Skip to main content

Is it really our job to teach kids how to live without technology?



This Sunday, I read this article in the Star Tribune. It talked about how professors are asking students to have a technology fast to gain an appreciation of what life is like without technology. It got me wondering. (Surprise, surprise!)

Is it our job to teach kids how to live without technology? Did teachers need to teach kids how to live without cars? Without tv? Without radio? What if your pencil stops working?

I understand that these teachers want their students to understand the value of face to face interaction. I also believe wholeheartedly that we should learn to appreciate nature and the world around us. But it is not like these teachers were leading hikes or canoe trips.

Am I way off on this? I don't have a problem with learning to appreciate life without technology if you are also teaching them about life with technology. Where are the lessons on appropriate use? Who is teaching them how social networks are a valuable networking tool if used properly? Who is infusing these tools into their classroom so students learn how to live WITH technology in a balanced way, using the technology to expand thinking, not shrink it!

Just saying...

Comments

  1. KWMarch 15, 2010 at 2:20 AM

    "I understand that these teachers want their students to understand the value of face to face interaction."

    I'm not sure students will see this value. They live in a world of instant communication. They don't have to wait for a letter to arrive in the mail. They can talk to relatives who live far away in a variety of ways, instantly.

    I don't think the value of face-to-face communication has depreciated; I think the value of instant communication has appreciated.

    With regard to the article, I pose this question: I wonder how the teacher would fair if she could only use technology that was prominent before her lifetime?

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

On the Cusp of Something Big!

I can feel it. There's a change. The conversations are different. People are excited. Rooms are transforming. On a Friday before school starts, I have now spent two weeks talking to teachers, teaching classes, visiting classrooms. This year feels different. Of course, the new hardware helps. Projectors, SmartBoards, soundfields mean that the technology is in the classrooms now. Teachers sound excited. I have been so impressed by the turn out at the summer trainings. In my conversations, I hear teachers asking great questions and wanting to try new things. The stereotype of teachers who won't change, who are stuck in the dark ages. That isn't true here. These teachers are doing great things already. I can't wait for the kids to arrive. This will be a whole new world for them. All day, everyday, connected to the world, interactive classrooms, multisensory lessons. This is going to be great!!
1 comment
Read more

Smart Libraries

I came across this video from Library Ireland Week. Library Ireland Week It got me thinking about today's libraries. Our school and community libraries are really in a state of transition. They want kids and adults alike to continue their love of reading yet what reading looks like is really changing. As reading becomes increasingly digital , how do libraries (or media centers, if you prefer) provide literature, research resources, and etc... in a format that people want? Do we still need brick buildings to provide them. Many libraries have robust websites for reserving books, doing research, downloading ebooks, etc..., but at what point, if ever, do we cease to need a place to go. I know,  I can hear many people arguing that the library is also a community space and we need to bring people together. When I visit the library (Yes, I go often!), I often see tutoring, meetings, collaborating, sharing, and librarians helping people. I love the collaborative spaces that libraries provi...
2 comments
Read more