Edutainment
Here’s a report on a North Carolina school system that has issued laptops to all students. They’ve “gone entirely digital,” meaning that they use the computers in every aspect of classroom experience. Says the superintendent of schools,
I think that there’s a disconnect for a lot of kids when, in their world, they’re seeing a whole array of technology. And, you know, it might be with games, or it might be with music, or it might be with a variety of things in their home. Then they go to school, and it’s like going back in time.
The obvious response to this concern is, teach kids to use technology. Teach them to search for things on the web in the same way you teach them to look up words in a dictionary. Teach them to evaluate the quality of the information they find, and to incorporate it into their own writing. This is part of what they need to learn.
But replace the activity of the human mind entirely? Substitute silicon for gray matter? This school district turns the incredibly capable, absorbent, malleable minds of children into mere technicians. Pointing and clicking your way to a piece of information is a far cry from evaluation or creative synthesis.It’s amazing to me that this “educator” apparently sees no distinction.
Do they have fun? Sure. One teacher says,
They always talk about the big hook, the first five minutes of a lesson, to get the kids excited about what you’re going to learn. Well, I feel like, with the computers, you have the hook the whole time.
There is something so troubling about this idea of caving in to kids’ desire to be entertained by expensive toys and then trying to justify it as education. If I were a parent in this district, I’d be furious that the school system has done the thing I am tempted to do all the time: take the easy road and give them what they want rather than what they need. Give them amusement instead of character. Placate them instead of challenge them. Give them candy for supper instead of vegetables.
The results are pretty tepid. The superintendent again:
We have seen gains in content areas across the board. It’s early. Graduation rate has gone up fairly dramatically. Dropout rate has gone down. Suspension rates have dropped dramatically.
Mastery is not mentioned. Are students learning more? He implies as much in the first sentence only to shy away from it in the second. Most of the benefits are administrative. Give them lots of fun, and they’ll stick around. But are they learning to think well? Or at all? Are they developing skills in problem solving? Or is the whole school being reduced to the lowest level activity of all — pointing and clicking away the day?
7 Comments
Mr. Matsu
You raised several good questions. Computers, like any or all forms of technology, are just tools. As such, I believe they can be used to either enhance education or distract from learning. It’s all about how you use the technology (tool). Given the technological world in which our children are emersed today, it seems appropriate to use technology in the classroom to both assist and enhance (as a tool) the educational process, just as has been done since the creation of the chalkboard and the pencil (two technologies that have been used extensively in school for more than a century).
It’s very appropriate to challenge the school district that adopts computers for every student to make sure they are using it in appropriate ways that truly enhance and support learning. We should all hold our school districts accountable for improving learning outcomes. It’s far too easy to use it more for entertainment than education and a tool assist and enhance analytical thinking.
Believe it or not, I had exactly the same reaction when earlier today I heard about a school district in Portland, Maine, that is issuing iPads to all kindergarteners to help them learn the alphabet. My response was, “Really? Is that the ONLY way children can learn today?” If you have not yet heard about that, check out this Seattle Times story: http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2014756065_ipadkids13.html
Thanks for the food for thought. I don’t think schools should try to keep technology out of the classroom (that would be a disservice to students today) but just the precense alone does not insure learning. As an educational tool, it must be used correctly to have the desired outcome; increased mastery of the subject matter, improved analytical skills, and an understanding of appropriate us of technology.
H West
yuck. that’s all i have to say. yuck.
Amy @ Hope Is the Word
My reactionary thinking says that technology makes a good servant but a terrible master, and to students already probably enmeshed in a technology dependent (addicted?) lifestyle this is just one more nail in the coffin. From my past experience in the world of education, NOTHING can replace a living, breathing teacher. I know that the intention here is not to remove the teacher, but it seems to me that what is needed is more engagement (with people and ideas), not less. Unfortunately, my past experience also tells me that most school districts are only concerned with what looks good and raises test scores, whether or not it involves real learning.
bekahcubed
I’m having a hard time getting over the one teacher’s statement about computers as a hook: “They always talk about the big hook…to get the kids excited about what you’re going to learn….with the computers, you have the hook the whole time.”
My question is…are they hooked on what they’re going to learn (the purpose of the “hook”) or are they hooked on the computers themselves? I am all for computers as a tool; but I fear that in a computer-loving society, we have let love for computers replace love for learning–and haven’t even recognized the difference.
Janet
Well said.
I think children need to be taught how to use digital technology. But the first step in ensuring that it remains a tool — a servant, to use Amy’s word — is to maintain some critical distance and erect some boundaries. There is no indication that those in charge are doing so in this school district, and we can be sure the kids aren’t.
I’m reminded too of the progression Sherry Turkle describes in ‘Alone Together.’ When it comes to technology, people start with “It’s better than X” (“Texting is better than having no communication with my friends”) and gradually end up at simply “It’s better” (“Texting is better than face-to-face communication with real people”). That seems to be where this district has ended up — from “Computers in the classroom are better than no computer instruction” to “Computers are better than teachers, lectures, textbooks…”
Carol in Oregon
This does not bode well for the literacy and love of learning that I want to be developed in young children. What I’ve seen in my own experience is that technology brings higher levels of distraction and a lowered ability to focus.
I’m so saddened when I go to my public library, a new building full of light, books and nooks and see all the kids huddled around the computers playing games.
I appreciate your thoughts, Janet, every time I read them. Thank you.
Amy @ Hope Is the Word
“What I’ve seen in my own experience is that technology brings higher levels of distraction and a lowered ability to focus. ”
In response to Carol’s words, YES!!! I have found this so very true for myself. In fact, it’s a problem I deal with on a daily basis. I intend to first safeguard my children from this for as long as possible, and when that is no longer possible, help them figure out the appropriate boundaries. I’m afraid this isn’t happening much these days.