How to help someone use a computer

One point on the list that I have to tell myself is that "beginners face a language problem: they can't ask questions because they don't know what the words mean, they can't know what the words mean until they can successfully use the system, and they can't successfully use the system because they can't ask questions". There is a great deal of truth behind this statement and I can relate to it because my generation falls somewhere between the digital natives of today and the digital immigrants of the past. Growing up side by side with technology meant that I was a beginner once too, so I can understand the possible language barrier. This understanding should help me in taking students’ needs into consideration while I am teaching. The important rule to follow was to “never do something for someone that they are capable of doing for themselves”. This is a powerful statement that can be used to not only describe technology education, but many other types of education as well. If we continuously do something for someone else, they are missing out on a huge learning opportunity or a skill that they may need later on in life.

After completing our team presentation, I think we should have addressed the first statement a little more because not everyone was familiar with Google Earth and we should have taken that into consideration.

Agre, P. (1996). How to help someone use a computer. Retrieved February 12, 2008 from http://polaris.gseis.ucla.edu/pagre/how-to-help.html.