Understanding the Future of Technology in the Classroom

During my four years of college, I learned a lot about the tools needed to excel in my career of choice. There were great classes about web design and reporting that really built my knowledge on what I needed to know for journalism. However when I graduated three years ago, there was still so much I learned on my own. Using Wordpress, Facebook, Twitter and understanding HTML and SEO are all concepts I was novice to until after college. Technology is growing at such a rapid pace that sometimes it’s hard to keep up. Buy a new iphone and literally what feels like seconds later, everyone around you already has a new updated version. As citizens living in this technology driven society, it’s important for us to stay up-to-date with the latest trends. But how do we keep our children current with these new technologies? Nicola Smith from Wired raised the question about the new “cryptocurrency” in her piece “Will Bitcoin Change How Kids Learn How to Count?” With digital currency becoming more of the new norm, it is possible that our children will need to learn how to use such a currency if it ever becomes the leading way in how we conduct ourselves financially. I honestly don’t understand Bitcoin all too well, but this article does cause me to wonder how our kids will understand this new form of currency in the future. Will they ever need to? How can this be taught to children? How can educators better understand it for themselves? Will there be a more technology based form of instruction? ie Will they be learning how to use Google Glass or a far more advanced version of the Ipad? Can educators keep up with the fast growth of technology and successfully incorporate technology education into the classroom?