One of my favorite things that Sheryl says when she talks about the challenges that schools face right now is that this generation of kids in our schools is the first not to have a choice about technology. Most of us grew up in a time when technology was an add on, and for many of us, we still see it as a choice, especially in education. (Just the other day I was at a meeting of about 25 school leaders and teachers to discuss how social learning tools can be infused into an inquiry based curriculum and only one person was using technology to take notes…me.) I look at my own kids and I know that technology will be a huge part of their learning lives because a) they want it to be and b) they’ll be expected to be savvy users of the devices of their day to communicate, create and collaborate (among other things.) They’re not going to be able to “opt out.”

No matter how much money and sense of security we have banked, I think inside each of us there is, at some time, a barefoot and hungry vagabond, seeking shelter from the cold; someone who feels misplaced, worn to the bone, despondent. I have had many dreams about being homeless myself, forced to share a bed or sleep in a room with strangers. In one dream, I found shelter at a friend’s house. I was sitting on the couch until I realized it was her husband’s favored spot for watching T.V. and moved away. Her husband looked me in the eye and said, “It could happen to anyone.”