Classes in 18th century looked like this:
Our students have changed radically. Today’s students are no longer the people our educational system was designed to teach.
Today‟s average college grads have spent less than 5,000 hours of their lives reading, but over 10,000 hours playing video games (not to mention 20,000 hours watching TV). Computer games, email, the Internet, cell phones and instant messaging are integral parts of their lives.
If our students are digital natives what are we?
"Things Aren't What They Used to Be"
If you are under 20 you are a Digital Native
If you are over 20, no matter how tech savvy you are, you are a still a Digital Immigrant
If you are over 40 and have steadfastly avoided technology, you are a Digital Dinosaur
What happens if you are a dinosaur?
Stop making excuses and ponder these …
- Recognize that around 65% – 85% of students and parents DO HAVE ACCESS to computers and the Internet and acknowledge that TECHNOLOGY IS NOT JUST A FAD.
- Things are changing at an ever increasing rate and will continue to do so in the lives of today's children, so you need to be a role model for LIFE-LONG LEARNING AND FLEXIBLE THINKING or you risk becoming irrelevant.
- Consider where you'd be today if most people in the 20th Century refused to accept the automobile and kept using horse-drawn buggies just because a car seemed unnatural and complicated?
- If you worked in business or industry, you would NOT HAVE THE OPTION TO REFUSE to use new programs instituted by your employer, so why should teachers think they are exempt?
- Would you want to go to a doctor or surgeon who refused to use new cutting-edge innovations?
- Don't keep bragging about your unwillingness to try new technology because YOU KNOW WHAT HAPPENED OVER 65 MILLION YEARS AGO TO DINOSAURS WHO COULDN'T ADAPT!
- Thank your lucky stars that according to modern research in neuroscience, your BRAIN DOES NOT STOP making new connections when you are six years old!
- Remember that you are still the teacher, and even though you may not be as adept at computers as some of your students, you are the expert in your content. You only have to learn enough tech tricks to engage your students' attention. Then they'll be motivated to learn subject content from you, and they can teach you the tech tools!
- According to Jack Lemmon, "FAILURE SELDOM STOPS YOU. WHAT STOPS YOU IS FEAR OF FAILURE."
- You CAN LEARN to use these tools, but the longer you ignore them, the more skills and knowledge you will have to catch up with – so don’t waste any more time ignoring them – START LEARNING!
- TRANSLATION - OLD DOGS DINOSAURS CAN LEARN NEW TRICKS
for more information visit these websites:
http://www.frontiernet.net/~techlady/immigrants.html#dinosaur
http://www.marcprensky.com/writing/prensky%20-%20digital%20natives,%20digital%20immigrants%20-%20part1.pdf
http://www.marcprensky.com/writing/
