What would Grandma think of Educational Technology Today?

So sometimes it is hard to imagine that only about 100 years ago we as humans first took to flight successfully. I am sure we took to the air before that, however, I would guess most often unsuccessfully at staying airborne. Probably it was a hard lesson to learn. It’s amazing to think that my grandmother saw the world go from horse and buggy to a man walking on the moon in her lifetime.  She was a wonderful person, one of the first women executives in her time and a staunch supporter of education. I wonder what she would think of our world today, with the rapid pace of technological advancement, especially in the classroom.

She might have reminded me that cavemen tens of thousands of years ago invented technology to teach when they drew in the dirt or painted on cave walls. I know she would have told me that she was part of the first generation to have radio in the classroom to hear world events. Then in her inimitable style, she would talk about how the arts were promulgated through technology such as filmstrips, movies and finally television in the classroom.

The odds are we would have had this conversation around the dinner table, so at this point my mom would chirp in with “let’s not forget the computer.”  She would most likely remind me that technology in the classroom has changed our society and created students capable of doing more at a younger age. I guess at this point, not to be outdone by my family I would have to remind them of what the internet has done to connect us to one another. Maybe even how the cellular technology paired with smart phones and services like Twitter and Facebook in the hands of students have now changed the very fabric of politics and even been responsible for political change.

Of course at this point over coffee, we would be discussing whether the iPad is better than a Nook or Kindle and if we really need all of this technology such as smartphones and high speed internet in the classroom. Who would want to be plugged in 24/7 my grandmother would argue. Of course it’s not about being plugged in 24/7 it’s about being able to be plugged in whenever we want to be plugged in.

In the end I imagine my grandmother, a huge science fiction fan, would look at me across the table, lift her cup of coffee and in a mock salute say “Technology —It’s wonderful”

          To see the timeline of technology in education see the video below
Presented by SMART the makers of the Smart Boards.