Interactivity #1

Technology has become a predominant tool and resource in modern society, particularly in the field of education. Most educators have become actively engaged with technology within the classroom setting and tend to heavily incorporate it to enhance student learning. The video featuring Olivia put the use of technology for  educational purposes in a new light for me. I am so accustomed to having easy access to a computer, cell phone, and the like that I am embarrassed to say I oftentimes forget to remember that others do not necessarily have this ease of access. As a teacher, it is very important for me to be aware of my students’ access to and exposure to technology so that I can ensure that I am not assigning work to students that they do not have the means to complete. In the case of Olivia, she did not have a computer and did not always have a cell phone so she had to be resourceful when it came to tracking down access to technology. Furthermore, when she did have access to these products, they were used mostly for social purposes such as MySpace or Email.

 Similarly, the students featured in the second video  used technology such as laptops, iPods, and twitter for social purposes and for their hobbies such as making music, learning languages, social networking, gaming coordinating, etc. As a teacher I must be aware of this because if my students are only using computers for more social purposes, I need to be mindful that they may not be familiar with the various functions of Microsoft Office and other programs that I may request them to use for class. Thus, I may need to demonstrate these programs to them and instruct them on how to use them at a computer lab at school. Likewise, if I am aware that many of my students lack access to a computer, I may need to provide time during class for them to access computers available within the school.

Over the past ten or so years, I feel that I have become increasingly connected to all forms of technology, but I am most notably connected to my cell phone, facebook, and email. In many ways these technologies have benefitted my life by allowing me to be constantly connected with my friends, sorority sisters, family, classmates, professors, and acquaintances with great ease. I feel that having my cell phone has made it easier to  reach others via call and text, my facebook has made it easier for me to communicate with groups of people through group messaging, and my email has provided me a more professional means of contacting others. Unfortunately, while these technologies have benefited me they have also negatively impacted me because I feel that I do not engage in as much face to face interaction as I previously would have and as a result feel that my communication skills are not as well developed as they otherwise would be.

I feel that my cell phone, facebook, and email have provided me fast access to new information in terms of what is going on in the world as well as the lives of my friends. With a quick text or call I am aware of any major occurrences in my friends life, any major problems that may have come up at home, and cancelations of classes or the university, and the like. Similarly, I feel that through Facebook I constantly learn new information from people’s status updates. For instance, I often find out who recently won the football game, if someone famous passed away, or if another major event occurred based on my newsfeed. Email likewise has provided me ease of access to new information from my employers, professors, and classmates.

My use of my cell phone, facebook and email is very similar to that of the young people from the two videos because for the most part I, like them, use these technologies for social means as well as for my personal interests to listen to music, to tweet, and play games occasionally. I feel that the major difference between my use and their use however is that I primarily use these technologies for professional and educational purposes such as contacting professors, peers, and employers or for classes to access blackboard or other course materials, rather than social purposes like the young people in the videos.