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We can talk about this as it applies to the study of history, but it also applies to many other fields. For as much as we have advanced in our technology, has the average student gotten any smarter? Is there more learning, more insight, better analysis going on when compared with students of 50 or 100 years ago? I am a big fan of technology and not a luddite, so I am by no means anti-technology. However, I am not really convinced that students learn more when they have more advanced tools to study with. I will say that technology has created much more convenience for students, but convenience really does not necessarily lead to more learning. I will also say that technology has led to more relevant skills passed on to students (though this applies more to the sciences than to the humanities). As for the capacity to learn, however, I think it has actually decreased over the decades. Thoughts?
It's only good because we now live in a technological world. As far as the “need” for it in education, the highest form of technology required are books, paper, pencils, and a desk.
It's only good because we now live in a technological world. As far as the “need” for it in education, the highest form of technology required are books, paper, pencils, and a desk.
I see you are truly old-school. I should say that Socrates would probably say that you just need a teacher and a student, but perhaps I'm just splitting hairs here…. ;D
I would say that technology has made it so that you don?t need to know the basics the way you used to, so a lot of students don?t bother as much. However, it has also made it possible for those who are hungry for knowledge to gain a great deal more. I?d say there is a wider gap nowadays. The slackers can slack more so they?re further behind, but the scholars can learn more so they?re further ahead.
I think you're right. I have thought how much easier it is for me to download a journal article at home through JSTOR, whereas as recently as 10-15 years ago I would have gone to a library, looked for the particular volume of the article I wanted, and either photocopied it or read it there and taken notes. So what takes seconds now could easily take an extra 30-60 minutes. At the same time, students nowadays might go online during class to go shopping or do something on Facebook, whereas years ago they would not have had such distractions. Perhaps there is more potential to do dig deeper into truths nowadays, but also much more potential to flounder?
As with anything else there are advantages and disadvantages to technology. I think we should look at technology as a tool just like any other. It does not make people smarter but it does not make them dumber either. I think also that in many ways technology, especially the internet, has tended to make peoples level of knowledge much more shallow. We are probably all guilty of using Google to find a fact and then not going any farther once we have found the fact or snippet of information we are looking for. At the same time, we can use the internet to get a wealth of information if we take the time to really dig. It is almost a case of information overload; who has not started searching for one thing and found themsleves looking at something completely different than they originally intended when they cam out the other side of the rabbit hole? For example, the other day I wanted to look up historical inflation numbers and ended up an hour or so later perusing the Wookiepedia and reading about the Star Wars canon.I have a mixed view of technology. In the end, I think it comes down to the individual. like anything else, it is a case of we get out of it what we put into it.
If you take a example like Ptolemy who published his Almagest circa 150 CE about his system drew on previous Greek theories in which the Earth was the stationary center of the universe. You just need a paper, pencil a desk and … a brain.Few centuries later Copernicus formulated a comprehensive heliocentric cosmology, which displaced the Earth from the center of the universe.Few years later, Galileo played a major role in the Scientific Revolution with achievements including improvements to the telescope, and consequent astronomical observations, and support for Copernicanism.In this case, technology was important (and good) , not only about scientific theories or experimentation but also for education : technology can be an excellent educational tool. But like any tool, its use makes its utility.
Do you think we had this same discussion 30-40-50 years ago? Does the incorporation of microfiche in the college library erode the students' abilities to conduct research and learning where to find information?Does the use of the overhead projector and transparencies erode the professor's lecture skills? Is oratory dying because professors now use transparencies, pictures, and projected text instead of straight lecture? Does it erode the Socratic method?Word processors! Don't get me started! Not only do word processors mean an erosion of typing skills, they allow students to write their papers at the last minute and not give their papers the appropriate proof reading!(okay, seriously, proof reading has gone down the toilet as a lost skill with the advent of “spell check” – most students I know are in desperate need of a “homonym checker”!).As mentioned above, technology has acclerated research – allowing historians unprecedented access to documents and resources. However, as always, there are good students/historians and bad/lazy students/historians. Technology makes plaigerism much easier to execute (and much easier to catch). It allows people to take shortcuts in place of adding efficiencies.
There were lazy/bad students then and there are lazy/bad students now. It's up to the individual, not technology. As for laziness, is it lazy if a student doesn't go to the library because he can find and read the exact same book online? I think not.
There is no “lazy” student. All kids are eager to learn, discover.How to keep their attention without being a “clown” today when everything is a kind of temptation to make people brainless, just consumers … ?
Do you think we had this same discussion 30-40-50 years ago? Does the incorporation of microfiche in the college library erode the students' abilities to conduct research and learning where to find information?
I see what you mean in that this is not a new problem and that each age could ask the question. At the same time, I think that the problem is one which increases exponentially as technology increases. The difference in educational technology between 1800 and 1900 was far less than the difference in technology between 1980 and 2010. I'm sure it will continue to change rapidly over the next decade and beyond.
There is no “lazy” student. All kids are eager to learn, discover.How to keep their attention without being a “clown” today when everything is a kind of temptation to make people brainless, just consumers … ?
You think there are no “lazy” students? I'm not so sure about that by any means.
There is no “lazy” student. All kids are eager to learn, discover.How to keep their attention without being a “clown” today when everything is a kind of temptation to make people brainless, just consumers … ?
I assume you are being tongue in cheek here? I can name several “lazy” students that I know personally; one of them is my son who seems to think that knowledge will jump into his brain with no effort on his part. His recent grades prove the fallacy of that notion.
I assume you are being tongue in cheek here? I can name several “lazy” students that I know personally; one of them is my son who seems to think that knowledge will jump into his brain with no effort on his part. His recent grades prove the fallacy of that notion.
I think I confused about what you meant by student : If it's about High School, College and University students, well I agree that some of them may be called lazy. I was thinking more about “pupils” (even if it's not easier with them, different I think). Lack of vocabulary knowledge , my bad !
I dont know, even with your clarification, there are plenty of intellectually lazy people in the world who are content to let other do their analysis for them. It can even be argued that technology has made it even easier for people like that to be so.Something that the internet in particular has brought back I think is the importance of literacy. It is hard to even surf sites like facebook or youtube without at least basic literacy. I dont think writing skills have improved but at least people put enough effort into reading that they can navigate a webpage, sites like Simple English wikipedia dont help either though.
