Week 5

How might technology be used to encourage students of all ages to explore identity?

In class we reviewed Erik Erikson's 8 stages of human development.  We created projects on how students can explore their identity in a technological way.  I remember exploring my identity a lot through high school by playing, "The Sims," video game.  The Sims video game was an opportunity to create relationships through a virtual reality storyline.  I loved to create these fun cities and friendships that I could deal with simple to complex situations.  I can't really remember learning anything from the game about life, mostly I discovered possibilities of life and relationships in a make believe way.  Most secondary students are discovering this identity and exploring what it means to be them.  The challenge is when a teenager feels out of place in reality.  This often leads to many outlets of expression.  Some are healthy, some can become unhealthy.  I found it healthy for me to play 'The Sims,' because it was an outlet of creativity and exploration in a fun way.  Again, I don't think that it made my life or relationships in reality better or worse, but it was an outlet of discovery and entertainment. 

There are a lot of technological tools now for kids to express themselves.  Even something as simple as PowerPoint could be a tool of creation.  Students can create educational or personal narratives to express themselves.  They could explore some of their identity through podcasts, creating slideshows, movies, or recording music.  Technology has many tools that foster creativity and talent.  The sky is not the limits in technology.