Does Everyone Need to Understand Technology?

I found this response by CoolCat teacher today. http://coolcatteacher.blogspot.com/2011/07/does-everyone-need-to-understand.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+CoolCatTeacherBlog+%28Cool+Cat+Teacher+Blog%29&utm_content=Google+Reader

Her blog discussed a judge who was in the position to make a decision about Wi-fi and came to the conclusion that Wi-fi was not a radio communication, by definition of the law given to him. I moved passed the absurdity of the law and focused on the points made by Vickie Davis (CoolCat teacher). She made some interesting observations about the state of technological literacy.

She makes a strong case for the responsibility of educators to make sure students have a reasonable level of technology to function in the world. For me, this need to go beyond knowing how to text and post a picture on Facebook. These are merely activities that are processes, follow the directions and one can do it. The social responsibility and manners of conduct need to be instilled in students from the beginning.

I get very discouraged when parents brag that their young child knows more about technology than they do. A parent is setting themselves up for problems later. If for nothing more than the ability to maintain a conversation with your child and understand what goes on in his or her world, understand technology. Ask someone. When I first started back at school, I traded music lessons for computer lesson with a friend of my daughter. I knew when I was over my head and she was happy to get free lessons.

One last point, CoolCat Teacher makes is that "those who have labeled such things "geek" and put them in a box that shall only be opened by those social misfits who dare not show their face at Friday night's football game- are doing their schools, families, and friends a disservice. It is time to stop talking "geek" and just talk about things we need to know. We didn't call a person who liked to fix cars a geek when that revolution happened. They were welcomed as people who brought benefit to us all." (2011)


This really says it all. I often wonder if this whole "geek" thing got started because people really felt unable to keep up with technological changes and felt powerless. So instead of admitting that one needs help and feeling less of a person, one decides to make fun of someone who took the time to figure it out (and actually enjoys it). But didn't they end up asking for help and paying for that help in the end? Go figure!


Kindest regards,
Anne