Teachers and Technological Literacy

"If a teacher today is not technologically literate - and is unwilling to make the effort to learn more - it's equivalent to a teacher 30 years ago who didn't know how to read and write."

This is a statement written on Karl Fisch's blog in an archived article from September 2007. I completely agree with it. Not that I believe every educator must be able to program computers and be able to spit out whatever information they want in a 20 second speed drill, but I do believe they should be familiar with technology and be willing to learn more. He raises an interesting point though, teachers who cannot read or write would not make an effective teacher today or 30 years ago. We know that technology is growing each day and the future of our students, if it is not already, will be centered around it. How can we adequately prepare our students, in areas in which we are illiterate?

Not understanding technology cannot be an accepted excuse these days. We force our students everyday to pursue in areas they may not be comfortable in and then we measure their intelligence by grading them on these areas. Who forces teachers to be better? Such excuses are weak and unacceptable when so much instruction and help is available to us. We need to push ourselves to be better equipped to push our students. When we step out of our comfort area and remember what it is like to be immersed into an environment where we know nothing, we can better relate to the needs of our students.

Technology can help us gain their attention, reinforce information and drive home concepts in a way that can relate to practical purposes. Above all, it makes learning more interesting and fun! Shouldn't we use every possible tool available for our students advancement? Sometimes it is hard to step outside the box and most of us dislike the feeling of ignorance in an area, but we must force ourselves to become better educators.