Teaching students to use the Internet.

"Footprints in the Digital Age", written by Mr. Richardson, talks about how important the internet has become. It talks specifically about how useful it is when it comes to interacting with the world around you as well as being a great source of information. It seems to hint that educators need to help guides students more when using the internet so that they do make wise choices and learn how to interact and absorb information.

To me, it appears as though Mr. Richardson believes that by the time his children are grown up, that Google will be the new way for employers to find information on their potential employees.  If that is the truth then students need to be encouraged to use this relatively new source of learning to further their education and make a name for them. Not only will the internet do that, but it will also help them connect with people around the globe whether that is by playing games or socializing on social sites like Facebook, and this will help them learn to accept other people’s opinions and beliefs. This is a new generation with new technologies and resources, but some people are still too stuck in their ways to take advantage of this and it is now left to the younger generation to keep driving us forward. I will admit that even though the younger generation is the drivers we still need advice from our teachers, parents, and role models to keep us from abusing this new source. In some ways it will allow us to take information given to us as well as absorb and gather our own. One of the main ways this is useful to our learning is that it allows reacting with other people and gathering new knowledge from them.  On a moral view, it allows us to share our beliefs and what we do so that others might either follow our example or give advice to how we may better ourselves. Although it is an amazing new source of information and a new way to interact, many students still need to learn caution when writing and to think before they write something; because even if they meant it for only a few eyes many will eventually see it. The only questions I have are these. What will educators do now? Will they take the advice this article offers, or will they ignore it and teach as they have always taught? What will happen if students are not taught how to be safe and balance their time in the internet wisely? All in all, the internet is an amazing new source, but it is up to us to decide what we do with it.