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College Freshmen Struggle With Tech Literacy

Posted by ryuzaki0 on from the gotta-grow-up-nerd-to-get-ahead dept.

snow_man writes to mention an article on the E-Commerce News site about techno-literacy problems with incoming college freshmen. Some schools, like CSU, are planning on including a technology comprehension test alongside their English and Math evaluations for new students. From the article: "Not all of Generation M can synthesize the loads of information they're accessing, educators say. 'They're geeky, but they don't know what to do with their geekdom,' said Barbara O'Connor, a Sacramento State communications studies professor involved in a nationwide effort to hone students' computer-research skills. On a recent nationwide test to measure their technological 'literacy' -- their ability to use the Internet to complete class assignments -- only 49 percent of the test-takers correctly evaluated a set of Web sites for objectivity, authority and timeliness. Only 35 percent could correctly narrow an overly broad Internet search."

11 of 298 comments (clear)

  1. The Next Generation... by __aaclcg7560 · · Score: 3, Funny

    Generation M is what? I thought Generation Z was up next. At least, it's not Generation 2.0+ (TM).

    1. Re:The Next Generation... by lifebouy · · Score: 3, Funny

      Generation M is a five issue (Marvel X-men spinoff) mini-series written by Paul Jenkins and pencilled by Ramon Bachs. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Generation_M/

      --
      Drop me a line at:
      Key ID: 0x54D1D809
  2. Easy. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    What is so hard about "porn -midget -horse -gay"?

    1. Re:Easy. by __aaclcg7560 · · Score: 4, Funny

      It's bad for the horse.

    2. Re:Easy. by KermodeBear · · Score: 3, Funny

      You mistyped that a bit. Let me help you:
      "porn -midget +horse -gay"

      --
      Love sees no species.
  3. Yeah, yeah, yeah by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

    I understand all that, but could someone please help me with this assignment. I should write a C-program which sorts array elements in alphabetical descending order. I tried googling already, but failed and thought that I should ask Slashdot. So please help me, ASAP!

  4. Searchless in Irvine... by JollyGoodChase · · Score: 2, Funny

    They can only play games. As soon as WOW has a COBOL interface, things will change.

  5. Hmmm I wonder why by MikeRT · · Score: 3, Funny

    Could it be that most students today have no ability to critically think? When I took a Poli Sci class to see how the other half lived in college, I wasn't surprised. I was met by peers who were largely spoon-fed political propaganda and could regurgitate it, but couldn't actually rationally justify it. For me it was like clubbing baby seals because I have frequently subjected my own views to a level of introspection that they would never do.

    Why doesn't this surprise me? Because the public schools don't teach a bloody thing anymore unless you live in a rich district. Even there, they generally teach only math or science very well. There are some very worthy things about the classical education model with its three phases which happen to correspond pretty closely with recently observed brain development in most people.

    1. Re:Hmmm I wonder why by Sigma+7 · · Score: 3, Funny
      Could it be that most students today have no ability to critically think?


      Actually, the ability to critically think is continuously supressed in the public "regurgitation" school system. These systems train students that there is exactly one correct answer to questions, and that they have to be done in a specific method. The supression of the theory of evolution is one example.

      The only way to develop the skill is to follow the concept of He Said, She Said - find a topic (e.g. Is capital punishment acceptable?), and write two opposing viewpoints. As much as you hate the rigid 5-paragraph essay, it is ideal for keeping your two opposing arguments balanced enough. Here's a scaled down version (i.e. two 5-sentence paragraphs) of such an argument:

      + Capital punishment is necessary in the criminal justice system. When criminals commit severe crimes, they remain in jail for the rest of their life, leeching from the rest of society. Capital punishment will significantly reduce the overall cost by cutting down the number of years such criminals can remain a burden. In addition, this punishment can also be utilized as a method to encourage reformation (similar to parole) where produtive prisoners are permitted to enjoy life for a longer period. This economic advantage can help both society and prisoner reformation.

      - Capital punishment is the bane of society. The current justice system is inaccurrate with a large quantity of false convictions. These false convictions, which include charges "worthy" of capital punishment, can be composed of fabrication of evidence, political motivation, Confessing Sams, or general mistakes. A direct result of such blunders is a loss of an innocent life. To prevent such unnecessary loss, capital punishment must be avoided at all costs.

      As you take a look from both sides of an argument, you become better developed in handling suspect claims. While you may initially have an emotional feeling concerning something not being "right", this will change into being able to detect the exact arguments that are causing the problem.
  6. Re:i have noticed this strange phenomenon by dangitman · · Score: 2, Funny

    Do you have a link to instructions for getting out of a paper bag? I couldn't find any through Google.

    --
    ... and then they built the supercollider.
  7. Re:i have noticed this strange phenomenon by cashman73 · · Score: 4, Funny

    Yes. Google has 9,160,000 links right here.