Topic 2

COMMENTARY

I used to have a life, then I got a computer!

As taken from :http://www.alloneliners.com/oneliners/computer-one-liners/page/4/

MYTH 1: Technology is anti-social

There are many accepted notions about technology in education that are actually
myths. The one-liner featured above represents the widely accepted notion that technology is
an anti-social tool that has less social value than other more obviously collaborative activities
(such as outdoor play).
I believe that this is a myth and with good training students can use tech effectively in a
range of activities that actually enhance the learning experience and provide them with
opportunities to collaborate with people beyond the walls of their individual schools.
Immediately tools such as Google Apps for Education (GAFE) spring to mind and anyone who
has used these tools in education knows that the opportunity to communicate and collaborate
with groups of people at any given time and any location and has indeed revolutionized the
way we look at planning and working on documents. Now, instead of writing a story alone at a
desk, students may pair with another classroom and edit and rework texts or work on
slideshows together using commenting features or embedded chat to discuss and develop
ideas.
Nowadays, students readily share documents with other students in classrooms around
the world who might be working on similar topics. They often share music playlists, make
videos, commercials, and podcasts to share with each other and post these on Youtube. This
flattening of the classroom (Lindsay, 2015) means that collaboration is a given and students
know experts are only a click away. Skype in the classroom meant my students in South
America, most who never had seen a black person before got to meet children across the
world in Africa and make friendships where never before possible. The discussions that
resulted from these interactions were priceless.
Social media has indeed invaded our lives and as Nicholas Negroponte asserts
"Computing is not about computers any more. It is about living." As such, school Facebook

pages, Twitter feeds, Whatsapp groups and classroom blogs become the expected standard
for most schools. This interaction provides parents with an opportunity for deeper involvement
in their childs education and provides a window into the school and classroom like never
before. How the Computer has changed American cultures article highlights this paradox
asserting, it will be quite strange if we become more of a global village, but never leave our
homes. School is changing and social networking makes learning and accessing digital tools
to facilitate learning available to the student at all hours of the day and all over the world. For
many of the students of the 21st Century and indeed myself it is true (to some degree) that
home is where the computer is plugged in.
Myth 2:
The myth that children are digital natives was supposedly debunked in Seven Myths
about Young children and Technology Lydia Plowman & Joanna McPake (p.2). Firstly I think
that the meaning of this term may be misunderstood by most people. My experience using
technology with young children has been they are able to pick up tech tools at a rate that is
well beyond that of the ability of most adult immigrants. I do not believe young children need
explicit teaching in relationship to technology. Only last week I was in a kindergarten class
marveling at these students ability to take a new tool and create with it. In the same way
learning technology is learning like a language, a child is not born speaking but watches and
mimics, so too a young child when presented with the tool if allowed to explore freely is able to
(on a well designed platform) to teach themselves a range of skills. Adults become more
inhibited as they are schooled into the notion that mistakes are bad and risks are dangerous
things. These ideas which are perpetuated in a traditional schooling environment and often
inhibit the development of learners.

REFERENCES

All oneliners- a collection of the best oneliners. (2015). Computer one liners. Retrieved from:
http://www.alloneliners.com/oneliners/computer-one-liners/page/4/
Edtech Times, (2013). 30 elearning myths that need to die in 2013. As retrieved from:
http://www.google.com/url?q=http%3A%2F%2Fedtechtimes.com%2F2013%2F04%2F0
4%2F30-elearning-myths-that-need-to-die-in2013%2F&sa=D&sntz=1&usg=AFQjCNHQKJ816MczkxPealGpjHQ6tiKAsQ
Hertz, M., 3 edtech myths. Retrieved from: http://www.edutopia.org/blog/3-edtech-myths-marybeth-hertz
Lindsay, J. (2015). Flat connections, connect, collaborate and change. Retrieved at
http://www.flatconnections.com/flat-professional-development.html
Plowman, L. (2013). 2013 Seven myths about young children and technology. Retrieved
from: http://www.academia.edu/1899143/2013._Seven_myths_about_young_children_a
nd_technology
Southwest Educational Development Laboratory (1999). Building on Technologys promise:
computers and constructivism. Retrieved from http://www.sedl.org/pubs/tec26/cnc.html
Srivastava, S. (Jan.8, 2013). Advantages and disadvantages of computer networks. Retrieved
from: http://www.buzzle.com/articles/advantages-and-disadvantages-of-computernetworks.html