a new experience.
Hannah Lanis (Part II)
ReplyDeleteMy mom has also influenced my technology experience, but not on as large of a scale. When I was little I loved watching Disney movies like most little girls do. My mom taught me how to turn the tv on, start the VCR, use the remote, and rewind my tapes in the special rewinder machine when I was done. This was a very important process for me to learn for myself because on days I did not have daycare I would I would desire to watch a movie and then watch it a second time right after. On days that I did have daycare, I would watch educational shows like Sesame Street and Barney before daycare started. Being able to control the tv myself, my mom was able to get herself ready for work while I watched these shows and ate breakfast. In the way to daycare I can recall picking out which cassette tape I wanted to listen to and my mom having to turn it over when the side was done. At home I had my own child's cassette player that I remember using.
All of this exposure when I was young was really good for developing my technological skills and other necessary skills like reading and writing. Nevertheless, my family hit a point with the technology in which they got comfortable with where they were and didn't want to change. For example, it took my dad till a year ago to get a digital camera because he held on so dearly to his manual. In fact, he bought me a digital camera long before he bought himself one! We were pretty quick with buying a dvd player, but it sat in a box for two years before my dad hooked it up and we actually played dvds with it. I finally was able to pack away my cd carrying case when I came to college after getting an Ipod for a graduation present. My family did not get cell phones until I was a sophomore in high school- I think I may have been the last person in my grade to get one.
This lagging of technology in my teens made me a late adopter, but since then I think I have rebounded to somewhere in between late and early adopter. I had a facebook long time before all of my friends did because as a high schooler I had friends in college who wanted me to join. In fact, I had a facebook before high schoolers were technically able to join- I had to be specifically invited by my a college friend. Facebook is an extremely important part of my technology use because it serves as a main mode of communication (even more than e-mail). I have heard of people starting to get rid of their facebook profiles, but at this point in my life I couldn't even think of doing that because of the vital communication tools it gives me. Now at the same time, I do not have a Twitter. I do not feel the need to follow people around constantly and I do not think other people want to follow me around. However, I do see the benefits of using it as a teacher and having your students follow you. As a teacher you can remind the students of assignments, give them additional instructions, etc. I think that this could be a very useful tool used by teachers in the future.
Hannah Lanis (Part III)
ReplyDeleteComing to college I bought a Mac, and so now I can use Macs and PCs while many of my friends cannot. With the cell phone situation I am still a little behind. I do not have an iTouch or a Smartphone or internet access, but I feel that I don't need those things just yet. My dad has actually surpassed me in this category because he has a Blackberry. I believe that if I were to get an iTouch, I would be able to figure it out relatively quickly because I know how to use Macs. I am very enthusiastic able learning how to use new technologies and softwares. I think that just playing around with the technologies accompanied by a handbook or directions is the best way that I learn how to use them.
All-in-all, I have had a positive experience learning how to use technology as I have grown up. I am very interested in keeping up with new technologies because I can see how not actively doing so can delay opportunities. Keeping current will allow me to use new and more technology in my future classroom and with the right use, the technology will allow my students to flourish.
Nick Dzendzel (Part I)
ReplyDeleteI would be a late adopter of technology as it progresses forward by my generation's standards. I have just learned how to use a smart phone. I am the last of my friends to have one. Normally I learn new technologies through others. I have yet to use or even see an iPad outside of formal settings. I still do not even own an iPod nor do I think I would use one. Typically, if my family and friends are not using a new technology piece, neither am I. I am particularly interested in the new technologies my Microsoft Xbox can handle and its new games and applications (a lot of guys are). My technology literacy rate would be high though in general. I have used personal computers for almost 25 years for entertainment and learning. At one point, I even had enough skill to repair computer hardware and most software. As I did not keep up with the new technologies, my understanding and skills dropped. Thanks to coming back to school, I will be back again on the cutting edges of practical technology.
My memory of technology begins with the record player at my grandmother's house. From there it progressed to the tape deck and vcr at home to keep my brother and I entertained down in our basement. My first use of a computer came in my teens. It was just as email began and the only thing that I wanted to do with a computer was play games. It was useful to write papers and as I went to high school, it was mandatory to type all of the necessary work. Still, games is what fueled my technological bug. I learned to use a modem to modem connection to play with my friends who were all over the country. My parents made sure to get a good long distance plan and allowed me to play for 3 hours a week. Once I went to college I really learned with the internet can do. AIM, MSN, Napster, LimeWire, Juke, and email all became the normal everyday activity. Lucky for me, my mother had gone back to school for computer repair and taught a course on the subject. Now I had the opportunity to learn about the hardware and software from putting a computer together myself. I even had neon blue lights shining out of the tower. A laptop was the first item I purchased once I got out of college. Followed by what would be my biggest waste of time that I love every minute that I use it; a Microsoft Xbox. I still use the same laptop today with all the upgrades that I could use with it. The next staple of life has become the cell phone. I have always kept it simple until I got a smart phone. Now anything I daily use on my laptop is available on my cell phone. This world is moving fast and technically faster.
Nick Dzendzel (Part II)
ReplyDeleteLooking from my own past to present, it is easy to keep up with practical technology for everyday life. The applications are different though. If you do not need them to get by in everyday life, they can be difficult to use and understand. Luckily, there are always classes and different ways to learn them, even if self taught. Technology will be as simple to use as well as complicated so that everyone in society can take part. Schools need to keep up with technological trends so that there can always be new advances in all aspects of life. Medicine, sports, construction, clothing, transportation are all dependent on advancing to stay positive. Although the negative effects could be that people start to live a "virtual life." Facebook, texting, email, and cell phones are sometimes the main modes of communication. What about face to face confrontations? Will adolescence know how to write a formal letter or will it be an email? Do regular faced clocks exist anymore or are they all digital? We do not want to be dependent of human survival on technology that could fail. Simple things like cooking, cleaning, writing, or communicating all still need to be taught in formal capacities.
My own dependence on techonology relativily high when I think about it. Television, computers, vehicles, cell phone, and many tools just for everyday living. I could do with out, but only if I had to. My personal relationships would be severely affected if I did not have any mobile modes of communication. Daily I speak with my girlfriend and regularly with my family, all of which are not in the same city. If I did not have my communication abilities as I do now, my girlfriend and I would have serious issues. Luckily, my cell phone bill is paid on time and high have high speed internet access to communicate in other modes like email and Skype.
The last largest piece to my technology autobiography, is the technology that I want to use in my career as a educator. I am lucky to have a great experience as a long term substitute in a classroom for 8 months. I had to make my own lesson plans following the information that they regular teacher had collected. (It was typically found in the text book.) Using what was available, I tried to use as much media as I could to teach history. I used lectures, powerpoints, videos (particularly choice segments from YouTube), online teacher website to dispense information, and interactive online lectures. Now I cannot wait to use the interactive white boards as well as new applications to show that history can be taught in a number of mediums.
Ashley Montgomery
ReplyDeleteMy earliest memories of technology are listening to Disney stories read on cassette tapes. I loved listening to these stories because I could not read yet. I think I had every Disney story they had out at the time. My grandparents also recorded themselves reading stories that I could follow along as they read them. When I got older my favorite stories they read were the American Girl Doll series. I listened to all the Samantha American Girl Doll stories. Another one of my earliest memories includes to emailing my dad. My dad was in the navy, and over my childhood he went on several deployments from six to nine months. I remember when I was really young we had to write letters, but as I got older email came out. My mom used to sit at the computer and type out what my sister and I wanted to say to my dad because we did not know how to type yet. It was wonderful having email because we could talk to my dad more frequently. I loved playing computer games during my free time when we got a computer at home. My favorite games were Freddie Fish and Math Blaster. My parents limited our time on the computer, but I do not ever remember being upset that I could not play. Whenever something went wrong with the computer my dad would fix it. Because my dad always fixed it I do not remember there being that many problems with the computer. I just remember the computer being really slow.
During school, they only reason I remember using the computers in our classroom is to take Accelerated Reader test. Whenever we did research, projects, or other assignments we went down to the computer lab. We had computer as a resource once a week and my teachers would occasionally schedule extra time in the lab. During our resource time, after we finished our work we could play one of the computer games on the computer. I usually played Math Blaster or this Mario game that helped teach home row position. In the sixth grade, I took a computer class. I learned how to type using home row position, parts of the computer, and how to use Microsoft Word, Powerpoint, Excel, and Access. This class was extremely helpful and gave me skills that I still use today. The most important thing I learned was how to type.
During the eight grade I got my own laptop. I was so excited that I did not have to share with my parents. I did my homework on it, talked to my friends on AIM, and played games. I was not allowed to get a Facebook until I came to college. My parents really did not want me to get one at all. Now that I am in college, I use technology on a regular basis. I use my laptop for school work and keeping in touch with family and friends. Facebook and Skype are great ways to keep in touch. Skype is nice because you can actually see the person. If I did not have this technology it would be hard to keep in touch with my friends and family who live in a different state. I also use my iPod touch every day, whether it is playing a game or listening to music while I walk to class. There are so many things you can do on it.
After I graduate college I would love to get a Mac laptop. I like photography and I would love all of the photo editing you can do on a Mac. I would also like to get a flip camera to use in my classroom. I know that not every school has a SMART board, so if my school does not have one I would like to go through a grant program to get one for my classroom. I am really excited about the ways I can incorporate it into my classroom.
Megan McCaferty
ReplyDeleteWell, my relationship with technology is the epitome of a love hate relationship. When technology works with you, MAN can you get things rolling. You can show off new skills, life becomes easier, you can keep up with old acquaintances, or do all of these things at once. For instance, how awesome (and scary) is it that we can buy a lot of what we need online. No need to make that trip out. Now, I can be at the gym and getting my sweat on while I scroll through emails or blackboard. Presentations look effortless and colorful. You can wow the audience with videos and sound effects. Suddenly the boring old song and dance lecture can become a Broadway musical relatively easily. Cool huh? Well, what about the hate part?
So, when technology is working with me (Oh sixty percent of the time), I love it. However, I have an almost parasitic relationship with technology, where I use it up until it stops benefiting me. The second technology begins to malfunction, things get hairy. For example, my printer should invest in a pair of earmuffs for the amount of cursing it has heard. I just do not get technology. I am an English major. I like the printed word. Granted now a days the printed word comes strictly from computers and printers, I understand them once they are in book form. Computers crash. Books don't. Printers start printing eighteen copies of page 32 when you need page 45. Books don't. Phones crack and lose reception. Book don't. Books are simple. They tell us beautiful stories and take us on life altering journeys, without the cursing and crying because a cable is broken.
This ignorance of technology has put me between a rock and a hard drive! (Sorry couldn't resist). I will use the idiot proof technology and accept all of its benefits, but when things stop working or get unclear, I resort to the techniques of an ill equipped knight. Of course if I slay my printer, it will stop acting like a monster wreaking havoc on my academic life. So as I wack my printer with my proverbial wooden sword, I think, "This relationship between technology and my self stems from enabling." My dad is a great and smart man, and ever since I can remember, things went like this : "Dad, it is not working. Can you help me?" Dah Dah Dah Daaah... Dad to the rescue. He swooped in pressed a few mysterious buttons and presto! It was fixed. So I never truly learned to save myself in a technological crisis. I am like the stupid people in the city that run around in circles hoping that Batman will fly in and save the day. Clueless, frustrated, and frightened by my inability to save myself.
I hope to change this victim mentality. I would like to take control of technology and work with it. I want this basic knowledge to become more of an understanding. How can I implement it into my classroom, alongside the wonderfully, gorgeously simple books? How can I work with technology to make my experience as a teacher more fulfilling and meaningful for my students and myself? As technology continues to evolve, so must my knowledge, and so to avoid investing in earmuffs for my printer, I would like to understand why it acts destructively, so I can swoop in and save the day for once.
Vivian Yun (Part I)
ReplyDeleteMy earliest childhood experiences with technological devices were in the first grade. I remember using Apple Mac computers in the computer lab working on various assignments for class. I remember getting a home computer when I was in the third grade and my family did not use it much. We had dial-up and I remember waiting to get on the Internet and it was not fast! My parents preferred that my sister and I not use the computer that much. But we would use it the most to complete various school assignments. I recall not using my computer much for entertainment purposes and just used it solely for school. My experiences were fairly positive other than the fact that our computer was so slow at times and I did not have much knowledge with using computers so it was hard to fix things because we did not have much experience with technology. When I was in the fifth grade, I remember AIM chat was very popular and my friends and I would talk on for a while after school. I got my first laptop the senior year of high school and it was great because it was portable! Another technological device in our household were cell phones, but I did not have my first phone until the end of sixth grade. I used it for emergency calls and when I had to let me parents know when to pick me up from school.
The most “technologically literate” person I know is my friend, Kenny I met at JMU. I guess what makes his relationship with technology so unique is that he loves to work with computers and he always had or knew about the latest piece of technology out there. He was always willing to help if my friends or I encountered a problem with our computers. He was the guy to go to! When I was a SMAD major, I used to ask him to help me with assignments using basic software.
There are social consequences for my lifestyle that hinge on my technological literacy. I would have less face-to-face interactions with other people and it is hard to see what the other person’s expressions are through technology. Some things may be misunderstood. There can be a tendency to become lazy because one would just sit in front of a computer screen and not have to physically get up to do something. If I had no access to technology, my relationships with others would be affected because many of my friends and I use technology as a way a social network and to keep in touch. Also, I feel like we would have to a greater effort to see each other and communicate. I remember when I studied abroad in Spain, I used Skype very often to communicate with my family and friends back at home. It was awesome to be able to use technology this way and could not imagine my life without it! When I first used Skype, it was so cool to be able to see each others faces as well.
Ten years from now, a person would be required to recognize how much technology is used in everyday life and understand how technology reflects the values and cultures of a society. Positive trends in technological development I see unfolding is using technology as a way to reach out to students to help them learn in the classroom. I can see it used in a way to assist students with special needs and ELLs in which using technology as another method to learn information in the classroom. Negative trends in technological development are that students in my classroom may abuse their right to use technology in the classroom by cheating. It can also be seen as a distraction and students may not want to communicate with others but only through this technological device. As a teacher, I know this will greatly affect me. I will have to accommodate and find ways to continue to use technology in my classroom and I will need to explore the different technological methods I can use in my classroom.
Vivian Yun (Part II)
ReplyDeleteI learn new technologies from my peers. I am not technologically savvy and am most likely to hear about the latest thing about a new device through a friend. Among my friends, I am in between an “early adopter” and a “late adopter.” When I do hear about the newest technology I always want to give it a try to use it and I eventually do. I’m not all for change so it takes me a while to get adjusted and use something new. I’d much rather be using something I’ve been using for a while.
I carry around my cell phone, iPod touch and MacBook sometimes to class or to important meetings to take notes. I have a basic cell phone and do have Internet on it unlike smart phones. I use it to call others and text. I guess I do most of my writing on my laptop when completing assignments and communicating with my friends online. I think it would be nice to use the iPad. It would be neat to be able to work a device like that because it looks so easy to carry around and use. It just amazes me now much we use technology and how it continues to grow. I really liked how Dr. Purcell put it, “technology is like shooting at a moving target.” It is so true. I want to be able to use the iPad as well as other technological devices in my classroom to enrich learning in my classroom.
Rachel Campbell
ReplyDeleteMy childhood is somewhat different from these, yet I didn’t realize that it was different from most until I came to JMU. I grew up in a rural area where the focus was more on outdoor activities like canoeing and playing outside than technology. There were times in my childhood when we did not have a TV in the house so we would learn to value other things and not sit in front of the TV for hours at a time. I do remember having and watching Disney movies and having gigapets though. In my elementary school there were 5 computers in each classroom which we usually made good use of. My family didn’t get a computer until I was in middle school. When my brother and I would ask for one my dad would always say that they are getting better and cheaper, which was true, but we would reply that it didn’t really justify waiting. At some point we got a bread machine, which was pretty cool and helpful to my mom. I really don’t remember what happened to the technology when it was broken. I assume it was just fixed by my dad or replaced. When I was able to drive, I was given a cell phone in case I had car trouble or an accident. When I came to JMU I got a laptop. Although most of my friends are pretty technology literate one of my roommates tops them all, which makes sense because her major is computer information systems. She’s actually doing the coding for something as I type this.
I have some friends who started a school on the coast of Kenya. Just this morning I got an email from her. If there wasn’t technology like email and skype we would not be able to communicate because of the vast distance and we would have a very difficult time supporting them from the US. At this school, they have just started a program where the Kenyan students in class 6 can web chat with 6th grade students in Fredericksburg, VA. Without these technologies, these relationships would not be possible.
Looking back from the past to the present, it seems like the latest technology is becoming more user friendly. In the past we needed to take classes on how to use things or spend a lot of time trying to figure it out. Now you can figure it out without much trouble. I think in the future, this will be the case even more so. I think my friends would say I’m more to the side of a late adopter with some things but more quick to try others. I’ll evaluate the importance of the new technology to see how useful and worth the money it might be. I was using skype, gmail, some photo programs, and the Promethean Board before those around me because they were very useful. I carry my cell phone with me and write on my laptop. In the future I’d like to have that internet device that you plug into your usb, a satellite phone, a netbook, and a flip camera which would all be useful for international travel and communication from abroad.
Sarah Walker
ReplyDeleteThroughout my life I would like to think that my experiences with technology have made me a technologically literate person. During my time in grade school, I tried to keep up with the latest technological trend whether it was my earliest experience with technology, like playing Oregon Trail on an old apple computer in the 2nd grade, or my later experiences like getting my first cell phone when I was 14. Although somewhere along the way I have begun to feel like I am slipping behind in technology. There is just too much technology this day in age for me to keep up with. Now that I am a Senior in college, I feel like I just have the basic college level knowledge of technology. I feel like just when I get the hang of something, the next big new technological trend is on its way in. In ten years, I imagine that everything will be touch screen and way over my head.
I never thought that I would be this person who didn’t feel like they knew how to use all the latest technologies, but I realized I was when my parents began using Skype before me. And then when the most technological illiterate person I know, my 76 year old grandmother, asked me to come set up a webcam for her so she could skype, the day after I accepted her friend request on facebook, I knew that I needed to start keeping up better with technology. Although my grandmother has skype and facebook, she is still pretty clueless when it comes to technology. Just this past weekend she called me to ask me how to change the ringtone on her phone. And she will probably call me soon so that I can remind her how to connect her computer to the internet. She tries, but at her age it is too hard for her to remember all the directions in order to log on to things, and keep up with the new technology, because when she was my age, none of this stuff was around.
Once I realized that I needed to catch up with new technology, thanks to my grandmother, I bought a webcam, and started skyping with my parents. My next new venture into technology is a more advanced cell phone, currently my parents have blackberry’s and are way ahead of me in that department. The one thing I worry about when I get a new fancy cell phone with internet on it is that I will begin to use it way too much. I see this often happen when I am having dinner with my sister. I will be sitting there having a conversation with her, but I will realize that she is not paying attention because she is on facebook on her cell phone. This is one negative thing that I see with technology, less personal face time. I think this can affect people’s relationships because pretty soon we may be sitting next to each other and instead of talking, we are going to be just texting back and forth.
In ten years, one advancement in technology that I would like to see is maybe more all in one devices. Currently, at any given time, I may have my cellphone for talking and texting, my itouch for music and apps, my gps for directions, and laptop for writing and internet on me. This is just so much to carry around. I would like to see more affordable all in one devices so that I don’t have to carry around so much, and can just use one thing for all my needs.
Allison Heischober (Part I)
ReplyDeleteWhen I think back on my childhood, I clearly remember my parents being very in touch with what was considered cutting edge technology of the time. I remember when we got our first cordless phone with its two foot antenna and our video camera that you had to hoist up on your shoulder. Then, all these technologies that I though were so advanced quickly became obsolete. Cell phones came around, along with handheld video cameras. CDs replaced cassettes, and DVDs replaced VHS tapes. However, it wasn’t until second grade, when we got our first Macintosh computer, that I really became enamored by technology. My mom made sure that the computer was used only for educational purposes. She encouraged me to improve my typing, reading, and math skills using educational computer games. I mostly used it to type up assignments for school and write letters to family. Then, came the Internet. I thought that the computer itself was amazing, but then I got my first AOL account. I was amazed by the fact that I could email someone across the country and they would instantly receive my message. Still it was only used for school or emailing family. It wasn’t until middle school and the creation of AIM that the computer played a major role in my life. It was such an easy way to keep in touch with friends and catch up on the latest gossip that it became part of a daily routine.
As I’ve gotten older, my parents’ interest in technology has declined, but I try to keep up with the ever-changing demand for new technology. I’m probably the most technologically literate person in my family. I constantly have to help my parents with their computer and iPods. With the exception of certain technologies (smart phones, tablets, etc.) I’ve always been an early adapter. I love getting new cameras, iPods, or computers and just playing around with them until I figure them out. I’ve never been one who like to read directions. I’d rather just jump in and figure things out along the way. My friends and I are all on the same level with technology for the most part. However, I do have one friend I’d consider more technologically literate than the rest. I only think this because being a CIS minor, she has experience with programming and web design.
As I’ve gotten older, I’ve really seen how technology is starting to take over people’s lives. Technology is a gift and a curse. It’s so helpful in making communication easier, but at the same time, I think it’s created a huge disconnect in personal relationships. While I’m not as bad as others, without technology I think I’d be pretty lost. I’m completely reliant on my cell phone and computer to communicate with my family and friends. The biggest problem I’ve seen is with kids currently in middle school and high school. I babysat these kids going into middle school and they were so used to IMing and texting that they could barely carry on a normal conversation with me.
Allison Heischober (Part II)
ReplyDeleteI think it’s great that these kids are so technologically savvy. The things they are doing now will soon become the norm. I think a lot of the requirements for being technologically literate will remain the same. Things like word processing and making interactive presentations are vital skills to have. The initiative to become a more environmentally friendly society will push technology in an entirely new direction. In efforts to reduce deforestation and paper use, I see tablets like the iPad and electronic books/magazines becoming more popular. While I love new gadgets like this as much as the next person, I can’t help but love the feel of a real book. I just have a hard time picturing myself laying on the beach reading from a tiny computer screen. This is where I start to understand how my parents started to recoil from new technology. It’s too easy for me to become set in my ways and adapt to change less as I get older. I already feel this way about my cell phone. I fear the day when all phone are touch screens and I’m forced to buy one. My tiny phone that allows me to call and text is all I need. I see this being a problem for me in the future and hope it’s something I can overcome.
As of now, I’m content with my simple cell phone, iPod touch, and MacBook Pro. Those, along with the GPS in my car, are the most essential electronics I need. It wasn’t until recent trip to Italy that I realized I could probably do without my cell phone. I spent two weeks with just my iPod touch and I was able to do everything but text. I used it to make reservations for hostels, Skype with my parents, and check in for our flights. I only wish I had access to the internet on it all the time, instead of just areas with wifi. That being the case, I should probably just give in a get a smart phone.
Karen Lithgow
ReplyDeleteWhen I was a child, technology did not have an overly huge role in my life. I remember playing with toys and playing with my siblings but few of the toys we used incorporated technology. One way that we did use technology was watching TV and using VCRs to watch movies. I also remember listening to music on cassette tapes with my sister. I remember that my older siblings had a Nintendo 64 that they played games on, and when I got a little bit older, I was allowed to play also. The experiences that I did have with technology as a child were positive. I do not remember having a lot of troubles from technology. When I was a teenager, I used technology quite a bit more. We had a family computer in the living room that I used for maintaining contact with friends, writing papers, and doing research for school. I remember spending hours on the computer talking to friends on AIM. I got my very own laptop when I graduated from high school; it is the same laptop that I use today. My purposes for using a computer are about the same: maintaining contact with friends and family, and completing school work. I also use the internet to stay abreast on sports events, news, and weather forecasts. In addition to my laptop I use my Ipod Nano and my cell phone on a daily basis. At school, I now have a TV and DVD player in my room, which I never had previously. One day I want to own a Kindle. I love reading and I love traveling, so I feel the Kindle would be a great way to read on the go. I also would like to own a GPS. I am getting tired of using Mapquest to find directions because it isn’t always easy to read a paper, while driving, and looking for unknown streets, especially at night. Thus, I feel owning a GPS would make finding new destinations much simpler.
The most technologically literate person that I know is my dad. He is a pastor of a large church, and one of his responsibilities is IT. He exhibits a lot of knowledge about computers and I remember seeing him take computers apart as he tried to figure out the problem and fix it. He has several laptops that he uses for various tasks. He has taught me that technology, as tools, may have some kinks every now and then, but they are extremely useful for many things.
I would say that when it comes to technology, I am in between an “early adopter” and a “late adopter”. I am not an “early adopter” because I’m not extremely knowledgeable about technology which causes me not to be very adventurous with technology. I am more cautious when I experiment with technology that I am unfamiliar with, because I don’t want to break it. I am not a “late adopter” because I am very willing to learn about new technologies and utilize them in my daily life. I enjoy learning new things about technology and when I am familiar with a piece of technology, I do enjoy experimenting with it to find new features that I didn’t previously know about. For these reasons, I identify more as in between “early adopter” and “late adopter”.
In the future, I feel that technology will be an even more integral part of our lives than it is today. I feel that technology will continue to get smaller and faster. I feel that it will continue to be utilized in the medical and other professional fields, as well as the lives of everyday Americans. I also feel that schools will adopt technology tools more in the classroom as a means to simplify life, engage the students, and differentiate instruction. One day I expect to see students using Kindles for their textbooks instead of carrying paper copies of the books around. I also predict that there will be more Smartboards, Itouches and maybe even Ipad-like tools utilized in classrooms. These changes will affect me as a teacher by giving me many different options for presenting information to students. The tools will also help me to create many interactive activities for students to experience as they learn content. I am excited to see the changes that will take place over the next ten years with regard to technology.
Kara Bryant (Part I)
ReplyDeleteAs a child, I was provided very few opportunities to gain experience using technology. I was the proud owner of a Nintendo 64, which I used to enjoy an occasional game of "Duck Hunt." In Elementary School, trips to the computer lab were included during "specials" once a week. In this class, we practiced basic skills such as; navigating, typing, and playing curriculum based computer games. We did not have a computer in my house until I was in middle school, which made the most popular "technological device" in my home the "Nano Babies" and the "Giga Pets" that my sister and I collected. In 5th-8th grade, my math instruction was computer based. At the time, I saw this as a positive experience, allowing me to move through the curriculum at my own pace. Once I began taking High School Math courses, I understood the negative impacts that a lack of involvement on the teachers behalf may have had on my ability to understand and retain important math concepts. In 9th-12th grade, our school was awarded a grant that allowed each student to be issued a laptop. Once again, I saw this as a positive experience at the time but, I now recognize the lack of effort on behalf of my teachers to incorporate the laptops into our curriculum effectively and I see the consequences of a lack of technological support and development within my county as a whole (we were still using dial-up off of school grounds).
Today, I notice that my technological literacy is constantly improving. Although the first laptop I owned had many faults, my second experience has been a much more positive one. The ability to connect wireless, independent exploration of various programs and websites, as well as assignments and mini-workshops through JMU have allowed me to gain a slightly more in depth understanding of the basic functions of today's computers and "cyber world." Other than my laptop, I own a Droid Smartphone from Verizon and and iPod touch. I did not purchase these items until last summer after moving to my home in Fairfax and I required extensive training from my roommates. I live with four boys who are absolutely obsessed with knowing how to use the most advanced technology and are always researching "the next up-and-coming gadget." They are the most technologically literate people that I know. Two of the boys have been employed at Best Buy. They have purchased and installed surround sound speakers throughout both levels of the house, a big screen/projector in our basement, they have connected our entire entertainment system wireless through their hard drives and, the newest addition, two Apple TVs. Each of the boys come equipped with an iPhone, one of them received an iPad for Christmas and has convinced the other three that "there is no better way."
I think that living with them has shown me that, regardless of the progress I have made and continue to make, I am still stuck in yesterdays progress. I have absolutely no idea about the most advanced products available on the market today and, if something doesn't change soon, there is very little hope for increasing my "technological literacy" relevant to the gadgets of the future. Over the summer, I learned about technology by listening to their conversations and asking for explanations and help. In comparison to these boys I am absolutely a "late adaptor." I became dependent on their abilities and knowledge regarding technology instead of recognizing the urgent need for a change. Now, back at school, I want to be able to use these devices effectively (I have some catching up to do) and push myself to stay up to date with the constant changes and improvements to technology.
Kara Bryant (Part II)
ReplyDeleteIf I had no access to technology there would be serious consequences relating to my education, my relationship, my friendships, and my life as a whole. I would consider my phone as the most significant technological device in my life today. My relationships with my family members and friends from grade school are very important. Without my phone, I may not have made the decision to come to JMU and, if I did, I am sure that the friendships that have remained strong throughout the past four years would have fizzled out before Christmas break in the fall of 2007. I have been in a long distance relationship for a year but, without my phone or the technological advancements that support our ability to Skype, it is not likely that we would have talked after the first night that we met. Technology plays a significant role in my education through websites like Blackboard, ecampus, JMU's web page as well as others that support my ability to locate credible information from the comfort of my apartment. Most often, I have used programs such as Microsoft Word and PowerPoint to create professional documents and presentations much more efficiently than traditional dictionaries and transparencies. I hadn't realized how lost I would be without these technologies until now.
I have absolutely no idea what I may be required to know ten years from now in order to be considered "technologically literate." I think that I may be too overwhelmed with the task of knowing what is available in today's technological market to even begin to consider future possibilities. What I do understand, based on observations of the rapid progress throughout the past few years, is the importance of catching up before I get left in the dust. The gadgets of tomorrow will probably include even more advanced touch screens/all touch devices. I think that they will continue to pack more and more processing capabilities and memory into smaller and smaller devices. Although the emphasis on touch screens and the decrease in the size of the gadgets may have benefits for many, I will miss the space and comfort provided by a full size laptop. Who knows?! Maybe ten (or less) years from now I will walk into a store, tell them everything I want or need from a computer and they will whip my perfect computer up like a fast food drive thru. Either way, I want to know whats coming and I want to be prepared to incorporate whatever it may be into my personal life as well as the lives of my future students.
My first memory with technology that strikes me is using an Apple II E computer. My father bought one when we were young. This is the computer that used the 5" floppy discs and the text was all green. My brother and I had this computer until I was in 4th grade. When we finally upgraded to a Compaq I was amazed at the difference. I remember before being exposed to other computers I always thought the Apple was the most awesome computer because we had games like Conan and Family Feud that we could play on it.
ReplyDeleteI moved many times throughout my childhood living in various states and countries. It was astonishing to me when I moved to Virginia in 8th grade how well equipped the schools were with technology. All the school districts I had lived in previously had few or no computers but in Virginia the school had multiple computer labs and most classrooms had computers. I had never been to a school like that and I was able to learn typing and other technological skills. It saddens me that many will not have that opportunity due to the geographical or economic situation in which they grow up. Technology is very important especially in post secondary education. We used technology everyday and the internet is essential for a college education now. Without access to the internet and technology one would not be able to successfully complete college. I believe that this is one of the many variables that plays into lower socioeconomic classes not being able to end the cycle of poverty. Not necessarily the access to technology but rather to various resources in general. Perhaps soon access to technology will be universal and it seems to be heading that way. However, there are still many that have to go to a public library for example just to get on the internet. We oftentimes take computers and the internet for granted and this is not the case for everyone.
I personally find new technologies very difficult. Whenever I have a new piece of technology my older brother who is very technologically savvy. I oftentimes even have trouble with cell phones and cameras. Whenever I have to set up something such as a wireless network or I have any problems with my laptop I give it to my brother to fix. He graduated with a degree in Computer Science and loves technology.I have learned a great deal from him and he often shares with me much of the new technology which is emerging. It is amazing to me how fast technology is expanding and I really do not know what to expect in the future except to know that it will likely be something that I cannot imagine now and amazing.