A Quick Analogy

So tonight, I decided I would be the culinary chef of our kitchen and make dinner for my wife and me.

All class

As a began to put this nifty concoction together, I went to find a flipper as I browned the ground beef. Before I got started, my wife rushed over, opened the drawer of cooking tools, and proceeded to show me this beauty:

I didn't get the idea to write this until after I started cooking

The point of this tool?  It is made specifically for mixing up and chopping up food as you cook it. Perfect for browning ground beef when you want small portions.

The tool in action

But Josh, this is a technology blog, so what are you talking about cooking for?  First of all, I am a well rounded person, and I also enjoy a lot of things (see what I did there?). Secondly, this is technology.  All technology means is applied scientific knowledge.  Somebody was frustrated and annoyed at how ineffective flippers were (or any other tool) at browning beef, so they came up with this.

So does it do everything a flipper does? No.  Does it have many uses? Depending on your creativity, maybe, but ultimately, it has a very specific purpose. So why on earth should we use this tool?

Because it performs the tasks more efficiently that other tools.  Because it allows me to think of other creative tools I could use in my kitchen to increase my productivity.  Because it, combined with other things I already have and know how to use, can make for a stress free dinner.

Technology is just a tool.  Remind101 is just a tool. Google Apps is just a tool.  Prezi is just a tool.  Edmodo is just a tool.  Padlet is just a tool.  However, these tools allow us to do things more efficiently, more creatively, and more enjoyably than we would have accomplished the tasks prior.  Along the way, using those tools can lead to more critical thinking skills as we strive to apply the best tool for each job.  Combining some of these tools together can lead to some very powerful experiences (Posting a Padlet link to an Edmodo group, taking a screenshot of the results with Snagit, and tweeting the resulting picture, for example).

The flipper is a great kitchen tool with many uses. But from now on, I will always use that weird new tool when trying to brown meat, because it gets the job done and is fun to use!  Plus, it is simple. 

And a tool is only as good as it is user friendly :)

NOTE:  Above comment meant for educational technology integration purposes only