Slashdot Mirror
Technology and Society
nyquist_theorem writes: "MSNBC has an interesting article entitled Billy gets a laptop that covers the Harley-riding independent governor of Maine's take on technology and its role in government. While previous coverage on Slashdot covered the governor's plan to give his 7th graders laptops, this article offers a glimpse of that all-too-rare breed, the insightful, technologically aware bureaucrat - in this case discussing the sociological implications of the net in the wake of Sept 11th. The article also mentions some of the other measures the government of Maine is taking to use the net in ways that actually benefit its citizens."
Every person raised on the 'net from an early age, by the government. It's the next best thing to having Big Brother right in your very own home! Whoo hoo!
Does a 7th grader need with a laptop????
Hell, even as an ENGINEERING student in COLLEGE, I didn't have my own computer. You see, I was there to, um, learn how to actually *DO* things. Computers are a good tool to do those things, but you really need to learn what it is the computer is doing to make it worthwhile! We didn't learn how to use commercial FEM in school. We learned the equations and methods, then wrote our own.
What, exactly, will a laptop be used for in the teaching of algebra, history, writing? Does nobody use books and teachers anymore? WTF???
This stuff scares the hell out of me. We are not teaching our kids to think or research. We are teaching them how to let a computer figure it out instead.
How can this country ever hope to innovate new ideas, etc, if the children never have to figure out *HOW* computers work, and *HOW* to derive equations, systems, text, etc. to accomplish a given task?
This really sounds like a bad idea - I'm from the UK so I assume these are 12-14 year old kids getting the laptops.
They don't need them, not one bit. At all. It would be better to get the money to spend on better basic education. I don't know what really they will need the laptops for. It will probably get loaded with porn, games and other crap. The laptops will break with alarming frequency. And it will cost a bomb.
I admit there will be essays to do but these can be done by hand. I don't think word processors / spreadsheets are really needed till the last two years of school when you have to do projects and the like. Waste of money...