I'd like to take this opportunity to wish all members of the Memorial School Community a happy and healthy 2012!
As we begin the new year, I find myself thinking about the many changes I have seen in education during the twenty years that I have been in the profession, as well as in the world in general. I remember asking my grandmother on her eightieth birthday how it felt to be that old. It has been 24 years since that day, but I remember her response as if it were yesterday. "Deb", she said, "I think about what I have done and all that I have seen in my life and realize that no one could have done it any faster. I have to be 80 years old." As time has passed, her words have become clearer and more meaningful.
Recently, I was reminiscing with my husband about "technology", as we have known it through the years. We laughed about the key punch cards that we had to generate in order to run our program (which did little more than alphabetize a list of names) on a computer which was as big as a good sized room. We also chuckled about the mobile telephones which weighed about 7 pounds and had to be kept in a bag which was tethered to the antennae on your car. He reminded me that when he was out of range, I had to call a special number in order to reach him. We thought we were so "cutting edge".
I share these thoughts with you because I believe that in order for us to be successful in the future, we must learn from the past. I think of the many innovations that have become common place since this year's graduating class were members of the kindergarten class and have to ask myself what our current kindergarten students will be using for technology when they are members of the graduating class. How do we as educators prepare them for the use of innovations that have not yet been developed? The thought of staying current in a world that changes so quickly is both exciting and unsettling. I am confident that the days, weeks, months, and years ahead will bring new technology that today we can only dream about. I suspect our students will reminisce about the good ol' days with IPads and IPhones just as I do bagged phones and key punch cards.
