Technology is wonderful...but it is leaving our families isolated

With the immediacy that brings the technology and the media, it seems that no one can live off of social networks, cyber media and everything that helps us stay informed and in touch. But that culture can be distracting and can even be reflected in the classroom. Aren't you aware that your students can not concentrate on a single activity, anymore?

But change has to begin from the top.

We either as educators or parents, have to set a better example for our children and set limits for ourselves. Find the time to sit and talk to your children. If the most important distractor, the cellphone goes off, ignore it.

I pretend to know what you are going to say. What about if it's something important and I don't pick that call? Let me answer with another question. What is possibly more important than your student, a child, teen or even your spouse sitting in front of you? Dinner time, break time, are a great time to sit down and catch up to your loved ones. Unfortunately, nowadays, speaking and listening to each other is becoming a lost form of communication.

It's important you set a portion of time each day where everyone in your school or household must disconnect. That means, no cell phones, laptops, video games or TV. Please, just try it. I'll be rewarding.

I am father of 13 years boy and I am growing tired of see him come back from school desperate to connect to his laptop, play Xbox and on top of that text messaging with his 'friends.' And that tendency is repeated when I am out home. There is no talking. There is no laughing. Nothing but silence. Families sitting at tables where parents are fidgeting with their cell phones while their kids do their part with hand held video games.

When I disconnect which is not so frequently done, I try to engage in conversation with my son. Feeling guilty of what I've done, I look for answers, some humorous questions but I fail, he's busy as I was just before.

I think technology is a wonderful thing and we should be grateful for the many things we can do because of it. However, my fear is that this generation of children will become so addicted to the constant distraction, that may not be able to do things like read a book, or have a heart conversation with friends and parents. The way they are growing up is to send a long, grammatically incorrect text and so feel isolated from the world.

Now you know why I am writing less in this blog. It's time to disconnect from the online world and return to real one where we all belong to.

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