How Technology Has Changed Our Lives - 2029 Words

Technology has become an integral part of our lives, and it has brought forth one of the greatest marvels of mankind, the Internet. A global network connecting millions of computers and people in more than 190 countries worldwide, known by almost everyone in most of the western countries and increasingly everywhere else. It is beginning to become the medium of the future and is rapidly reaching the mass market. Over the past decade, as the educational, technological, leisure and corporal markets have continued to expand, the Internet has slowly become meaningfully embedded in the routines of daily life across the world. We now pay bills, manage our social lives, exchange mail, and find all sorts of information on the Internet. No doubt,†¦show more content†¦Children today, also seen as â€Å"the digital generation†, are supposed to represent the future on the World Wide Web’s technological escapades. But at the same time, this generation also seems vulnerable f rom the Internet on the path of furthering their growth in areas of information, communication, entertainment, comfort and newer economic methods – a twisted, double-edged sword, one might say. The speculative propaganda about if the Internet is right or wrong for children requires a new stance. So what is the right answer? We must dig deep on insights from both sides of the argument and define the correct path. The Internet has opened up a colossal door of opportunities, but these opportunities come with a significant risk. In the recent years, there have been several investigations on how advantageous the internet can be to children between the ages of 4-12, in the classroom. In 1991, Cheryl Lemke, CEO of the Metiri Group – a research branch of Cisco – published a study book to shape the public’s thinking towards using more advanced technology in the classroom, like the Internet. In this book, called Technology in Schools, Lemke summaries the following reasons to use the Internet: †¢ With the amount of knowledge on the Internet, core competencies of children will accelerate and enrich. Students who have frequent access to the World Wide Web become more quickly enthralled, and so can absorb more information, efficiently. †¢ Since the Internet is