Photo by abbyladybug at Flickr. Used by permission.
We love to give political leaders nicknames. Here in California we have the Governator. Soon to arrive in Washington is the Technologizer. I’m sure when Barack Obama ran for President, he anticipated some nicknames, but likely not this one.
I am excited that we will welcome into the White House a real technology-savvy leader! And from one BlackBerry user to another, I’m thrilled that he has one, uses it, and actually ran a Presidential campaign with it. My elation has less to do with the product than with the technology itself. Connectivity of this sort is really linked to change. Not only does the nation as a whole need to embrace change, each of us does as well. Maybe our President-Elect’s leadership will be the impetus to get others to be more connected. (Perhaps he’ll even become the first president to serve as a celebrity spokesperson. He could make commercials for the “BlackBerry® solution” and donate the proceeds to public education! Oops, sorry. I digress.)
As I tout the need to embrace change, I do have a confession to make. Until two years ago, I had no idea what in the world a wiki or a podcast was. There are many other programs, gadgets, gizmos, and platforms about which I am equally clueless. As a Gen-Xer, it’s hard to admit this. Many people seem to assume that by birthright, I know and can explain it all. While I have my trusted TICAL cadre members around to assist when I can’t access our latest online collaboration tool, I wonder what others do when they get stuck with technology? After all, I’ve yet to hear someone at a dinner party proclaim, “What the heck is a wiki?”
When I began to plan an ACSA retreat this summer, I requested members provide suggested topics for professional development. Many responded with “technology.” They had the same admission that I did: so much is changing and at such rapid speed that its hard to keep up with it all. Where do you start? I was so thankful to get these suggestions, particularly from other Gen-Xers who I would have thought knew it all.
It helps to know that we have high level leaders in the country who “get it” because I think there will be hope for those of us who are expected to know it but just don’t. Obama’s campaign carried a message of “Yes We Can.” Here’s hoping he can also proclaim, “Yes I Can” and continue using his BlackBerry or any new other gadget that may come along during his years in the White House. It certainly would make those dinner party conversations much more lively.
Tags: Barack Obama, change
Great blog post. Your message underscores the importance of proximity to experts in promoting effective technology implementation. See http://www.ctl.sri.com/projects/displayProject.jsp?Nick=catalyzing for more information.
We as technology leaders need to get the word out about what does work and not be shy in doing so! In doing this we will move to implementing effective change rather than simply being reactive.
We have a great opportunity in our new President. It is so important for our students to learn in thier “native language”.