ISTE Standards and Digital Natives

    In high school, and even middle school, MS Word was the go to. I used it a lot at home on my moms computer growing up. In middle school we had computer class for a few weeks every year and we would do little certification assignments on Word, and Powerpoint. We took a year long computer class in my sophomore year and that's where we really learned about Word. I confess that some of the lessons in Word were not that useful and I forgot most of them. I never really used any other application until college, and it is still the one that I reach for out of familiarity. I do, however, like how easy it is to share and collaborate on Google Docs. I could probably learn how to better use Docs if I ever had the need to.

    The ISTE standard that is most meaningful to me is the Citizen standard. Because the internet is a relatively new tool, it is a new place to have to learn how to act. It is important to model what is appropriate to do and what is not on the internet. Embodying this standard will create better and more respectful internet users. It has become another place to interact, and it can either be used for good, to create a sense of community in people who are geographically far apart, or for bad. The bad involves things like cyberbullying and posting or consuming inaccurate information. Not only should we model how to be nice to others on the internet, but it is also imperative to teach what good sources of information look like. All of the ISTE standards are important, but the foundation of technology standards should be learning how to behave in this new space. 

    I agree with calling the newer generations "digital natives". Digital natives are people who have grown up with technology. I do not remember a time when information about any and everything was inaccessible. Technology has always played a role in my life and especially in my education. I have seen a difference in how I use technology and how some of my teachers use technology. I remember a time when we did not have digital grade books and that I learned how to navigate them easier than my parents. Eventually, my high school invested in smart boards, that really showed me just how little my teachers knew about technology. Most if them simply used it like a normal whiteboard, however a few figured out all the perks and used them daily. Some teachers let us play around with them and show them the new and useful features we found.