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MyNotes – Digital Leadership – Foreword

Note: Over the next few weeks, I’ll be reading Eric Scheninger‘s book, Digital Leadership. Eric was kind enough to send me a copy and I’ll be sharing my notes and thoughts as I work my way through it. I’m honored that Eric sent me a print copy to read and share my thoughts on. 

MyNotes – Foreword
The Foreword was written by Yong Zhao

  1. “Very few technologies are originally invented to serve an educational purpose…the education sector represents a huge irresistible market.”
  2. …the great potential of technology to improve education…is quite often not realized at all.
  3. Inspired by the great potential of technology, proponents wonder why everyone else doesn’t “see the light” as they do.
  4. Only when technology is used to provide meaningful solutions to educational problems will the majority of educators find reasons to adopt it.
  5. Humans develop technology to expand human capacities and occasionally to replace human labor in simple tasks….most industries in our society have undergone dramatic transformations and seek more complex human skills, knowledge, and abilities, which requires our students to develop different skills than their predecessors–skills that differentiate them from machines.
I found the Foreword particularly engaging, especially the highlighted section above. In fact, it was engaging because I found it to be true my entire career in education. While there are always some who “see the light,” there far many more who see it as one more thing, a hindrance to accomplishing their real aim–get the job done, go home, to begin the cycle again the next day.
And, still, I’ve also seen when technology has been embraced as a solution to a meaningful problem. The question going around in my head is, “Are the problems K-12 educational institutions trying to solve the ones they need to be focused on?”
Consider that in the 1990s, I shared my knowledge of Harvard Graphic chart maker to graph student data. Then, I used AlphaIV database program–on an Apple //e–to better capture student data, then print classroom level reports.
For this work, I found myself allowed to escape my class of wannabees (gang-members) and do this very important work. Frankly, I was grateful for the administrator support and the opportunity to hone my skills, skills I’d spent developing for years on my own for fun.
Fun…I’m glad I discovered technology as a fun activity. Spreading the passion to other educators may have been a mixed bag, but I can certainly appreciate learning for fun.

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Everything posted on Miguel Guhlin’s blogs/wikis are his personal opinion and do not necessarily represent the views of his employer(s) or its clients. Read Full Disclosure

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