Keeping up with our kids

I learned to type on an electric typewriter.

Embarrassing, but true.

Of course, we had computers 22 years ago when I was in high school, but their integration into the day-to-day school curriculum was minimal. We used them to type up term papers and special reports. Research was done using books, encyclopedias and periodicals at the school and public libraries.

Now, a mere two decades later, the way students learn and find and process knowledge couldn’t be more different. As recent articles in the Post-Record have pointed out, tablet computers are integral to the learning process. Like the pen, pencil and paper of yesterday, today’s kids are finding that technology in the classroom is something that they can’t be without.

Examples of how cutting edge technology is being used in our schools are easy to find.

Kindergartners at Cape Horn-Skye Elementary School in Washougal are using iPad applications to help improve skills and comprehension. In the Camas School District, eighth-graders are part of a pilot project that integrates tablet computers into classroom instruction.

This shift in how students learn isn’t accidental. The reality is that on a global scale, this is how the world operates. School districts must keep up, or students will be left behind.

Camas and Washougal schools are on the right track, and continue to make sure our kids are prepared for the future. Much of this is possible through funding provided by taxpayers through local levies, which have been strongly supported by the community.

Now, if only parents’ knowledge of technology could keep up with their kids’.