This phrase seems to be coming up a lot these days.

  • Kids are all “good with tech”.
  • The new teachers are all “good with tech”.
  • Principal so and so is “good with tech”.

All are very well meaning. But what does “good with tech” really mean?

Let’s start with kids. Are all kids “good with tech”. No. (All kids aren’t good just about anything). Are some kids “good with tech”. Absolutely. But let’s define what “good with tech” means.

Mostly kids aren’t afraid to push buttons. They do “stuff” on technology items. Some of them have worked extremely hard and put in lots of time to understand varies technologies or skills. This background can be very advantageous and useful. However, this doesn’t make all kids “good with tech”.

So, how about those recent college graduates? Certainly, they must all be “good with tech”. Recent college grads grew up completely within the time frame of readily available technology. (We’re going to partially ignore those non-traditional college grads who had gaps between high school completion and finishing college). After all, these college grads grew up after the Internet was widely available. They don’t know of a time when computers were NOT readily available. They grew up with the iPhone. They grew up with the Internet already available and moving into every home. Thus, they do have a grasp of what technology can do.

How about Principal “so and so”? Well, just like above, Principal “so and so” may not be afraid of pushing buttons. Principal “so and so” may use more technology than his/her/they peers.

And one could argue that all of these nice folks similarly lack a fear of pushing buttons. These things do not, however, make one “good with tech”.

To be perfectly honest, we are still figuring out tech. We know what a lot of the research says. We know that technology is not a magic savior by itself in its current form.

There is one of the pillars of “good with tech” for me. To be “good with tech”, one should have a firm grasp of what tech can and can not do. One should intimately understand many of the basics of technology. To be “good with tech” means that one doesn’t use the phrase “can’t you just…” when talking about technology. To be “good with tech” means understanding some of the unintended consequences. To be “good with tech” means considering how something is used and implemented. To be “good with tech” means that one considers whether the problem is best solved by technology or not. To be “good with tech” means to not try to rely on technology solve problems that are best solved by humans.

Are you “good with tech”?