Does Technology Make Kids Dumb?
Nancy Flanagan doesn't mind being labled an "unrepentant Luddite," but she doesn't take to English Professor Mark Bauerlein's much-hyped new book, The Dumbest Generation: How the Digital Age Stupefies Young Americans and Jeopardizes Our Future. Baurerlein's conception of what it means to be well-educated today, she says, lacks both common sense and vision:
I’m not saying that disciplinary knowledge is unimportant—far from it. Having a broad understanding of the arts, sciences and humanities makes one educated, but having a lively imagination and curiosity makes information useful. If the whiz-bang nature of technology makes kids distractible and dumb, that has more to do with our inability to control and harness its power in our institutions, or re-shape our own national vision for what it means to be educated.
Besides, she badly wants a Kindle. (Full disclosure: Me, too.)
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I agree with Flanagan, being that it is not technology that makes children dumb but how it is used. There are millions of effective educational websites on the internet and whether of not parents like it; technology is being used in the classrooms more than ever. Technology is increasing not decreasing, but I think that is not a bad thing. Technology is important because it provides an alternative to traditional learning practices and sparks learner enthusiasm. Computers are great ways to assess students on information they have been studying and applying in their school work. Technology resources are helpful to teachers when planning activities, implementing group strategies, gathering up-to-date information when teaching students, and applying assessment tools. All in all, I strongly disagree with anyone who thinks technology is making children dumb.
Posted by: Haley | July 16, 2008 3:05 PM