Building on your ‘technology is a tool’ point, I see the teachers who really ‘get it’ with using technology effectively are those who really understand how people learn and how people are motivated. When people wear those understandings like a pair of glasses, it’s easy for them to ‘see’ how various technologies (hardware, websites, software, etc.) ‘fit’ in the process to get people excited about learning how how to learn effectively.

One of my favorite blog posts along these lines (I may have posted this before – apologies if I have) is by gaming/learning expert Kathy Sierra’s ‘Creating Passionate Users’ blog. Please do yourself a favor and read this. It has affirmed all I believe in and has helped me learn even more.
http://headrush.typepad.com/creating_passionate_users/2006/01/crash_course_in.html