Digital Badge #A - Chapter 1

  In recent times, most families have various forms of technology in their homes. These families most likely have at least a single computer and probably more than one TV per household. The advances in technology have really made an impact on children, therefore giving them "digital childhoods"(Maloy, Verock-O'Loughlin, Edwards, Woolf, 2013, p. 3). Watching TV has been a regular activity for kids for quite some time now. Networks like Nickelodeon and Disney Channel have TV shows to help kids develop useful skills. Nick JR which broadcasts in the morning on weekdays has shows like Blue's Clues and Dora the Explorer for younger viewers. When I was younger my first language was Spanish, but the more I viewed English television the more prepared I was to enter Kindergarten speaking fluent English. Although watching Dora explore unfamiliar lands with her sidekick "Boots" was fun, is it more helpful to learn from the TV or by being taught from a parent or a guardian? Would learning and education mean more to a child if it were embedded into them by someone close to them?
 The video shown below talks about parent's involvement in their child's development and how TV and current technology could harm their development.

  The idea of a Technology-Based Library sounds fun, and helpful. It is incredible to know that there are databases out there on any subject I would ever require as an educator. The issue of "harmful information" that was stated in the book still stands. Not all information on the internet is reliable and teachers will need to use other online tools and resources to assess the information given (Maloy, Verock-O'Loughlin, Edwards, Woolf, 2013, p. 8). False information is not the only problem with receiving information or lesson plans from the online libraries. In high school many teachers handed out worksheets printed off of the internet. This led to students searching the exact name of the worksheet and finding the corresponding answers to the questions given to them on said worksheets. Some students were caught and others walked away free, BUT this still affected the class negatively and caused the teachers to believe that the students are understanding. This was the students' way of going around learning to just get a decent grade.
  One thing I did notice while being a middle school and high school student, is that in certain classes the access to technology is required and some students do not have that access. The completion of some assignments or tasks that are being asked of them can be nearly impossible. Lower income families are not able to connect to high speed internet access, giving us a "digital divide" (Maloy, Verock-O'Loughlin, Edwards, Woolf, 2013, p. 4). I struggled to complete various tasks teachers asked of me because of the lack of technological resources in my home at the time. Schools and their teachers should show their students their different resources available (like the school library or public library) to help those students who aren't so technologically advanced due to their income. The link below gives a more indepth look at the digital divide involving low income families.
Digital Responsibilty

Maloy, R. W., Verock-O'Loughlin, R., Edwards, S. A., & Woolf, B. P. (2013). Transforming Learning With New Technologies (2nd ed.). Pearson College Div.