[K12OSN] Fwd: of interest regarding ICT use in schools

"Terrell Prudé Jr." microman at cmosnetworks.com
Mon May 7 04:12:33 UTC 2007


John Lucas wrote:
> Yes, but the assumptions that you can perform both a forklift upgrade of the 
> entire school faculty and a wholesale revamp of the curriculum strikes me as  
> a low probablility event. If those objectives could be met, there is still no 
> guarantee that the effort involved in accomplishing such miracles was the 
> best use of resources. The potential payoff is there, but such such solutions 
> are often oversold.
>
>   
How true.  Fortunately, LTSP doesn't require forklift upgrades.  :-)

> As one who has been involved in technology for 25 years, I am still ambivalent 
> about it's value in many situations. Personally I have always found that an 
> inspiring teacher will always inspire, with or without technology. Striking 
> the appropriate budgetary balance of technology with recruitment and 
> retention of good teachers and all other (non-tech) resources is the trick.
>   

PREACH IT, BROTHER!  While we had computers when I was in school, we
never actually depended on the computer to do education, unless it was a
computer programming class.  We actually wrote papers longhand, we
actually learned how to *properly* type error-free (yes, with
typewriters), and we did math problems *on paper*.  If a math problem
took five pages to "show your work," then so be it.  To this day, I can
do an integration by parts with trig substitution, not because I'm
brilliant, but rather because I didn't have the computer shortcut and
actually had to learn what I was doing and why.  Thank you, Mr. Madden,
Mr. Ahrens, and all you others.

Schools should go back to that.  It works...REALLY well.  Too many of
them these days come to a complete, screeching halt if "the computer"
goes down.  Use the technology, as appropriate...but don't bet every
aspect of education on that one specific tool called "the computer."

--TP




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