Computers in schools

I find it alarming that people who use computers in their everyday life somehow think that computers in the hands of high school students are simply the "latest gee-whiz" toy to hit education. My challenge is, as it has been for some time, let those who question the value of computing in schools forgo the use of their computer, or at least match the percentage of computers in their office with the percentage of computers in their child's school. Let every school district have the same percentage of computers in their offices as they have in their schools. We will then see if computers have value.


Case in point--A story on The Philadelphia Enquirer http://bit.ly/cTilRV, written by a university professor, laments the fact that his teenage daughter was given a computer, and that she finds it more interesting than she finds him. He says, "Laptop programs reflect a long tradition of gee-whiz technological enthusiasm in American education. To fix the schools, the argument goes, find a new gadget. This notion's most famous proponent was Thomas Edison, who helped invent motion pictures and also started a company to market them in the schools." Well, in fact, movies in schools DID revolutionize the classroom experience, even more so when teachers could show VHS tapes of DVDs right in their rooms, without having to coordinate with the school's AV department.


It is ironic that this story was probably written on a computer, and that the naysayers all answered online, with a computer. Part of the reason that students do not believe adults is because they hypocritically deny them things that they themselves use. You want buy in from students, get honest and and get real with them.


Computers are used in every aspect of our lives. They are in our cars, cameras, cell phones, and televisions. Even new refrigerators have a computer in them. McDonalds uses a computer to take your order, traffic lights are controlled by computers to help regulate traffic flow, and computers are used to fly commercial aircraft.


This is a silly argument, one based on fear and a lack of understanding. As I said, let those who think that computers do not belong in the hands of students go without one themselves. Then we will see if computers are necessary.