Quote Originally Posted by TAAUBlaster View Post
I don't have any kids, but I'm not keen on this big push for everything being electronic in schools.
Not only the cost factor (my parents did it tough for my brother and I just buying books up until 2004. I can't imagine what would've happened if we had to buy 2 devices at today's prices.) but If iPad's are going to be used in schools, won't this just end up creating a generation of near sighted kids?
Kids already spend too long their phones, and private devices (not to mention playing consoles, etc.) Adding another small screen to stare at is just going to make things worse isn't it?

And how are kids going to retain all the knowledge from the device centered lesson? I don't know how the lessons work, but I've always found the best way to begin learning something is to physically write down notes. Does that still happen?
I'll admit, I don't know much about how kids are taught these days. And maybe I'm getting old, but I really don't like the idea of mandatory tech in schools. It just doesn't sit well with me personally.
In high school, my economics teacher used to have a board full of writing as we walked in each lesson for us to copy down in our books. Sometimes there was so much that the entire 40 minute period was taken up writing this stuff down, he didn't even get to talk to us about it.

I learned two things from that class:

1) The human brain is an incredible thing. By halfway through year 11, about half of the class could copy what was on the board into their books with only two glances at the board. TWO! After a 6-7 second look at the board, I could write down, without looking up again, AT LEAST half of what was on the board. By the end of year 12, I could pretty much do the board from one glance! We had to do this because sometimes there was multiple boards worth and he had to rub out what was on there to get the rest up before the end of the class. That was impressive.

2) I had no recolection of what I had just written down. I was memorising the words, but wasn't reading what was written. So from one glance at the board I could write the whole lot down, but couldn't tell you what it was about. I had to go back and read it once I was done.