My Digital Experience

Greetings!

Today I choose to reflect on my usage of digital platforms through my educational journey so far. With all the different forms of media and applications commonly used out there it’s good to find one that fits your specific preference. I prefer using the Microsoft group platforms. One application that’s apart of this platform that I have been using for a long time is Microsoft Word. My grandmother used to write books on Microsoft Word. So, I had access to the platform through her from an earlier age. I remember at times when the lights went out and I had to other access to technology, I would go on her Microsoft Word and pretend that I was writing some profound article by speedily clacking on the keyboards like I would see on television. Since those younger times, MS Word is what I have primarily used for any typed assignments from K-12 to where I am now in college. I prefer Microsoft Word since for my written assignments because of the ease of access and different haptics that make it easier to format my papers. I also like the design that Microsoft Word has. It has this professional aesthetic that I find suitable in trying to create a focused learning environment.

Another topic I will focus on today is a concept that I learned in my Intro to Educational Technology course: Digital Natives vs. Digital Immigrants. For today’s youth, it is very true that they are very in tact with technology. However, among the different generations I can say most of us were growing up in an era where technology was slowly but surely becoming more prevalent in our everyday lives. Today’s generation is just in the ‘peak’ of technology use which is why they would be considered digital natives. A  digital native is one that is born into an environment with a lot of technology use which causes them to be much more familiar and attached to technology more than the previous generations. Compared to the students, I would say older teachers considered digital immigrants would be mainly using technology for the necessary tasks in teaching but might not be s personally attached to technology themselves. So, the fact that their use of technology was for the main focus of learning, it really taught me how to utilize the proper applications for my assignments and how to bend the media for my benefit in terms of finding information for my work. Between me and future students, I really don’t know how much more they might be going further with technology but as for me, I am comfortable right where I am in my technology use.

Lastly in terms of the ISTE Standards for Educators, there was a standard I found most applicable to my academic journey and that is the Learner standard. I find the standard of learning to be something I put into action everyday. Whether it be setting up an environment that allows me to work efficiently, or just finding what method works for me to retain information, I am always learning about myself and using that new information to better learn other material. This helps to continually improve my practice in so many areas of my life. This includes both the natural and the spiritual!