What Do You See In Technology Teacher?

I interviewed my councilor, Chip Straley, about technology and how it affected his life, his students, and the way he teaches. His opinion, hilarity, and honesty made this one of the best interviews I have done in a while.

Chip, Straley. Email. 4 Dec. 2012.

Theatre teacher
Chip, Straley
(Picture taken by me)

Q: “Do you have a certain technological device (cellphone, laptop, etc) that you can't live without? And what makes that device so important?”

A: “No. I absolutely enjoy being detached from those damned evil contraptions that snare the unaware user and make themselves (the contraptions) an indispensible part of one's daily life. I sometime "forget" my phone on purpose. If I am not working, I seldom check my email. If I can separate myself from those things I do. Freedom, Freedom, Freedom!!!”

Q: “Being a teacher, do you see your students being mostly benefited by the use of technology (cellphones, laptops, iPods, etc), or do you see them as a distraction to their learning?”

A: “Both. I do see students using the devices to take notes and keep schedules and other organizational things that might provide some benefits. I also see them being an avoidable distraction and a problem in many other areas. I think the thing to recognize is that the device is not the issue. The focus and discipline of the individual using the device is the issue. Social obligations and polite niceties often get thrown out when the damn thing rings. Such issues are not the fault of the device but of the user. As in most things: training and education can overcome the idiocy.”

Q: “What is your opinion about the ever changing, technologically dependent, world we now live on?”

A: “It round and mostly blue and white. I like that it is here and that I am living. Other than that, TV helps me spend/waste my time and the computer games help keep me from killing colleagues and students and children - oops did I actually say that? Ooops. I mean, technology is only as important as we choose to make it. As I wrote earlier, escaping from that connection is one of my simple pleasures and if we (the users of the technology) choose to not use it when we wish, then we control it and it does not control us. I personally enjoy being able to disconnect and I think that ability helps keep me sane. More people (especially administrative types) should do so much more frequently.”

Q: “Do you think that the more we use technology the easier our lives, or the lazier of a society we become?”

A: “Again, the question implies that the device and not the user is responsible. Busy people are more busy because they can do more with their time. Lazy people are still too lazy to read the instruction manual and therefore do not use the devices exceedingly well. I do think that most of society is a lazy ass bum! Ask your fellow students if they actually read the assignment for the day: I believe that most will not have done so.”

It’s good to get the teacher’s perspective on things like technology and students once in a while. Chip's opinion and view of technology and students is bright and clear. He is not as attached to his phone as the students I’ve meet so far in college. I agree on not blaming technology but blaming on how people use it. If we were taught from the beginning how to use it we would not be so distracted by it and would have probably been able to use it appropriately. He is friendly about technology, sees it as something positive. Again, it’s all up to the user that determines if the device is well used or not. From here we can see that at least one teacher understands why students might get distracted so on so forth, but also does not accuse technology to be the main cause. In the end, it’s all up the student to choose how to use the technology around them to benefit or harm them.

                                     Perhaps one day, technology will be teaching us, literally.