Becoming Obsolete – Or Not?

With the new year, several blog posts have discussed things that are becoming obsolete due to technological advances. The blog, Things that Became Obsolete in 2010, identifies

• Bookstores
• Watches
• Film
• VHS Videos
• CDs

Another post, Things a Baby Born in 2011 Will Never Know goes beyond touchable things to include how we relate with others.

• Forgotten friends
• Hiding (not answering phone)
• Talking to one person at a time
• Separation between work and home

From an educational perspective, the LangWitches blog looks at classroom management in the blog: What Will Become Obsolete in 2nd Grade? This blog looks at how handheld devices like an iPad or Smartphone and virtualization will affect today’s normal routines in an elementary classroom.

Are all of these things either obsolete or becoming obsolete in the near future? Whether they are or not, these blogs provide food for thought on how technology is changing our lives. The challenge for me is to not hang onto the old but to take the challenge and learn the new.