Journal 1

As time has progressed and technology has continuously improved there have been discussions about the use of technology in the classroom. Most believe that technology offers undeniable benefits in the classroom that can not be overlooked. A lot of teachers have decided to incorporate educational technology in their classroom in order to encourage independent learning within their students. Many students already have technological devices in their possession and these devices have the answers to almost any question they could ask. With the guidance of a teacher they could be put to use in order to facilitate the best learning experience possible.

I believe that standard 6 of the ISTE Standards for Educators is the most important because it states that the educator should help their students take control of their own learning while also creating learning opportunities for them. This is important for educators to do because feeding students the information will not help them comprehend and recall it in the long run. By making sure that the students are learning while also being avid in finding the answers that they need, the educator is building an independent and confident student. The standard also says that educators should "model and nurture creativity." This is important because encouraging students to be creativity will help them become better problem solvers in the future.

The term digital native in my opinion is kind of useless. Of course there are generations of children who have grown up using technology so they can navigate the basics from an earlier age but it does not mean that they necessarily understand how or why technology works. Most people who have advanced and built new technologies are from a generation that did not grow up using technology at all. Anyone can learn how to use it so I do not think that the term "digital native" should really be used when addressing people and their understanding of technology. Navigating basic systems can be done at any age and is a learned behavior. Between me and my teachers there has not been a major difference in the way that we use technology that I have noticed. They might honestly have had more knowledge on some technology than I have. If I were to be an educator I am sure that my students would be confident when using new technologies but as an adult I would have the same or even more access to that same technology so it would not be necessarily foreign if I put in the effort to learn it as they have.