Blog Post 10: Surveys, Classmates, and Continuing in Tech

    Growing up I did not use Microsoft Word much because I never really had to use it, nor did I have it. When I was in elementary and middle school, we were still transitioning to full-fledged computer usage and learning so assignments were mainly written and standardized tests were on paper. It was not until eighth grade where my middle school gave us each school Outlooks and Office 365 accounts where we could download the programs of the Microsoft Suite for free. This happened around the time where teachers started assigning more work that had to be done on the computer or with a word processor, so it became a useful resource. Unfortunately, I was too lazy to remember my school Outlook username and download Word onto my computer, so I used Google Docs which my brother introduced me to. Google Documents is cloud-based, so I could also access and edit documents from any device online. I found out eventually that with o]Office 365 you have access to an internet version of Microsoft Word where you can also edit documents, but I was already very accustomed to Google Docs so I kept using it. When I got to my senior year of High School and in college, assignments started to get more difficult and specific in terms of formatting, so I finally downloaded Microsoft Word and used it more often. For instance, in an AP Literature class project, we had to annotate a poet's poem with footnotes and we had to create a biography report about the poem formatted in different columns. All of this was hard to do in Google Docs because it has fewer features than Microsoft Word, therefore I used Microsoft Word and was able to finish everything easily. As papers started requiring more specific formatting I drifted away from Google Docs and more towards MS Word, and now that is basically what I use to write academic papers. I only use Google Docs to plan discussion posts and to do small assignments because having a separate tab open, as opposed to a totally different window, is easier to toggle between. There are other times where Google Docs does come in handy, for example, I do not have to worry about saving because it saves automatically. Also, you do not have to go through the hassle of finding a place in your computer to save the file to because it will just save it into the cloud automatically. 

    In the article detailing the International Society for Technology in Education and their standards, there are many meaningful ones discussed, but among them, the one that stuck out to me the most was about design. It states that technology should be used to create personalized learning experiences that allow for genuine and active learning of the course material. This is super important because as school activities transfer to a virtual space oftentimes, they are not taking advantage of the ways technology can help improve the learning experience. It does not really work if technology is seen as just a virtual replica of paper because technology can open opportunities in the world of learning that have never been able to be done before. This happened in school a lot where some class activities that were meant to be virtual would have been exactly the same had they been done on paper. Therefore, the design standards for creating personalized learning experiences and allowing for active learning great because it details how important it is to look for the nuances that come with using technology to learn and take advantage of them. Another way in which this standard is important is because it details the need for a nice-looking interface that is easy to navigate. It is not seen as much anymore, but some of the times we used technology in school it was to use old programs or programs that had a poor interface and were hard to navigate. Not only is it displeasing to the eye, but it makes it difficult for everyone because teachers have to take extra time to understand the interface and make sure that every student understands how to use the bad interface. This happened when my school was transferring to online standardized testing. We had to take class days and dedicate them to ensuring we understood the interface, which is normal, but everyone ended up taking longer than that because the new format was designed in a way that made it harder to write answers and toggle between parts of the test. On top of all of this, if an interface does not look good, then a student will probably not feel compelled to pay attention to it or might just prefer to use traditional means of learning. With technology, students can have personalized learning with instant feedback and resources, this enhances the student's learning experience and ensures they understand the material, so having a standard that requires learning programs to be designed with things like this to happen is really cool. It's not like there should be state-of-the-art designs going into virtual learning programs, but there should at least be a little bit of thought put into ensuring it looks good and can allow for maximum learning opportunities. 

    Mark Prensky defines the term "digital native" as someone who was born in the age of technology and was raised using it. This implies that "digital natives" naturally understand modern technology as opposed to "digital immigrants" who might have a harder time because they were born before modern advances of technology and therefore have to adapt to it. This becomes an interesting topic of discussion because we are at a turning point of technological advancement so there are still a lot of "digital immigrants" and they are the ones teaching the new "digital natives" so there is a small barrier in the understanding of technology. I think the terms are pretty good descriptors, but they are kind of general. Like, defining our whole young generation as "digital natives" can work because of where we lie in terms of technological access relative to prior generations. But pointing at a young person and calling them a "digital native" and assuming they know everything about technology and hate to read is not very good. I personally would classify as a "digital native" because I had the privilege to be raised with access to technology, and as new technological advances arise I can understand them pretty well due to my prior knowledge of how technology works. I would classify my parents as "digital immigrants" but they are pretty open to technological advancements, though I can see how understanding modern technology can be difficult for them since they weren't raised with it. They often express how hard or annoying using technology can be, but some aspects of modern technology come from older technology so it's not totally difficult. For instance, my mother types really fast since she had a typewriter when she was younger, and saving files is pretty easy because the icon for saving documents resembles a disc which a lot of "digital immigrants" are familiar with. There are examples where our contrasts are highlighted though, I remember one time my parents thought their computer was broken because there was a loading screen with a progress bar that did not have the word, "loading" written on it. I knew instantly that the program they were trying to use was just loading up because I always knew what loading bars looked like and what they meant without there having to be a disclaimer saying, "Loading...". This is also seen in school too. It is usually older teachers who will fit the description of a traditional "digital immigrant" the most, but honestly, some of the older teachers I had were open to learning how to use technology, and some of the younger teachers I had preferred traditional learning methods. So, I guess it really comes down to how eager you are to accept modern ways even if they may deviate from what you are used to, as well as the resources you and your students may have available. When I had a class with a teacher who could be considered a "digital immigrant", they were usually the ones who would print out huge packets to give each student, and take thirty minutes at the beginning of class trying to understand whatever new technology the school placed in their classroom. This would confuse everyone because all of these technologies that were created to benefit learning and cater to the new digital age were never able to be used for what they were supposed to. Unfortunately, teachers were not trained to use them, and even if they were designed to be understood by a "digital native" as well as help them learn, they were never able to use them. With this in mind, and how rapidly technology has been advancing, maybe when I am a teacher I will be a "digital immigrant" myself. My hope is that, since technology evolves, it won't change much from what it is now, or that I am at least able to quickly understand the technologies that emerge from what I am being raised with. Hopefully, I am also able to take advantage of resources available to try to be in the same wave-length in terms of technical know-how as my students.