This isn’t just about education; it’s about society as well. We have a legitimate obsession problem with technology and the amount of it that we utilize on a daily basis. The concern should only be heightened by the results of a recent study.
Consider the following excerpt from a recent Pew Research Center article on a survey from March.
at the top of the popularity list — essentially tied with small business for first place in making a positive difference while outranking even religious institutions — are technology companies.
Nor is that positive rating primarily the result of the enthusiasm of young and relatively young adults, the first adopters and overwhelming users of new technology. While fully 80% of those under age 30 express positive views of the tech sector, the fans of technology firms are well distributed across the age spectrum including about two-thirds (66%) of those in the 50-64 age bracket and more than half (52%) of those ages 65 and older. Even among the elderly, non-positive evaluations of tech companies are about as likely to be a non-response (19%) as a negative rating (23%).
Now it’s all fine and dandy that we are in love with our technology companies and the products they provide, but we also have to be cognizant of the pitfalls that this type of obsession can create.
For instance, we need to adequately train students to utilize the technology that is being placed in their hands (which we aren’t doing). We also need to be aware of “making up things” (like multi-tasking) in an effort to prevent misconceptions from being proliferated in our youth.
If you sit and listen to large portion of the educational base, many are continuing to stress the use of technology in the classroom, but they fail to acknowledge the need of addressing the flipside of that coin or ask important questions.
Here’s an example: does our obsession with technology result in any health-related concerns?
I get the obsession with technology. What I am trying to do is allow us to sit back for a second and acknowledge our need to perform research and educate the public on potential issues that may arise from it.
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Americans also have obsessions with alcohol, tobacco, fast food, and addictive drugs. All of the research on each of these obsessions informs us that they are bad for us. If we stopped using them as a country, we might not have needed a healthcare debate.
The point is, what will we do with the research after it has been done. In a worse case scenario, if we find that tech is unhealthy, do we stop using it? We have a proven record of disregarding research even in the face of health consequences when our obsessions are at risk.
When I first got interested in computers about 1990, it was only because I was excited by the possibility of making direct connections for my Mexican immigrant students to communicate directly in their native Spanish with Spanish-speaking students in Mexico, so as to enhance the prestige of Spanish in the face of the overwhelming pressure to value only the English they need to succeed and discard their Spanish. Turns out we used the computers for a lot of other things, and never really accomplished that goal…but articulating a purpose for using the technology is the key. To quote myself: (from http://dignat2.notlong.com) “Dialog in social media about the books we read can create rich interaction, but we still have to be able to sit still long enough to read the book in the first place.”
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Fred Mindlin
Associate Director for Technology Integration
Central California Writing Project
http://ccwp.ucsc.edu/
http://www.thedigitalstoryteller.com/
“Intelligence is knowing what to do when you don’t know what to do.” — John Holt
Tom,
Thanks so much for your comment!
I understand what you are saying, but I see another side to how we address the examples you mentioned compared to potential health risks with technology. One of the major differences is that a person could lead a life without ever experiencing any of those items you listed above. Such is not the case with technology (I’m one of them). I feel as though the research findings should lead to further research on how to treat, prevent, or deaden the effects of the problem.
We know that people perform duties that could be labeled as reckless or irresponsible, but we continue to search for ways to cure or treat the repercussions people face from their actions. It’s just our empathic nature. We know that smoking causes lung cancer, but that doesn’t mean we don’t try and find ways to cure it. The same goes for a number of other user-generated ailments.
I even think that there may be a potential medical field that could develop from the uncovering of this type of research. Whereas we always look at technology use and isolate the effects on the user, this is a situation where the scope is much bigger.
The research findings would be available to the public and they can think what they want about it (consider or disregard), but the ripple effect of uncovering such ideas could aid in research and development of technology as well as educating the public on appropriate use.
Thanks, as always, for stimulating so much thinking!
AE
As always Aaron, you bring up important questions and ask people to think deeply about issues impacting our kids. I think that our obsession with technology could be looked at in another way. Maybe it’s more of a symptom of a deeper societal angst when something turns into an obsession or addiction. Is our preference to engage with a screen in between us causing us to be more alienated or were we becoming more that way with smaller families, people living far from relatives etc. Is our preference to text instead of call , or turn on a presentation instead of talking to our students just an “easier way out” or is it a symptom of something bigger? Is our society with its competition and stressors facilitating a type of communication where people can easily hide and be known but not known? I think you are right about research informing us, but we need to remember that research tells us about the group being studied. Sometimes it is relevant to a wider demographic and sometimes not. I think a guiding question, when using technology is: is this tool deepening my learning and relationships or is it taking me away from important face-to face relationships. Thanks for the conversation!
I think this problem can be broken down to something simpler, and luckily, it’s already being addressed and support is available.
So if I’m reading right, the big problem is that people don’t know how and when to use new technology to enhance their lives (rather than detract from it). When you boil that down, it’s basically a problem of people not living mindfully and in harmony with their values. Think about it – if I’m consciously aware of the core principles that guide my life, then it’s easy to mindfully try out a new tool and judge whether it’s helping me achieve me goals or distracting me. And many tools will not be clearly good or bad for you – it’ll be how you use it. For example, I set up rules for myself (and sometimes others) to make sure that I’m using my tech tools effectively. Even my fiancee knows that during work hours, I won’t be using IM (in fact, I almost never use IM) and will expect only urgent calls. She can email me if she wants to share something non-urgent. That way, it’s not an interruption to my train of thought. If we chatted on IM or if I were answering calls all day, I’d likely get very little done. I’d be constantly trying to get back into my groove, then getting knocked out again. Meetings are technology too (i.e. unnatural/invented/man-made), and sometimes they’re useful, often they’re not. For more on meetings and other distractions in the workplace, I would check out this video from Jason Fried -> http://bigthink.com/ideas/18522
Fortunately, there’s some great literature on productivity, especially by Stephen Covey and David Allen. In fact, Covey’s work dates back to the 80s. This is by no means a new problem – just one that the vast majority of people, including educators, never learn to address.