Yes, often they do. Last week in Wired is an article about Adnan Osmani, a shy but cheerful student at St. Finian's school, located about 50 miles from Dublin, Ireland. This 15-year-old has developed what reports to be a faster browser, with more features, than the best minds of Microsoft, or even the open-source movement's Mozilla (which serves as the basis for Netscape). It was submitted as an entry to ESAT BT Young Science and Technology Exhibition, a contest sponsored by Ireland's communications network giant ESAT BT, and has caused quite a stir internationally.

It is rare for a 15-year-old to walk into a physical science or world history classroom and know more about the subject than the classroom teacher - but it happens. When it does, the teacher usually recognizes that s/he has a unique and wonderful challenge, a challenge that stands to benefit both student and teacher.  

Of course, in the area of technology use, this scenario happens daily. Many kids have been surfing the 'Net and communicating digitally with people across the globe for longer than teachers have had computers in their classrooms.  Even those teachers who count themselves as "geeks" have had this experience many times. The easiest way to negotiate this mismatch would be to simply drop technology use from the tools students can use in the pursuit of their studies. That also happens daily. But a wonderful opportunity is lost. If you opt to include a technology tool in your instruction, and a precocious child obviously has been there, done that, got the t-shirt....

1. Don't assume that the student is powerful academically. You may be looking at someone who is struggling, or, even more likely, disengaged. Use him/her! This may be a golden opportunity to turn someone around! (I have had personal experience to bear this out!)
2. Use groups to assault your lesson goal. Distribute the students who know the technology throughout the groups, and rely on their expertise.
3. Give the student the option of introducing the technology use in your class. Work with him/her in advance to encourage a tool-use perspective (rather than a "toy" one).
4. Give them a higher-level assignment relative to the technology, and the independent work time to pursue it! 

It is easy to get intimidated and territorial about instructional practice. But when we do, we forget that the goal is not to prove ourselves, but to allow our students to prove themselves. We should celebrate, and reward, when students have these important skills already. Perhaps one of them might be the next Adnan Osmani - and from his podium at the front of the multi-billion-dollar corporation he helped start, he might thank you!

       --Jeffrey L. Jones, Editor