Digital Nation

In the movie “Digital Nation” written and directed by Rachel Dretzin she makes the point that we are in the day and age of technology, and how promptly technology is taking over our world. When watching or reading a documentary majority of the time they single out only one point of view. In Dretzin’s “Digital Nation” they show multiple points of view. In Korea they have cafes that are used for internet gaming with 24 hour access. This is only feeding to the children that are already addicted. In this country the internet is becoming a public health crisis because there have been several deaths due to little if any food, drink or sleep. Children of very young ages are learning to use the internet and computers in 1st grade. One woman in the video feels that she is going to lose control of her son because they already do not communicate and he is only 15 years old. Adults are feeling that they are becoming a “minority” in this new age of young children knowing more about the technology around them. With upcoming jobs, students are going to need technology savvy. The principle of a new york Bronx school, thought that if every child in the school had a lap top then there would be less violence in the school. Little did he know that there would be less violence, higher attendance rate, more children paying attention, high grades in math, English, etc. Multi-tasking is a large topic that is covered; teachers think that it is good for the students to learn to multi-task for future jobs and future life experiences. “We need to embrace the fact that our kids are going to need different skills 5 years from now then they needed 5 years ago.” “The world has sped up in a lot of ways and education hasn’t.” articulates the principal. Mainly teenagers now-a-days are not as academically capable as they used to be due to internet and new technology. Basic skills are worse today than they have ever been. In a wrap technology is only going to become more and more improved, and older people are going to feel that students are not as “up-to-date” as their professors or teachers would like, when really it’s the teachers and professors that are not as up to date with the technology.
In my own experiences, my life has been affected significantly by technology; I don’t remember what it was like to not have some sort of phone or computer around. In my short 18 years of life, I have seen a huge amount of change. When I am texting, I am in a completely different world; I don’t hear what is actually going on around me. Instead I answer “yes, sure, fine, yup, whatever.” How is this making people around me feel? Do I care? Do I not care? The actuality is that I am so focused with who and what I am talking to and about, that I don’t even know what Billy Bob is saying to me over here. I have my iPod in turned up, and I’m texting or on my Facebook through my phone. Then my laptop is over here with my 4 e-mail accounts pulled up, Google, and whatever else I need to have, and my math book right in front of me, the TV is turned on but turned all the way down. For school assignments I feel the need to have everything typed nicely. Why not when I have a laptop and a printer? Instead of hand writing, it’s a lot easier to just type it and print it and keep everything neat and organized. In my work environment, it is crucial to know Microsoft Office 2010. I don’t know what I would do today if I didn’t have my droid right by my side. I would be absolutely lost. I have my e-mail coming through, texts, Facebook updates, phone calls, etc. It is my main communication source.