Generational Differences

In rereading the readings for this discussion I reflected on my own interactions with technology and that of my students interactions with technology.
I was born in the early 80's and my father being a software engineer believed strongly in always having a computer in the home. My siblings and I say that we were raised on Apple products. Though we had games and software that would help us with math facts, teach us typing or how to plan for a wagon trip across the plains I was forced to learn how to use the basic suite software (word, excel, powerpoint) at school. I struggled with the differences between a Mac and a PC and spent a lot of time trying to reconcile those differences. My father's insentience of learning computer skills instilled in me the desire to work hard to understand technology.
I worked for 5 years as a ELL (English Language Learner) assistant and one thing we would do every year was work with refugees who didn't have any technology at home. One group we worked with would donate computers to the students who needed them in their homes and as we worked with these families we quickly realized that these computers did no good to families who had no access to the internet. The teacher I worked with would scrounge up software for the families to install and use in the hopes that the computers would have some educational benefit. Looking at my classes now, many of them still do not have personal computers in their homes. However, almost all of my students have access to a tablet or smartphone that has internet capabilities. I have found that similar to my experience, students in my classes need to be taught how to use technology in a classroom setting. Many students need to be taught how to do research and how to look for reliable sources for their research.
I believe that as educators it is our job to help the digital natives understand and develop new ways to access information and use technology to further their education. This last year I gave some of my 2nd graders the opportunity to ask a question they did not know the answer to and do research to find the answer. They were asked to present the information they had researched in a Prezi. When the students presented their information I was amazed at the interest and excitement the rest of the class had for the topics researched. It was a great experiment for me to let loose on the way I usually teach and see how the students were able to use the technology to further their understand. I believe that as teachers push themselves to become more and more fluent students will become more and more engaged in what we are teaching.
One more example, this last weekend I was in a wedding and the bride asked me to edit and cut some music for her. When one of the other bridesmaids asked me, with an astonished look on her face how I had done it, I simply stated that I knew it was possible so I googled it and did it. I think that is the beauty of technology and the internet. It makes the seemingly impossible, possible.