There are plenty of shortcuts within learning. For example, after purchasing a digital camera I am able to experiment with color and composition without ever setting foot in a darkroom. This increases my trial-and-error rate tenfold. Add some quality reading material and perhaps a mentor, and I'm three steps ahead of someone doing it the old fashioned way. But there is often a cost; I can't develop my way out of a paper bag.
The problem with introducing computers into the classroom is that they do too many things, and we have a hard time limiting their scope. Instead of learning about math, students are learning about the device sitting in front of them and all that it can do. (Even when it's turned off, it has pretty keys to peck on.)
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There are plenty of shortcuts within learning. For example, after purchasing a digital camera I am able to experiment with color and composition without ever setting foot in a darkroom. This increases my trial-and-error rate tenfold. Add some quality reading material and perhaps a mentor, and I'm three steps ahead of someone doing it the old fashioned way. But there is often a cost; I can't develop my way out of a paper bag.
The problem with introducing computers into the classroom is that they do too many things, and we have a hard time limiting their scope. Instead of learning about math, students are learning about the device sitting in front of them and all that it can do. (Even when it's turned off, it has pretty keys to peck on.)