In David Warlick’s book Raw Materials for the Mind (4th ed.), he has the following quote in the introduction:
“IT Departments do not work for the technology. They work for the teachers, to make sure that teachers can use the technology to produce the learning experiences that they know need to happen in their classrooms. ”
I feel this statement is misdirected, but starts the correct conversation. We all struggle with networks that are tied down, filtered, and otherwise “safe.” The flip-side is an open, non-obstructed system, which is just not feasible. The Internet is a great, awesome, unbelievable source of networking and information. It is also a place of danger, mis-information, and viruses. We would do a disservice to our school community to not try to protect ourselves.
I would suggest the correct statement reads as follows:
(IT Departments) or (Educational Technologists) or (Administrators) or (insert whatever group here) do not work for the technology. They work for the learners, to make sure that learners can use the technology to produce the learning experiences that they know need to happen in the classroom.
Note that I purposely did not make a distinction between teacher and student when referring to learner.