Too Much Technology?
Will our youth have trouble later in life?
With the widespread technological usage of the Internet, cell phones, and video games, is it any wonder our children do not know how to communicate without technology? Yes, there will always be the older generation concerned about what the younger generation is doing, but it appears the technological use of such devices have seriously impacted today's young person, almost from the beginning of their lives. It is not unusual to find young children chatting on their cell phone, or rapidly text messaging their pals. In fact one may wonder what in the world would happen to these young people if the entire communications grid was shut down due to an earthquake or other similar incident!
Young people under the age of twenty, for the most part, have grown up with the Internet, cell phone, Ipod, GPS, video games and other technology so pervasive in their lives there is not a time they have ever been without it in their world. The revolution in the information age makes everything faster, easier and more accessible at their fingertips at an early age. Never having lived in a time when this was not available, there is an enormous amount of time and energy spent fixated on one kind of screen or another, and the lack of communication is creating some real issues when it comes to education and life skills.
Imagine if you will that a child texts 1400 or more messages a month on their cell phone. The time spent using the feature, as well as the abbreviated language used to rely to a message makes the child a kind of nonthinking automaton. Spending time reading or relaxing has been taken up with online activities and games that may make their gaming skills better, but are not doing anything for their hands. Carpel tunnel syndrome is now showing up in children from their over use of tiny keyboards to text their pals.
Watching a young person idly walking down a street has been replaced with a nonthinking robot yakking on a cell phone to someone with whom they have some kind of connection. One wonders if simply taking a walk has become nonexistent? Never mind the enjoyment of the scenery or taking in the time to think, instead we get a loud and obnoxious voice yammering about nothing really at all.
Technology is definitely changing the way students engage in the classroom as well, making much of any manual tasks like writing, almost obsolete. Cursive Writing is not taught in many classrooms, to the detriment of students signatures! I may be getting older, but these kids will not be getting wiser if they do not find a way to integrate the old technolocy with the new and learn how to read and communicate without machines.
