We who have found ourselves immersed in technology, if only through the graces of email, have probably also found ourselves in the midst of a listserv debate at one time or another. I recently fell smack dab in the middle of a debate about teachers and technology. "Who are the keepers of the knowledge?" the debate began, and on it went about teachers versus students holding the technological know-how in the classroom.

"How timely," I thought, as I considered my Internet-based teacher tools. Recently created in hopes of giving teachers the technological upper hand, I realized very quickly that my tools were not going to be used by a single soul unless educators were willing to unabashedly dip themselves into the hot pot of jargony wax known as technology.

I myself began as a reluctant educator, terrified of technology. Though I realized that quite a few of my colleagues welcomed technology in their classrooms, I was fearful. I believed that technology was a wrench in the works of my well-oiled curriculum machine. However, shortly thereafter, I found myself "dipped" into the technological wax, designing an educational website. I came full circle in only a matter of months.

Even as we enter the 21st century, it is evident that there are still many educators out there avoiding technology at all costs, content with entertaining what cyber wisdom their students bring to the academic table. So, to address the question, "Who are the keepers of the knowledge", I must say: we ALL are. Though as teachers many of us eagerly accept our roles as "lifelong learners," many of us have nonetheless closed our bright eyes when it comes to teaching with technology. Many of my colleagues have taken the mandated Microsoft courses, but what have they learned? Have they learned to apply their new skills to the classroom? Probably not. It is with this dilemma in mind that I offer a few applicable ideas for instructing with technology.

Just like any other concepts taught, it is our job, as educators, to make technology meaningful. Here's one way how: use the basics of Microsoft Word to teach a lesson on letter writing. "Write a friendly letter" is an educational objective covered as early as the first grade level in nearly every state or district. More likely than not, to teach this objective, one will have students write friendly letters to each other. This lesson can be implemented from first grade to college. Why not implement the ease and simplicity of Microsoft Word to do this very project? And, once the basics of Word have been learned, students can use the program to write anything from haiku poems to research reports.

To address Microsoft Excel, which can be more daunting than the simple word processing approach to teaching with technology, you will be doing your students a great favor by implementing it early in their academic careers. Excel, put simply, can be used to record data. Do we, as educators, need to be Excel masters to implement the program in the classroom? Not at all. Start small and be creative. If a science lesson is already in place in your curriculum, chances are, data collection will be necessary. Start by having students use an Excel spreadsheet to record the data. Simply position a computer at a learning center, open the Excel program to a fresh spreadsheet, type in appropriate column headings, and have students begin entering data.

Once your students have begun to write and collect data using the computer, what about creating entire presentations? Microsoft PowerPoint has been created for this very purpose. To get started, simply open the program and read the instructions. Microsoft's handy tutorial will get you started. Once you have progressed through the tutorial, start clicking! From oral reports to project planning to story outlining, PowerPoint has 101 uses in the classroom, and few outside as well.

Truth be told: teaching with technology is a challenging and time-consuming undertaking for anyone. When considering your role as an educator, remind yourself that it is your responsibility as a lifelong learner to provide yourself with the technological know-how that life daily insists upon. Once you have recognized that, then you are ready to take on the role of creative teacher to make technology meaningful to both your students and yourself.

Aimée Bachman is a former K-12 teacher with a Master's Degree in Curriculum and Instruction. Aimée resides in Roseburg, Oregon where she teaches college. She is currently involved with the implementation of a technology grant at her school and is creating a technology curriculum for the local branch of the Job Corps.

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