Not every place stands out… whether it be where you once worked, a classroom you used to spend a lot of time in, or a restaurant that you used to frequent that isn’t around anymore, some places lose the allure that they once had when they were a large part of our lives. As a kid in elementary school I had a place that wasn’t like those ones, one that I can remember that gave me a rush of excitement whenever I knew I was going there. A place where I could ask any question and something at least generally related to the answer would be shown to me, literally a place with endless applications and possibilities. Now as a kid in elementary school I didn’t quite realize all the potential developments that would arise over the years but I definitely knew that the computer lab, yes the computer lab, was a really amazing place. For me you could say that the time spent in the computer lab/setting with proper computer access represented the start of my closing the digital learning gap and familiarizing myself with the basics of a technology that I have and will use for years to come.
I remember the first time our class was told we were going to use the computer lab, it still stands out to me because of how much it stood out to me then. Don’t get me wrong I never was the type that was really into computers, social media, and the like and would have definitely rather have been playing basketball or some other sport out on the playground but it definitely was a change of pace from the normal school and class routine. Just that switch up from the normal routine of walking into my 4th grade classroom and being lectured at for hour upon hour opposed to getting to head into a new, albeit older physical setting with older computers was still a great change of pace and one where I knew I would be able to do something new. I attended a small private elementary school and they had put together enough money to set up about 10 computers in one of the classrooms that was not used very frequently establishing our computer lab, not the most advanced but still a place with solid internet access and available computers which especially at the time was nowhere near as common as it is today.
Walking into our newly setup computer lab you could hear the hum of the computers and feel the heat from the oversized monitors that look like dinosaurs compared to the laptop I typed this memoir on. The familiar musty smell that older rooms have dominated my nostrils and in a way put my focus on the computers as there wasn’t anything else to really look at. After learning how to log onto the computers and learning what very might have been my first password for a program we were in, almost instant access to millions of pages of information on anything I could think of. Not only that but we were told to explore what the computer could do and suggested some programs and Internet tools such as Google to check out. Now obviously there were network and security settings to keep us on track and not playing arcade games for an hour but it was definitely one of the first times I had to devote myself to getting more familiar with the different uses and possibilities digital media had to offer us.
Darting through the start menu on Windows98 seeing all the different items, not knowing about half of them but clicking on every one with a cool icon next to the name. Creating and editing priceless works of art in Paint program, figuring out where minesweeper and solitaire were located, all of these things while not at first glance were very helpful in introducing me to using this relatively new technology. I had always had a computer at my house for as long as I can remember but it really wasn’t until my time in the computer lab that I felt like I could navigate a computer and complete simple tasks, I had no incentive to use it at my home besides games and even then those would mostly take place outdoors at that point in my life. Having the opportunity to sit in front of an equipped computer and actually have instruction as well as freedom to familiarize myself with using different programs as well as how to perform an effective internet search were intangible assets to the start of my digital learning career.
In the world we live in today, a world where I am taking a college level course completely online from a professor who sometimes isn’t even in the same country as I am, our digital and technological competency has never been more valuable. The ability to even know the basics of standard programs, internet sites, social media, etc. sets someone up to be able to do almost anything as they have an endless stream of information and opportunity at their very fingertips. This to me was why that place never faded in my memory, sure I now own my own personal computer and have been around computers almost everyday of my life but without the computer lab, I wouldn’t have had the foundation to pickup and familiarize myself with the tools I needed to as my learning progressed. The value of digital learning and the blending of technology in our lives and education cannot be undervalued, as it is the course that the world is moving towards more and more everyday. I am grateful to that computer lab, without it who knows, maybe taking these thoughts and relaying them to the world would be a little harder.
I remember the first time our class was told we were going to use the computer lab, it still stands out to me because of how much it stood out to me then. Don’t get me wrong I never was the type that was really into computers, social media, and the like and would have definitely rather have been playing basketball or some other sport out on the playground but it definitely was a change of pace from the normal school and class routine. Just that switch up from the normal routine of walking into my 4th grade classroom and being lectured at for hour upon hour opposed to getting to head into a new, albeit older physical setting with older computers was still a great change of pace and one where I knew I would be able to do something new. I attended a small private elementary school and they had put together enough money to set up about 10 computers in one of the classrooms that was not used very frequently establishing our computer lab, not the most advanced but still a place with solid internet access and available computers which especially at the time was nowhere near as common as it is today.
Walking into our newly setup computer lab you could hear the hum of the computers and feel the heat from the oversized monitors that look like dinosaurs compared to the laptop I typed this memoir on. The familiar musty smell that older rooms have dominated my nostrils and in a way put my focus on the computers as there wasn’t anything else to really look at. After learning how to log onto the computers and learning what very might have been my first password for a program we were in, almost instant access to millions of pages of information on anything I could think of. Not only that but we were told to explore what the computer could do and suggested some programs and Internet tools such as Google to check out. Now obviously there were network and security settings to keep us on track and not playing arcade games for an hour but it was definitely one of the first times I had to devote myself to getting more familiar with the different uses and possibilities digital media had to offer us.
Darting through the start menu on Windows98 seeing all the different items, not knowing about half of them but clicking on every one with a cool icon next to the name. Creating and editing priceless works of art in Paint program, figuring out where minesweeper and solitaire were located, all of these things while not at first glance were very helpful in introducing me to using this relatively new technology. I had always had a computer at my house for as long as I can remember but it really wasn’t until my time in the computer lab that I felt like I could navigate a computer and complete simple tasks, I had no incentive to use it at my home besides games and even then those would mostly take place outdoors at that point in my life. Having the opportunity to sit in front of an equipped computer and actually have instruction as well as freedom to familiarize myself with using different programs as well as how to perform an effective internet search were intangible assets to the start of my digital learning career.
In the world we live in today, a world where I am taking a college level course completely online from a professor who sometimes isn’t even in the same country as I am, our digital and technological competency has never been more valuable. The ability to even know the basics of standard programs, internet sites, social media, etc. sets someone up to be able to do almost anything as they have an endless stream of information and opportunity at their very fingertips. This to me was why that place never faded in my memory, sure I now own my own personal computer and have been around computers almost everyday of my life but without the computer lab, I wouldn’t have had the foundation to pickup and familiarize myself with the tools I needed to as my learning progressed. The value of digital learning and the blending of technology in our lives and education cannot be undervalued, as it is the course that the world is moving towards more and more everyday. I am grateful to that computer lab, without it who knows, maybe taking these thoughts and relaying them to the world would be a little harder.