The youth of the 21st century are often referred to as “the technology generation” by those who have not grown up with today’s innovations. Additionally, numerous blogs and publications have generalized teen’s use of technology as wrapped up in the consumer side versus the utility side. Some teachers at Roberson feel that problems related to the digital age come from students relying too heavily on technology. “I really think that the younger generation as digital natives are too dependent upon technology, so much so that they sometimes don’t always think for themselves,” English teacher Tristen Plemmons said. “Instead of trying to figure out an answer to a problem on their own, they’ll Google the question to find the answer.” However, students who have grown up surrounded by the expanding consumer side of technology often see clear benefits. Some have even chosen to further their knowledge of the producer side of computer science and technology by participating in the AP Computer Science class offered at Roberson. Sophomore Dexter Vandersall, who is enrolled in the class, sees a future in the tech trade. “There is a giant industry, and it’s still growing. There’s a demand for tech jobs, especially if you know programming. If you know one programming language, it opens up a whole bunch of others because it’s much easier to learn a second language after you’ve already learned the first one,” Vandersall said. As the Instructional Technology Facilitator at Roberson, Jared Brush deals with technology on a daily basis but feels that teens are not receiving the essential skills for a future career in technology. “I really think it’s great for investigative-type purposes. It’s too much of a resource to ignore,” Brush said. “What I do think is important for kids to learn is often what is being missed at school, which is just turning [a file cabinet] into the digital version. I see students still struggle with this. That’s the kind of thing that will be important in jobs.” As a parent, Brush said that technology has its drawbacks for younger kids, too.. He fears some of the overwhelming effects that the commercial side of technology may have on future generations, especially with the concept of virtual reality. “I do not like the idea of virtual reality. It almost makes me sick to think about walking in the house and seeing my son on the couch with this thing on his face. But, in 10 years, is that going to be an outdated way of thinking?” Brush said. Students and teachers alike have seen a detachment in social and academic life stemming from this distraction both at home and at school. “A con about technology would be that it kinda creates a disconnect from life. You can get easily distracted and swept into the internet,” Vandersall said. Because of this inevitable distraction in addition to federal regulations that mandate restrictions of certain sites in the school system, the Buncombe County School System has invested in the Zscaler service and a restrictive wifi network, called Bring Your Own Device (BYOD). These services block websites or applications which are deemed unnecessary or troubling for school use based on content. “I go back and forth, but in the end, I think I do agree with the Zscaler policy. It’s hard to justify the need for things like Facebook in school,” Brush said. “It’s not perfect because legitimate things get blocked, which is very frustrating. I’ve been in a classroom with 30 kids. You can’t police the websites they visit. You need some help.” As is with many rules set in school, some students have learned ways to avoid the blocks altogether. Vandersall sees his peers using a VPN connection, which stands for a Virtual Private Network. This connection allows students to bypass the blocks by the BYOD and access their favorite social media sites. Vandersall acknowledges that he has seen the VPN connection starting to pick up as a trend among students. “It takes some more knowledge (to bypass the blocks). You can use a VPN and some other ways to do it. It’s not always the best idea though. I don’t think a lot of people do this, but some people have caught on and are starting,” Vandersall said. Brush understands the divide between opinions comes from generations being at odds on the level of benefit of technology. “I feel like what older generations cannot fathom becomes the norm to the younger generations. I think there is almost some resentment because of that,” Brush said.