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Digital Technology

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Submitted By GabrielleM
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Gabrielle McQuire
Prof: Mr. Flood English 101
December 1st, 2014 Digital Technology is Positively Here to Stay Since more than half of the people in our nation use some form of digital technology, it is safe to assume that it is here to stay. Digital technology restructured our society and changed the way that we do things. Almost everyone, from the very young to our senior citizens, is learning how to use some form of digital technology. It aims to support us in communicating with others, achieving an education, and succeeding in the workplace. There are countless ways that digital technology is being used both positively and negatively. However, the most commonly shared belief is that the good outweighs the bad. We have to rely on our digital tools and toys that it seems impossible to envision life without them. The advancement in digital technology changed the way people communicate with friends and family, seek job career opportunities, and the foundation of the education system.
It is important to realize that many people don’t get to see their family and friends on an everyday basis. For this reason, digital technology is a great source for people to remain in contact with their loved ones. There are many social media sites where people can keep in touch with their family and friends. Several of them are Facebook, Instagram, Skype, Twitter, Tumbler, Foursquare, and Face Time. Since many families today are mobile, immediate families and their extended family members may no longer live in the same hometown. Some of these families may not see each other for many months, sometimes for years. For families such as these, digital technology can be a valuable asset. For example, some families may use the same form of digital technology to announce that they are having a baby, and to keep track and share each milestone of the pregnancy with grandparents or other family members. Once the baby is born, the parents may upload pictures for the grandparents and others so that they can witness the news of the birth of the baby right after he or she is born. Through digital technology many families are able to celebrate special events together such as birthdays, anniversaries, engagements, weddings, job promotions, graduations, prom, first day of school, and holidays. Before these social media sites people would have to call each other on landline phones to share information and news, or mail letters, pictures and cards of different events to family and friends. According to Vanessa Ho, who wrote the article “Facebook Keeps Families in Touch” in AARP, Hal Mozer, age 84, of Bellevue WA, turned to Facebook to keep in touch with his family, including far-flung grandchildren. Through its use, he sees pictures of his daughter's family in New Jersey. He sees quick updates from his teenage grandkids. He's shared his own travel photos from Russia and Alaska, and he's had a lot of fun doing it (Ho, Vanessa). Likewise, we use digital technology to stay connected with old and new friends. Many of us share our memories from old times, chat daily about personal events in our lives, make plans together, and share good and bad news. To emphasize the impact of digital technology in our lives today, I’d like to say that digital technology is here to stay because it plays an essential role in keeping families and friends together.
In the same manner that we have grown accustom to having digital technology help us keep in touch with our families and friends, we’ve come to depend on using it to help us make connections in pursuing future employment and job and career opportunities. For example, because digital technology use is so popular among teens to twenty-something, and especially recent college graduates seeking employment, this age group is more likely to use digital technology as a major tool to help them seek and apply for jobs. Equally important, is having the right image that job seekers want portrayed about themselves on websites. They want the social networks to tell a good story about them or to define them at their best. Therefore, having a creditable online reputation is critical because the same tool that is used by job seekers is also used by potential employers to determine if they are good candidates for hiring into their firms and organizations. Digital technology can make or break them. For example, Wei Du in his article “Job Candidates Getting Tripped Up By Facebook” to NBC News, states that “ Van Allen, who recruits job candidates for hospitals and clinics across the country, had physicians in short supply, he was happy to come across the resume of a well-qualified young female psychiatrist. As part of his due diligence check, Allen looked her up on Facebook and found things that made him think twice. He was concerned and called her and asked for an explanation, she didn’t get the job.” (Du). In order to establish a positive online reputation you must keep it precise, don’t trust privacy settings, and use it to ensure that it will be beneficial and not harmful to yourself or to others.
Digital technology is valuable in achieving an education because it gives many of us that media stimulation life outside of school. It helps people to stay focused and work to prepare for career opportunities and jobs. Furthermore, some students are more curious and interested in doing their assignments now more so than before, because digital technology is available to support their personal knowledge. Also, digital technology is valuable because it enables students to work collaboratively on projects with others who may not be physically close. Digital technology has allowed teachers today to plan and assign most of the materials and projects online rather than on paper or from books. It’s changing the way educators teach and the way we learn and comprehend. A vast majority of homework and assignments are done on smart phones, eBooks, tablets, ipads, and other forms of digital technology. According to NAEYC’s article "Technology and Interactive Media as Tools in Early Childhood Programs Serving Children, “Digital technology tools offer new opportunities for educators to build relationships, maintain ongoing communication, and exchange information and share online resources with one another.” (NAEYC) Digital technology has definitely changed the world of education in numerous ways.
Today in my own life, digital technology has changed my thinking because I’m learning and comprehending information in new ways. It has encouraged me to respond to new ideas and to be willing to take more risks, as well as become more creative with my own thoughts as a student. I have learned not to depend on technology alone but to rely on my mind and thoughts also. Digital technology enhances my ability to research information and organize it into projects, research papers and other assignments. I think that it helps me to work smarter instead of harder because I don’t have to spend great lengths of time looking through books to gather information. I can access information easier and faster from several sources online. Whenever I have a question, most of the time I go online and research the information that is related to whatever my topic I am studying. I developed an interest in books at a young age. When I was around three years old, I loved books and enjoyed being read to every day. For Christmases and birthdays, I would get new books. Also, my mom enrolled me in a book club and it was so exciting to get new books in the mail. Around age four, I was reading one of my favorite books, Brown Bear Brown Bear What Do You See, by Eric Carle. As I got older, reading in my life changed significantly due to digital technology because now I can buy and download books online using my computer, smartphone, or ipad at a cost that is much less than bookstore prices. Also, I don’t have to go out to libraries and look for books. I can go online to see if the books are available and then go to the library and pick them up. As a college student, digital technology has saved me lots of money in books and other materials and supplies. It has also opened up a whole new world for me in the way I receive and exchange information today. I complete all of my homework assignments on the computer and turn most on them in online. When I work with my colleagues, we collaborate by email, text, or instant messaging when we do assignments together. I have to use digital media to find new activities and ideas and to make lesson plans for young children. I use it to shop and order materials and supplies that I need for my classes. Digital technology is a valuable tool to me because the task of trying to get an education would be much harder to achieve without it.
Digital technology has changed the way I live because it is a part of my everyday life. From the moment my day begins to the moment it ends I have come to rely on it. I wake up with the alarm on my cell phone. Then it’s my watch and clock as I glance at it to get to appointments and classes on time. It’s my camera when I need to take pictures of my classes, students, activities and projects. I listen to music, and watch video clips and movies. I also use digital media to stay connected to family and friends. I text, email or instant message each other to share important and special moments and keep in touch daily. Also, I use it to order and shop for materials that I need for my classes, personal use, and for family purposes. I didn’t realize how much I depended on digital technology until my cell phone got stolen and I had to live without a replacement for about a week. I was lost and sad when I thought of all of the countless photos of family, friends, and special moments. Another horrifying moment was when my computer crashed last semester and I had a big assignment that was due the following morning. My mother, my aunt and I were at Office Depot in Conway until it closed. We started out in Little River, and from there to Myrtle, and finally at Office Depot. I’ll always be grateful that they were able to retrieve the assignment that I needed the next day. I had to leave the computer overnight so they could retrieve the rest of my data. The immediate cost was $79 that night and a new computer because that one was dead. I learned that technology is great, I don’t know if I can do without it, and back up your files on a disk.
Digital technology goes hand in hand with my writing because it provides me with various resources that are readily available when writing such as a thesaurus, dictionary, encyclopedias, atlas, and handbooks right at my fingertips, and I don’t have to stop and open up each one for information and search for hours before I can get my thoughts written down. It has helped me organize and rearrange my thoughts because as I write and put them down, I can edit and rearrange things almost instantly as I go along. But, it also has changed the way I write in a negative manner because it leads me to many distractions. Sometimes my thoughts get interrupted when I’m trying to write a paper because I get so busy and wrapped up in searching or reading other things instead of writing like I was supposed to do. At times when I write, I rely on the computer more than my own thoughts and capability. I sometimes make careless mistakes using digital technology when it comes to grammar and punctuation. I think that technology is great but it’s only as good as the person is who’s using it.
It must be remembered that digital technology has enhanced the lives of many people in so many ways. It has connected and reconnected people and it has helped people while seeking employment opportunities. Also, it has empowered people by helping them achieve in education. Many of us sometimes rely more on these forms of technology instead of using our own thoughts and ideas. However, with all the advantages that digital technology has placed right in front of us, we must use it in a way that is ethical so that health, safety, and well-being of others are not compromised. Digital technology affects and changes how we think, read, write, and live because it plays a major role in everything that we do, and with that in mind, we must do everything to use it responsibly.

Works Cited Center, Fred Rogers. "Technology and Interactive Media as Tools in Early Childhood Programs Serving Children." NAEYC. Jan. 2012. Web. 23 Nov. 2014. http://www.naeyc.org Du, Wei. "Job Candidates Getting Tripped Up By Facebook." NBC News. 14 Aug. 2007. Web. 23 Nov. 2014. http://www.nbcnews.com

Ho, Vanessa. "Facebook Keeps Families in Touch." AARP. 1 Jan. 2012. Web. 23 Nov. 2014. http://www.aarp.org

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