Though I attended school in a more rural community than many, I do remember utilizing computers within the classroom at an early age. During my elementary years there were at least two computers in each classroom, but they were mostly used for games and quick assignments. By fourth grade we were utilizing what was called the "Computer Bus," which was a converted mobile home that housed approximately 25 basic computers for typing practice and basic assignments. This allowed us to use the computers for a purpose instead of just for the sake of using them.
Moving through the years, computers were used more frequently within the Tecumseh School District. This went from being used once a week in elementary to being utilized daily in high school. Because of this, my formal education would have been entirely different had computers been obsolete or not present. I would not have been able to complete reports as quickly as I could with computers, mostly on the fact that the new digital world allowed for quicker and easier access to the information that was needed.
At the household level, I remember my father bringing home a computer to our house from his work when I was in elementary school. This was a basic computer that required command prompts and floppy disks to function, but I remember being thrilled to get on and try things out. By the end of elementary and the beginning of middle school, a new desktop was purchased and we were officially online. This allowed me to get involved in after school activities working on creating a web page to become more familiar. The first time I was connected online I remember being shown Yahoo! by my father and searched for information on some of my favorite sporting teams and players. Eventually as I grew older I would utilize the web for social aspects, research, and exploration to new ideas. The computer would be used for academic purposes most frequently in my high school years, whereas it had been used for Napster, MSN messenger, and games up until then.
Computers have been an important part of my education and growth for the the better part of my career as a student. Programs that I remember growing up using such as Mavis Beacon Teaches Typing, Napster, MSN Messenger, and others have in essence become obsolete to the new generation of technology. As I finish up my college career I have realized that programs and websites have become both more important (Facebook) and completely unused (Limewire). Technology is ever changing, and I have been able to recognize this throughout my experiences. Because of this, it is safe to say that our future is in fact, limitless.
I remember using Mavis Beacon in school for typing exercises too. It is amazing how much more computers are being used in schools today than when we were in elementary school. The school that I graduated from now gives every student a mini laptop that they use in almost all of their classes.
ReplyDeleteThis makes me wonder if your typing software had the same fatal flaw as the one I worked on. Was it easy to get around doing the assignments or had that option been corrected when you used it? When were you using the software? I ask to see how long it took companies to improve their software for schools.
ReplyDeleteI went to high school at Addison, which is close and similar to Tecumseh, so I think we probably used a lot of the same computer programs. I thought the comment about your dad showing you Yahoo! was interesting because I remember my dad showing me "Ask Jeeves" when we got our first computer, and now neither one of those are as popular as they used to be.
ReplyDeleteMSN Messenger... do people still use that? You know, now that I think about it, I don't really know many people that still use IM programs aside from Skype. I guess there's no point anymore with Facebook and GMail chat. Supposedly with Google+ we'll be able to do group video chats, which would be... interesting to see how well it works. And now that so many people use Torrents and things like that, it seems like Limewire has became more or less obsolete. I wonder how long it will be til Facebook is obsolete...
ReplyDeleteElly, I agree. I can't believe that a district like Zeeland just received 2000 iPad's and just over a decade ago my district was sharing a computer bus.
ReplyDeleteJason, I honestly don't remember being able to get around the assignments, so the flaw may have been fixed. We were utilizing it in my elementary school and up to 5th grade if I remember correctly.
Kaitlynn, glad to know there is someone from our neck of the woods. I remember utilizing Ask Jeeves as well in school and I don't think I've even thought about using that site until you mentioned it.
Pat, you are completely right. Even coming into college I made sure I had an AIM messenger to connect with everyone on campus who had one, yet Facebook Chat made that obsolete. As for Google+, I feel it is too much like Facebook for it to be significant, and Skype/Oovoo allow that feature already if I am not mistaken. Facebook may stick around longer then we think, but I also would not be surprised if the world power known as Google has something to say about that.