In my earlier years of teaching, computers in the classroom were just that, computers in the classroom. One computer in a corner would have scant programs loaded on to it or available on a disc. Teachers would be told to use the computer, but no guidance or professional development was provided to help understand how using the computer was to help students learn. The computers improved as well as a computer lab was created. Students were taught keyboarding and word processing skills. Progress was slow. Still no clear instructional direction was shared other than to have students use computers. Eventually computers, software, and buildings improved and the possibilities of using computers for instruction grew.

Currently, students have available computers capable of operating most current programs for download and functioning on the internet. Still little guidance, professional development, or support for the use of technology has occurred. Teachers began to use technology for instruction and students use it to learn. Teachers use computers to prepare lessons as in a PowerPoint presentation or include an internet site that may have graphics, a video, or game that will support and enhance instruction. Students use computers to publish documents and presentations, submit writing to receive immediate feedback for revising and editing, use the district system to take electronic reading assessments, and use the internet to access a portal where educational games are posted for learning.

My philosophy for computer education is that it continues to evolve. Written here is my experience with technology and education. The trend that teachers will have to integrate technology on one’s own, for the most part, is the pattern set. The student of the Technology Age is owed an education in technology use as much as an education in the Three Rs. Schools and districts are attempting to keep pace with the technological changes, but the teachers who work with the students each and every day are the ones who will cause the evolution. Teachers need to purposefully plan for technology to be a usual feature for students of the Twenty-First Century.