Technology and Social Responsibility

Students are more technically savvy than ever. Sometimes their technical knowledge is much more developed than their social consciousness. As an educator teaching computer technology to middle school students, I feel I have the responsibility of instilling a sense of accountability in their use of technology.

In the use of discussion posts and email communication for example, I've had students write things that they would never otherwise say to a person's face or discuss in the classroom. My reaction to that is to teach them that posting their thoughts in a discussion or email is a big responsibility that carries certain consequences if abused. They need to remember that real live beings may be affected by their writing.

Spring Semester 2008

I must say that the second semester of the COMET program has me more hyped than ever. It's exciting and a little daunting to explore these new resources on the Internet. It's exciting in the sense that, "Wow, I never knew that these existed." Daunting in the sense, "How can I practically apply these to fit my curriculum?" After feeling a bit overwhelmed, I remembered that the objective of Terri's course is to first teach us how to use the new resources and then apply them to our classroom. I just have to remember to do "one thing at a time." Okay, I'm off to explore. Until next time...