Interactivity #1: Technology Autobiography

The three most influential communication technologies in my life are my cell phone, iPad, and my laptop. Like the kids in the two videos, I am obsessed and do not go anywhere without my cell phone. If I happen to forget it one day, I feel like my right arm is missing. My cell phone is a great device for academic reasons as well as for personal and recreational. Just a few hours ago, I called to set up an observation meeting for one of my classes. In this case, making these phone calls helps me with my professionalism when I talk to people who have control over my future career, as well as authority figures that demand respect.

Oddly enough, my iPad is a great device for my education as well as for my own personal use. Whenever my grandmother would see me on my iPad, she would look at me and ask, “What can you possibly do with that thing that you can’t do with your computer?” Well, the answer I gave her can be summed up in one word: Applications, or Apps.

Now of course I have the apps provided with the iPad, along with Skee Ball, “DrawSomething”, “SongPop”, and Netflix, but I also have some educational apps as well. I have my Nook app because I love to read all of the time; that is, when I am not bombarded with schoolwork and my job. Reading is a very important part of my life, not just because I am an English Education major, but because of the influence it has had on my imagination, creativity, and not to mention my current extensive vocabulary. Whenever I can, I read anything from Pride & Prejudice to one of the books in the Harry Potter series. I also have a King Henry VIII App—yes, that exists—don’t tell your professors or they might make you get it. But for me, it’s perfect and valuable because I study that time period recreationally due to my love for Elizabethan literature, specifically Shakespeare. Of course, I have the ever so helpful and informative Blackboard App. It has everything that a student could get on their computer. Even better than that, students can access documents and PDFs that their professors post on Blackboard. And apparently, professors can tell when their students go on the website. According to one of my professors, when she posted an article for us to read, she was able to identify who did not read it (is that really true? I think that’s a myth).  So, despite my grandmother’s objections, my iPad is a great form of technology that can be used very differently from my laptop.

While my iPad is very influential and convenient for me to have, my laptop is just as good. While my iPad can access the Internet, email, and Blackboard, I couldn’t possibly write a paper on it. Writing papers is a huge part of my major, especially when I am aware that I will be assigning the same kind of assignments to my students when I start teaching.

“Olivia’s Story” really made me think even more about the benefits and importance of technology, not just for teens’ schooling, but also for their own lives. Olivia was able to teach her “big sister” all about texting and MySpace, something that most students Olivia’s age have mastery in. Because of this new need for technological resources, students are motivated more to do their schoolwork because it becomes familiar, and even fun. In the video with the students from the Technology High Schools, it was clear they understood more than anyone how technology not only is familiar to them, but also improves their educational endeavors. It helps them think in new and creative ways, and also helps them with communication and teamwork skills that will help them in school and in their future careers. Even the young girl who made the websites already had a firm grasp on the uses of technology, and how it will help her with her academic career.

While technology is a great tool for students, it can also be a little bit dangerous to use too much of it, at least without teacher supervision. They can get too caught up in those social networking sites when they need to be doing an assignment for class or for homework. As was said in “Olivia’s Story”, even though a student may not have access to a computer at home, there are always ways to use one. All in all, in the future, technology will be a tremendous part of the education system, and while it will be beneficial for students, it should be used for academic purposes only in school, saving their Tweets and Facebook statuses for home.