digital natives!!

As a child born in the early 1980s, I would consider myself a “digital native”.  My first exposure in the digital world was in the form of Oregon Trail, Number Munchers and Turtle in 3^rd grade with the 5” floppy disks (circa. 1990).  I felt like one of the students described in Engage Me or Enrage Me in the fact that “I [couldn’t] wait to get to class” and learn more (p.1).  I was able to use a computer and learn math while playing Number Munchers, which felt more like a video game than an educational tool!  Looking back, I feel very privileged to have had a computer lab in my elementary school so early in my education.  I grew up in a small farm town in western Wisconsin and remember chatting with my cousins who went to school in the “big town” next door, in which they DIDN’T have a computer lab!  Since then, I’ve always had computers at my fingertips while in school.  My family also invested in a Tandy computer later on in my middle school years along with the original Nintendo (plus power pad)!

As a high school student (1995-1999) I saw a lot of technological leaps.  I remember when the library’s catalog went from paper to digital – how cool!  Disk drives went from 5” to 3 ½” to CD.  I find it funny when I ask younger generations if they know what the original ‘floppy disk’ looks like.  Printers also changed from the old school ‘dot printers’ to the more modern ‘laser printers’.  As an undergraduate college student (1999-2004) I also saw a lot of change with computers, but it was more in the sense of operating systems, speed and storage.  As far game systems are considered during my education years, I grew up with the original Nintendo to the PlayStation 2 and everything in between!  Still to this day, Super Mario 1 is my favorite.  The bottom-line being that it was highly influential in my learning experience.  For example, my spelling is absolutely terrible – and I’m SO thankful for spell checkers!!!

As an environmental educator, I’ve been able to use digital microscopes that project up on the screen that allows all students to benefit.  Also, using Microsoft programs such as Word, PowerPoint and Excel to enhance my lessons, workshops and research.  Not to mention building a website to increase outreach programs.

After reading all the articles, it was brought to my attention how it’s important to integrate technology into the classroom and curriculum.  Keeping up with technology will be a huge challenge, but in order to keep the students engaged and excited, it needs to be crucial.  As stated in Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants, “They [students] have spent their entire lives surrounded by and using computers, videogames, digital music players, video cams, cell phones, and all the other toys and tools of the digital age” (p.1).  Technology is an easy way to connect the generational gap.  As teachers, we’ll need to educate ourselves via tech classes and peers because technology is not going to go backwards or become stale, it’s only going to get ‘better’.  Much like technology, students are “highly unlikely […] to go backwards” (Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants, p. 3).  We need to be up-to-date and willing to use technology everyday in our classrooms.  If we don’t have the newest technology, we need to find grants or other funds in order to enhance our classrooms!