Shop Indie Bookstores
The Dumbest Generation is one of those "social outlook" books that has become more popular this summer as citizens and reformers question all aspects of education in hopes that their schools and students will improve their status.
The author has gathered considerable evidence that technology has become more of a distraction and a hindrance to learning than an asset, and that policies to improve Internet and video technology, among other tools, have been somewhat misguided. To a point I agree: all students need reading, writing, computational and problem solving skills that cannot be developed through computer software, streaming video or the Internet. And those skills must be refined as students get older and college-bound.
Bauerline makes considerable effort to show that today's grade school and high school students are less intelligent that previous generations because they can make friends outside their local realm and engage in more entertaining pursuits through the Internet. He also makes another valid point: that some Internet resources, including Wikipedia, are less than credible. But it is reasonable to predict that some form of credible Web-based encyclopedia that is personalized to the user's grade level will evolve, once someone can organize a non-profit foundation around it, or make it profitable.
It is very difficult for a teacher to discuss the literary merits, for instance, of a classic nineteenth century novel, when there are more graphic and reader friendly options. But I must also ask, when it comes to certain academic areas: what are people missing without that body of knowledge? I write books, but I do not consider myself "deficient" because I have not read certain works of classical literature.
We need people to read and write well, but does everyone need to understand nineteenth century literature? History has its importance, but isn't it necessary to teach citizenship first? And most relevant to Bauerline's work, are traditional learning tools such as textbooks sacred cows? I can see technology replacing texts with customizable and interactive problem solving tools that accompany lesson plans. And textbooks, at the very least, are a natural application for Kindle.
I know this book has gotten a lot of play, no surprise. But I don't know where Bauerline's thoughts will lead us to any significant changes in the way K-12 students learn. I cannot imagine a national movement where parents will limit online airtime or that school libraries will be able to place substantial limits on Internet access, especially when those libraries are an adult resource too. But I believe that technology and traditional learning will come closer together.
1 comments:
I would argue that one cannot equate a child's use of technology with a lack of intelligience. Certainly, some non-technological skills are lost or undeveloped (handwriting, for example) but that does not make the learner dumb, no more than lacking technological skills makes one dumb (my parents' generation, for example).
It does seem, however, that Twitter and text messaging have added to the cultural idea that it's okay to intrude on people. They also reinforce that the minutiae of my life is important to everyone. Give me a break! In an age when people yammer about maintaining privacy, in 140 characters these same people let the world know when they've been to the bathroom.
And don't get me started on the importance of reading the classics. We had to read Beowulf in Old English in high school. I still don't know what the story was about. Why force students to slog through archaic language just so they can be "well read." Too often the classics teach students to hate reading. Why not let them read something that excites them? I haven't read any of the Harry Potter books but I'll bet they contain some of the same themes found in works by Shakespeare, Longfellow, and other long dead writers.
Post a Comment