Thing 11.5 What do you mean the Ipod is dead? I just got one!

Fresh from the Yahoo! Homepage this morning is the following headline: "The Ipod is dead. Long live the Ipod!" . It seems that even the Ipod, icon for the millennium, is now passe, at least in its most traditional form. The article discusses the metamorphosis of the device and makes predictions of what it will become, ending with these words, "However Apple answers that question, what's clear is that traditional versions of the device are a thing of the past—and future iterations will have a long and vibrant future."

Although the author of the article intended that statement for the Ipod only, I think it has fair application to teachers, too: traditional teaching, in theory and practice, is as outmoded as the first generation of Ipods introduced in 2001. Consider the following quote taken from the article, but with educational terms replacing the language of technology: "The teacher as many of us have known it is on the wane and giving way to a more feature-rich educator that in time will bear little resemblance to the traditional models." Like the first generation of portable music devices, teachers are evolving, growing sleeker, more efficient, more capable.

In the name of a well-considered argument I must acknowledge that those terms don't apply to all teachers: there are plenty of nay-sayers out there, resisting every advance of the 21st century, those who believe that technology is just some passing fad that will go away with due time. We'll see which passes away more quickly: technology or those who doubt it.

And I'm not suggesting that I am on the cutting edge when it comes to technological advances: it does take the Library2play summer programs to keep me current. Okay, current might be stretching the term a bit: case in point, my favorite discovery of the summer was Facebook. Anyone under the age of 30 is either laughing hysterically or rolling their eyes at this point, but really, until this summer I didn't understand the impact of the social network. And I have to admit, I am still hesitant about FB protocol - some of the possible FB fun seems to presume goodwill on the part of your friends, seems a bit intrusive, but I guess I will get over that...

My personal skepticism will have to take a back seat to possibility. And that is my lifelong learning goal, really: to embrace progress rather than adhere rigidly to the past. Ask the dinosaurs how well it worked for them!

Change is never easy, even for those of us who willingly face it. It has been a great relief to have my sister and a few friends along on this summer's journey. I think we were encouraged by each other's successes. And, when certain "things" proved difficult, we were usually able to help each other along. Either that or commiserate with each other...

And we were lucky to have some young'uns along with us, as well. My niece, in preparation for teaching career, is completing the original library2play class. Her enthusiasm for teaching and technology alike has been a breath of fresh air! Anyone out there want to give her a job? See Notes from a Texas Treehouse for further details.

So, whether we are oldies trying to stay young or youngies just doing what comes naturally, things are looking up. The Ipod isn't dead, it is just changing with the times. And so are we...