Money Vs Technology Vs Education

We as a species can be proud of our achievements, especially in technology. Equally our generation can certainly be pleased with the giant steps that have been taken over the last few years, especially in the field of communications.

We have also advanced in another way though, one that we cannot be so proud of.

Our greed has become more ravenous than any time in our past. This is particularly noticeable in the wealthy and the giant multi national corporations. They are not happy or contented to remain with their millions or billions, they insist on all trying to be the one with the most power and being able to control the world.

Is our insistence on accumulating wealth, going to bring a halt to technology?

Our ability, in the main part, to make these advances in technology was due to a good educational background that linked with the known technology, did and should lead to advances in both.

The problem is though, as our technology improves we are allowing, not our education to improve but to deteriorate.

For example, take the cell phone, which is probably one of the greatest advances in technology, for our generation. Whilst the ability to interact and communicate is a bonus to any education, did we use the technology correctly?

Children will quickly communicate with each other but in what language? They no longer speak, they text. They do not text in any formerly known language; they have created their own form of texting shorthand. If a spell checker had been built into the cell phone, with only correctly spelt texts being able to be sent, our kids would have quickly learnt to spell even without formal classes, leaving more school time for perhaps science or social skills.

Cell phones with spell checkers though would not have sold so quickly, thereby not made so much money for the manufacturers.

I now see the next trend starting.

The internet is good and allows our children access to far more information than we had, even if our parents did have one wall of the den filled with encyclopedias.

At least on the internet our children would have to be able to read reasonably well in order to find and learn what they wanted to. Any education is based on the ability to read and write and the ability to spell makes these easier. Reading in itself therefore is good for improving education. Reading has been done less and less over the years. With the advances in TV’s, Video’s, movies and electronic games, the reading of books or comics has almost become a thing of the past in our children’s lives. Still, there was though the internet.

For how much longer though?

At one time I enjoyed browsing the net, seeing a headline that interested me, followed the link and read the article. I then moved on. Not today. More and more when you go to the link, all you find is the same headline and a video. In order to get the information you seek, you have to watch the video. They no longer even give you a choice of reading or watching. Why is this?

The reason for this is that where there is a written article, there will be an advertisement beside it but you may not read that. Now with a video, they put the advertisement at the start of the video, so you have to see it. OK, the internet sites have to make money but what happened to our freedom of choice? How soon will the headline be written in text shorthand?

Technology, mainly being used for the ever increasing quest for the almighty dollar is starting to affect the quality of our children’s education. If this trend continues, mankind could find itself in a time warp of technology. They have technology and the ability to maintain it but do not have the educational ability to advance it.

In summary, technology and the brainwashing of corporations are leading our children to become uneducated followers instead of educated, innovative seekers of advancement.