Ask Slashdot: Is E-Learning a Viable Option?

An anonymous reader writes "My spouse, who is an elementary school science teacher, has had some experience in e-learning, since her school gave iPads to all the students. She found that students used these devices, not for school purposes like note taking, but for gaming, etc. It got to the point that she banned them from her classroom. Do technology aids help, or hinder, education? Is the idea that students can be home-schooled electronically realistic, or absurd?"

Comments

Re:Like teacher, like student

[daem0n1x]

If it ain't broken, don't fix it.

We seem to have done a pretty good job educating people in the last century or two. In most developed countries, most people are educated to the limits of human capacity.

All the innovative devices may have a role in education, but they should be considered carefully. Education systems are under attack right now. They're being pressured by the neoliberal shitheads to sharply lower costs and by corporations (usually the same guys) that want to make big money selling expensive toys to governments.

Blackboard and textbooks have worked for long, why such a rush to replace them? IMHO, the ability of a country to educate its population depends more in factors outside the school. like:

1. how families value education
2. how families stimulate critical thinking in kids
3. if kids are well fed, safe, happy
4. etc.

If a kid wants to learn and has a competent teacher, blackboard and textbook is more than enough.