To me, that sounds like a fair thing to say as part of an introduction to a period in class. If we're going to get specific about it, it's a bit fuzzier. The main question to ask is "normal for whom?" Are you talking the aristocrats or peasants? And then, if so, you have to compare social classes from the medieval period to the eighteenth century to today, which is a tricky process. What would you considered the equivalent of a medieval peasant today?

That's not even starting to ask what "normal" means...

Specifically, it depends on how you are going to look at changes. The material conditions of life probably changed a lot more from 1708 to 2008 than it did from 1008 and 1308; however, Christianity in Europe changed its focus a great deal in those 300 years. Also, the Crusades happened, so there was much more contact and trade with the East, which fundamentally changed the European diet in some circles.

Basically, one can find lots of important changes on each side and it's hard to weight them. Your teacher had a clear point that the industrial revolution (or revolutions, really) changed a lot in everyday life, which it did.

Like others have said "Normal" is a pretty vague term. However if it is looked at it in terms of energy usage that a "normal" person might have access to and how it compared to other periods then it is very reasonable to say that progress has really sped up in modern history because of the Industrial Revolution.

By 1008 and 1308 the main prime movers, or the primary way energy could be captured and used, had already been in use for hundreds of years. Human muscles was the first prime mover, then the domestication of large animals (~6500 BC) was the second prime mover. Cattle, horses, oxen all could produce more power then a human could. Humans used that power to plow fields quicker, or haul water and goods. The next prime mover was water wheels (~150 BC) Mostly used to grinding grains, and some mining applications later on. Windmills (~650 AD) was the next prime mover. It fulfilled a similar role (minus the mining applications) as water wheels. Apart from improvements on those (stronger animals, better gears, etc.) there was no new prime mover until the invention of the steam engine (~1700).

The steam engine was the prime mover of the industrial revolution because it allowed power to be harnessed away from the suited locations that the others required (Arable land, proper water conditions, sustained wind). That led to rapidly increased urbanization which greatly altered what one might consider a "Normal Life". In the past 300 years the prime mover changed from steam engines to electricity which is even more flexible in its uses.

The maximum usable energy of the best technology at 1008 and at 1308 is a small increase, a few thousands Watts change at most. While the best technology between 1708 and 2008 is around 2.5 million times better at producing power.

Source: Energy in World History by Vaclav Smil (Highly recommend if you have any passing interest about humans harnessing power.