Go Ahead, Mess With Texas Instruments
Posted by Ryan on 31 August 2013, 00:27 GMT
Graphing calculators and their supporting technology have been gaining some public recognition recently, in no small part due to the pedagogical efforts of Texas Instruments. Sometimes, this recognition simply takes on the nostalgic fondness that comes with age -- the memories of the little things that once meant worlds to those for whom calcs provided an escape, outlet, source of intrigue, or even just a distraction. In a similar vein, albeit much more fleshed out, relevant, and thoughtful, Phil Nichols has written a superlative piece that went up on The Atlantic today.
As our educational technologies change, it is truly important to be mindful of lessons that we have learned from technologies past. Many calc programmers have gone on to very successful careers in related and unrelated fields alike; I have made my position known in the past with regards to the consideration of broad-scope educational implications of contemporary hardware.
I highly recommend reading Phil's piece over at the Atlantic, whether it be for nostalgia, an outside opinion on the platforms that we love, or just to settle into a nice, thought-provoking read.
