I was in a car accident a few years ago, which wasn't my fault and which, happily I walked away from, but the insurance agent wrote off my car. I went alone to the yard where my car was kept to clear out my belongings. As soon as I saw her sitting there, I started to bawl and I could hardly see what I was pulling from the trunk. My car had taken me so many places that it was like losing a friend. I thought that I wouldn't experience something like that again.

About a month ago, my laptop started displaying "patches" of gray pixels on the opening screen and then would freeze on start up. I took it in for a check up, the salesman reset the graphics card and that seemed to fix the problem. Of course he counselled me that the computer was "old" and that should his "fix" not fix the problem, they no longer carried the part I needed and I'd be best to buy a new computer. When I got home and started her up, the problem was still there. Without a doubt, my computer was done. The tears started to flow down my face. I have all my data backed up so it wasn't the loss of work that was causing my grief. It was again the loss of, dare I say, a friend. That laptop has been part of celebrations (she's created end of term slide shows for years, and a wedding movie). She's been a major part and force behind many of my most significant achievements. She's been there while I struggled with ideas and relationships and countless other moments involving sound, pictures or text.

Right now, she's sitting in my bedroom, and I can't bring myself to dispose of her. I know it's crazy, but I'm actually mourning her loss. I can't even begin to think about her replacement.

I did watch the Joaquin Phoenix movie, Her, where he has a relationship with his operating system, and thought it was ridiculous, but now, given how sad I am, I'm rethinking my whole relationship with my laptop.

There is no denying that iPads or other tablets can engage a group of students who normally might not be inclined to embrace certain activities. But should they be used for that purpose?!?

It saddens and frustrates me to realize that in some classrooms, iPads have become the new silent reading. Some teachers put an iPad into the hands of a student and then sit back and in some cases do their marking or check their Facebook page.

It's awkward if teachers haven't asked for my help or planned the project with me because I don't feel like I have the right to intervene, but at the same time, I see the potential of the technology being wasted, and know that the teacher who wanted to use those iPads for something involving modification or redefinition (the SAMR model), can't because they've been signed out for Internet research.

The easiest way to guard against the misuse of technology is to continually ask, "Why am I having students use a tablet?"

If your only answer is "to keep them engaged" or "to keep them busy and quiet", rethink your use of that technology.

I feel like I haven't done a good job in guiding and encouraging my colleagues to always be asking why when they sign out the iPads, but I'm going to try to do that more often in the new year.