I was told
last week that hurricane Sandy was expected to arrive in New Jersey Monday
evening. However, it did not hit my city of Newark until Tuesday. However, my
transporter popped at about 2:00pm on Monday, October 29, 2012. So far, I have
been going almost three days without electricity. Initially, I felt that I
would be able to withstand going a day or two without technology. However,
after experiencing this, I now realize that it is very difficult to function,
for me anyway, without technology.
The lost of
my transporter has caused me to go without lights, heat, TV, phone, Internet,
computer etc… for three days so far. The only reason that I have access to the
Internet now is because I came to my cousin’s house. I could not stand without
being without technology any longer.
It’s crazy
how growing up on technology has caused us to become so dependent on it. Just think! If I did not have any
family and/or friends close by to me with electricity and access to the
Internet, how can I function? Would I be able to? I honestly do not think that
I would be able to! Fortunately, my father, whom was not raised on technology,
knew how to light the stove so that we can cook and to light the oven so that
we can get some type of heat.
This caused
me to think about the different pros and cons with technology. Being raised on
technology is good, being that we now have easy access to a lot of different
things such as microwaves, computers, heaters, air conditioners etc… it cause
us to depend on it. I feel that it will be better for us to not only learn the
different forms of technology but to not utilize or depend on it too much. I
feel this way because if we do become too dependent, when situations such as
Hurricane Sandy occurs, how will we be able to survive through it?
Like
mentioned in a previous blog post, I feel that having technology inside of the
classroom can serve as a positive, as well as a negative, depending on how it
is used and how much. I feel that if children make technology useful, and do
not over use it, it can be a great asset. However, it is definitely up to the
adults, especially us, as teachers, to make sure this takes place. Children
should be able to read, write, and do math with or without technology.
Hi Lorraine,
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you posted about Hurricane Sandy. One of the many things that a difficult time like this makes many of us realize is how dependent on technology we truly are.
I agree with what you said about how it's up to the adults, especially teachers, to make sure that children are not overly dependent on technology. It is definitely important for children to be able to do things on their own. I think many of us are guilty of relying on spelling and grammar check, calculators, and other computerized functions to perform simple tasks for us that we should be able to do ourselves. Sometimes I worry that technology makes us less smart, or at least more lazy!
i was browsing the internet about hurricane sandy and your blog popped up in my search engine. I am going to subscribe to your blog because you are an excellent writer. I am very dependent on technology. After my power went out in my house it was almost as if I couldnt survive without my tv, my phone, the internet, etc.. i mean what is there to possibly do? after this experience i learned how to survive without those things and it was a lesson that i will never forget. i hope all is well woth your family :-)
ReplyDeleteHi Lorraine,
ReplyDeleteYour post about hurricane Sandy has helped me to think that in spite of differences, people can be related somewhere.Your experience is not different from others.we all realize how our dependency on technology can paralyze our production and activity. It also makes me think about all those people around the world who live all their lives in darkness... Guess what, Sandy has taught us ,our society, -USA, a very powerful lesson which could be:" Be grateful for what we have... Everything is not granted... ". Yes,We survive... but this is one more reason to think careful about how we educate ourselves and students.Imagine that this situation has remained for 1 month, for example, How we would deal with students or school? It is very positive that this event drive us to reflection. Using our ability to think and reflect about things that happen to us cannot be more important than ever.