Call me old-fashioned. Call me a dinosaur. But there's something within me that feels wary about Marc Prensky's eagerness to toss out the old in favour of the new. Do we really have to throw out EVERYTHING to make room for the new? "As our kids all get their own phones and laptops," he asks, "do we really need to teach them the old ways" (Prensky 2008)?
Well, yes. Yes, we do. And don't get me wrong - I don't want to teach kids the "old ways" and ignore the new ways, leaving them unprepared for the future. The point is that there has to be a middle ground, where students still learn skills needed for coping with the world: both old and new. The invention of technology does not mean that we should ignore key skills, such as reading and writing skills, which, frankly, are very empowering tools, even more empowering than knowing how to wiki, blog and tweet.
Prensky wouldn't agree with me. Teachers like me are trying to give students a mere "backup" education, in which students aren't prepared for the world, but rather prepared for a technological meltdown - so that when the escalators stop, they know how to walk. So that when watches stop, they can still tell time. So that when all the calculators in the world explode, we'll still be able to figure out how much to tip. He claims that "the real issue lies in the fact that by continuing to teach the "backup" stuff, there is no room to teach for the future" (Prensky 2008). But this isn't true at all. I'm just trying to find a middle ground in this technology war. Why can't we do both? What is so wrong with still reading a book? Not everyone can afford a kindle. What is so wrong with learning how to write cursive? Not everyone has to type everything. Can't we do both?
B. Nesbitt produced a video called "A Vision of K-12 Students Today." It's a powerful video (despite the fact that the kids look totally miserable), but one scene jumped out at me. A boy holds up a sign: "Let me tell a story." Then another boy adds: "Digitally." Digital storytelling is wonderful, I'm sure. But what happened to just plain storytelling? What happened to sitting and listening to a story and enjoying it, the way that generations of the past did? Suddenly just plain storytelling seems inadequate and outdated, and that makes me sad. I hope that there can be a happy medium, where storytelling is not viewed as backward, but one equally important format of communication. It doesn't have to be digital to be a worthwhile activity.
To conclude, let me give you an analogy, which you may or may not agree with: have you ever looked at your children's toys - toys that light up, play music, make noises, open and close, and flash pretty colours? Have you ever stood there looking at all these toys, and then thought back to the cardboard box that you loved to play with when you were a kid? If so, what is your next thought? Perhaps your next thought is a clue as to what side of this "technology fence" you are on.
References:
"A Vision of K-12 Students Today." http://www.youtube.com. Web. 20 Jan 2010.
Prensky, M. (2008). Backup education. Educational Technology 48(1). Retrieved Oct. 31, 2008 from http://www.marcprensky.com/writing/Prensky-Backup_Education-EdTech-1-08.pdf
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Thanks for your response...I agree that some of Prensky's statements are provocative and (maybe intentionally) shocking. I think there is a way to find a balance between old and new...but perhaps the bigger question is how to achieve that balance and how to ensure teachers are trained and adequately supported so that they feel comfortable incorporating some of the new stuff into their practice.
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