Kids and the Internet
Do you allow your little kids access to the internet?
I find the article at Orion particularly interesting, which in part says,
"There is a profound difference between learning from the world and learning about it. Any young reader can find a surfeit of information about worms on the Internet. But the computer can only teach the student about worms, and only through abstract symbols—images and text cast on a two-dimensional screen. Contrast that with the way children come to know worms by hands-on experience—by digging in the soil, watching the worm retreat into its hole, and of course feeling it wiggle in the hand. There is the delight of discovery, the dirt under the fingernails, an initial squeamishness followed by a sense of pride at overcoming it. This is what can infuse knowledge with reverence, taking it beyond simple ingestion and manipulation of symbols. And it is reverence in learning that inspires responsibility to the world, the basis of belonging. So I had to wonder why the teacher from the Charlotte's Web video asked children to create animated computer pictures of spiders. Had she considered bringing terrariums into the room so students could watch real spiders fluidly spinning real webs? Sadly, I suspect not..."
Here's the full article.
Disclosure: I don't have kids, but you do.
I find the article at Orion particularly interesting, which in part says,
"There is a profound difference between learning from the world and learning about it. Any young reader can find a surfeit of information about worms on the Internet. But the computer can only teach the student about worms, and only through abstract symbols—images and text cast on a two-dimensional screen. Contrast that with the way children come to know worms by hands-on experience—by digging in the soil, watching the worm retreat into its hole, and of course feeling it wiggle in the hand. There is the delight of discovery, the dirt under the fingernails, an initial squeamishness followed by a sense of pride at overcoming it. This is what can infuse knowledge with reverence, taking it beyond simple ingestion and manipulation of symbols. And it is reverence in learning that inspires responsibility to the world, the basis of belonging. So I had to wonder why the teacher from the Charlotte's Web video asked children to create animated computer pictures of spiders. Had she considered bringing terrariums into the room so students could watch real spiders fluidly spinning real webs? Sadly, I suspect not..."
Here's the full article.
Disclosure: I don't have kids, but you do.
posted by Mike King at 7:57 PM
2 Comments:
The opportunity for some of the learning by discovery, and being in concert with nature, could and should be provided by student’s parents!
As for the behavior and ethics of students, on line, again the parents responsibly!
For a look into the future of the cyber world, and globalization, try David Brin’s prescient novel, Earth. It also features a, SPINDIZZY
I love worms! There's nothing better than digging in my garden and unearthing the little guys. A sure sign of healthy, vibrant soil conditions (I make sure they all make it back into the soil of course). But, perhaps this is not the point of the article.
Sure, learning can't be all about reading it in a book or watching a video. Sure, you need the "hands on" too. Same with life and living. So, put down the book, turn off the TV, get off the internet and go out and dig a little.
Uh, speaking of getting off the internet, I can't, I'm hooked on a National Geographic website that has a webcam focused on a watering hole in Botswana 7x24. It's a real kick to see the elephants, giraffes, baboons, zebras, osteriches, etc. pass through.
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