Technology, Digital Learning and The Impacts

The Impacts of Technology on Learning

The world of learning today looks a lot different from the learning world that I grew up in.

When my kids were younger they loved the story I told of a memorable day in my first grade class when my teacher rolled a large machine into our classroom. As we sat there in silence, she announced that the contraption she had brought in was called a.... computer! And the entire class would get a chance to use it. You can imagine our excitement. The computer produced questions on the screen and we each took turns typing the answers. It was the first and only time we had access to a computer that year and for years to come. By the time I was in junior high school we had computer labs and classes using computers. By high school I even ventured to take a rudimentary programming class. 

Fast forward to today and my home educated children can travel to countries they are interested in visiting via Virtual Reality. 

They can take a University level class from an Ivy League school from the couch, for free. 

They can get help refining their resume through a chat generative pre-trained transformer. 

They can learn a new skill or technique for an infinite number of things via YouTube.

They have access to the world at their finger tips.  

Technology has brought major shifts in learning. 

Should we be excited about what the future holds for our learners? 

Will homeschoolers and unschoolers have more access to opportunities previously held by education gatekeepers? 

Do our technological tools bring dangers that we should be wary of? 

How can we best support and protect our children from pitfalls? Or do we need to?

How can we create and foster educational programs and environments that will prepare our children for the future? 

In This Episode- Technology, Digital Learning and Impacts on Learners

In this episode I spoke with Josh Davidson. Josh is a dad and founder of an award winning online learning program, Night Zookeeper. As the Managing Director of a digital platform that services families and in particular kids under the age of 12, I wanted to hear his insight on the influence of technology and digital learning on education, the job market and the future. 

Technology has brought major shifts in learning. We explored a few of those shifts and shared our ideas on the good and bad.

Should we be excited about what the future holds for our learners? 

Do our technological tools bring dangers that we should be wary of? 

How can we best support or protect our children from dangers? Or do we need to?

How can we create and foster educational programs and environments that will prepare our children for the future? 

What impacts will technology and Artificial Intelligence have on the job market? 

I enjoyed Josh's viewpoint on technology and how it is shaping our future. His perspective is uplifting and pragmatic. He offers a good reminder that we are all really seeking solutions to problems. And as much as sometimes we may be drawn to worry about the bad, there is still a lot of good that we are contributing to the world.

Resources

Josh Davidson is the Founder and Managing Director of Night Zookeeper, the award-winning online language arts program designed to make learning fantastically fun for children ages 6-12. With a dedication to improving online education over th