Some Ohio Schools Ban All Tech In The Classroom

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And the raging debate of the day will no doubt be over schools that ban all technology in the classroom (until the 8th grade). Your thoughts?

It's not because the people behind Waldorf are anti-technology — they just believe learning computers in the first 12 or 13 years of a child's life is "not what's best for them." They also believe that kids don't need to be taught how to use computers as they're intuitive machines anyway. By the time the students reach eighth grade (which is the last possible year in the Waldorf system), though, teachers begin allowing them to use computers for basic purposes like research.
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I work for public education. Students in my district have access to a classroom computer in preschool, then start regular computer education and safety in 1st grade.
 
All the way through middle school ?

Nah, that's going too far. Elementary School, yes. Let the kids learn the fundamentals, then in middle school expose them to simple tech, like calculators and *some* computer based learning, and for the love of god (if you believe in him/her/it) force kids to learn basic computing skills. I'm tired of dealing with what I call the "iphone" generation. Young people that are seemingly intelligent that cannot understand the most basic aspects of technology.

You want me to plug it in and charge when I'm not using it !?! That would be wasting energy ! I've want to reduce my carbon footprint! Now get me a new one of these machines because this one is clearly broken, it won't charge the battery !
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I can think of no profession worth having that doesn't need at least solid basic computing skills. It's probably real world more useful than 75% of the math classes they teach.
 
FFS, we had computers in class all the way back to 1st gade, and I'm old as fossilized trout tits. So what if they were heavily used Apple IIe?
 
in my profession less than 25% need computer skills. those that do use the computer assume theyre too important to do anything tbat takes them away from the computer. i work in printing in prepress.

you'd be surprised how little computer skills most people need in the real world. there are fewer desk jobs than production jobs.
 
That is stupid on so many levels I really don't know where to begin.

Firstly, by limiting students from technology you're basically holding them behind from a carrier with tech. It's nice to teach them the old school, but tech is here to stay and a serious place to land a job in the future.

Secondly, how would you be encouraging students who have a gift with tech? You'd be cutting them off from learning about themselves. Typing should be done at an early age. Dealing with computers should be done at an early age.

Finally, I can see your point of view and technology can be used to skip the need to memorize stuff, that nobody really remembers after a while anyway. History, nobody is going to remember the persons name that crossed a river to fight the bad guys. Math, I'm sure I don't need to know how to use a quadratic in the real world. Computers is a real skill that everyone needs, like English.
 
JiveMofo said:
in my profession less than 25% need computer skills. those that do use the computer assume theyre too important to do anything tbat takes them away from the computer. i work in printing in prepress.

you'd be surprised how little computer skills most people need in the real world. there are fewer desk jobs than production jobs.
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Hm, having done prepress and dtp work in the past, I can say at least 2/3 my time was spent in front of a computer. No slacking off, either. Even BizHub MicroPress job building is majority focused on digital managed workflows.
 
My kids are going to have at least basic computer knowledge by that time, regardless of what any school thinks. :rolleyes:
 
Grades 1-6 We were not permitted to have a cellphone, gameboy, etc. We had a computer lab that we would use when allowed but no free play.
Grade 7/8 we were only permitted to use a cellphone before/after school and also had a computer lab/library computers to use during break, lunch and before/after school.
 
LeninGHOLA said:
FFS, we had computers in class all the way back to 1st gade, and I'm old as fossilized trout tits. So what if they were heavily used Apple IIe?
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I'm not even that far out of college and I remember those beige Mac's. Before they were all fruity and what not...
 
I am all for this.

I worked as a Systems Admin for a top 50 school system by population. I also worked for a Division 1 University as a Senior Project Analyst and I can tell you that funding is generally abused for the sake of technology. Whereas infrastructure improvements should be performed schools would rather spend money on technology.

Plus in most school systems the security is lacking and most importantly the teachers rely too much on teaching children to use the technology for example clicking on the correct answer versus getting that information.
 
the rage over this kind of stuff always cracks me up.

kids use computers all the time, my 7 year old downloaded, installed, and then was playing a game and I walked my and said "WTF" I never showed him how to do that. Mind you, I don't have custody and his mom is a filthy hippy who doesn't use the computer or own one.

The kids are better off learning life skills first, then a formal computer class, they get enough informal computer training at home, obviously.
 
stealthy123 said:
the rage over this kind of stuff always cracks me up.

kids use computers all the time, my 7 year old downloaded, installed, and then was playing a game and I walked my and said "WTF" I never showed him how to do that. Mind you, I don't have custody and his mom is a filthy hippy who doesn't use the computer or own one.

The kids are better off learning life skills first, then a formal computer class, they get enough informal computer training at home, obviously.
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If you want to teach them life skills you might as well teach them some:

- Electrical skills
- Plumbing skills
- Contracting skills
- Programming languages
- Financial skills.
and cut sports programs in schools.
 
LeninGHOLA said:
FFS, we had computers in class all the way back to 1st gade, and I'm old as fossilized trout tits. So what if they were heavily used Apple IIe?
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Fossilized trout tits, interesting image :).

I've had a computer since about 7 years old. Taught myself how the insides worked and it flourished into a very fun hobby.
 
Also turned into a nice business for a little while that I couldve kept going.
 
roaf85 said:
If you want to teach them life skills you might as well teach them some:

- Electrical skills
- Plumbing skills
- Contracting skills
- Programming languages
- Financial skills.
and cut sports programs in schools.
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sports are really valuable as learning how to conduct yourself in a team atmosphere, which is a huge life skill going forward. Knowing your role and cooperation with others is vital, sports teaches that. Also, there is zero need to take physical activity out of school life, sports, PE, whatever.
 
Lot's of people who never played organized sports don't understand how much value they have, I played from 1st grade till freshman year of college, and it's helped me immensely in the real world.
 
mashie said:
We didn't have computers in school until after 9th grade and no tallowed to use calculators until 8th grade.

After all it doesn't hurt if the kids have to use their brains at least a little before they grow up.
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In highschool, a select few of us students were in charge of the network and computer labs, from IT helpdesk, email admin, sysadmin, network engineer, printer repair, imaging teacher's laptops, you name it.

For the free IT labor, we got college credit.

Computers shouldn't be a tool to help you shut off your brain, they should be a tool for learning more.
 
I was taking classes on running the Office suite well before 8th grade. We had to produce works in Excel, Powerpoint, and Word. I also had typing classes starting in the 6th grade and I, and others from that school, had a massive lead over our peers for papers and such and still maintain a lead over our college and working careers. I can't tell you how many people who work daily with computers that I've met that have no idea how to actually operate them, much less type. Out of everything I got out of that school the skills I am finding most useful are my typing skills and the fact I was taking two languages a year in the 7th and 8th grades which helped me tremendously in building my technique for learning languages. We have a real problem in this country of teaching students to take tests and not to teach subjects.
 
I think they are just trying to teach kids the fundamentals before they get exposed to technology. I don't really think that is the way to do it though. Technology is so much a part of our lives now, they need to start incorporating it into the educational system.
We are dooming future generations to only be consumers instead of creators if we don't get our educational system up to speed.
 
I have been astounded at just how poorly educated students in middle school and high school are I suspect technology is partly to blame, and I suspect far to many teachers use computers to baby sit students and neglect their jobs.

The vast majority of kids have basic computing skills from home and are far more in need of basic English and math, math without technology
 
I work in IT for a school district, I can honestly say they're probably shutting this down due to the elementary students knowing more than the teachers in regards to tech.

This is obviously a knee-jerk reaction without reading the article, just what I've experienced and heard from other IT admins, etc.

I think computer skills are very important to students these days, and the earlier they're exposed to this, the more comfortable they'll be with it later. I also think a balanced approach to making sure they can solve real life problems and research without technology is beneficial. Google doesn't solve everything :)
 
Computers are tools. You can can use them for the right and wrong reasons. Years ago in my construction career I was accused by one of my peers of cheating because I used a calculator to find rafter lengths for a roof. I told him the calculator is just another tool, and if he really wanted to do it old-school he'd be pounding nails in with a rock on a stick.

iPad? More toy than tool for a classroom.
 
Never used computers til I hit college in the middle 70's(then on both IBM 360 and 1130 mainframes....). I think todays kids rely on technology too much and not on using their BRAINS. No wonder math and science in schools today are lagging other countries...
 
Computers in school aren't really the big deal they used to be now that most homes have at least 1 computer. When I was in elementary school in the late 80s and we'd have our computer class, I was the only student in my class who had a computer at home. The other kids only had exposure to computers through school.

That's not really the case anymore. But still, the reality of life is that computers are essential to just about any career worth having. Some educators may dislike that we've moved away from the old fashioned way of doing things and that we've left some of the old fundamentals in the dust. But elementary school is about preparing kids with basic life knowledge and a foundation for further education. Much of life and education is going to involve computers.

Decisions regarding our kids education should always come down to whether or not it better prepares them for the real world. The very computerized real world.
 
I grew up in the apple II crowd.
Associates degree in c++ before it was taken over.
Net Plus, A+ and certifications in hp & cisco.

I now run a retail company that has one computer for checking prices. We have NO point of sale system. We have NO digital ordering system. The most advanced thing we have is a credit card machine.

1.2m last year.

We tried the computer thing a few years back. Implementing and training wasn't worth it.

Teach them skills like balancing a checkbook and changing a flat tire. It's more useful than computers.
 
Dzero said:
Computers are tools. You can can use them for the right and wrong reasons. Years ago in my construction career I was accused by one of my peers of cheating because I used a calculator to find rafter lengths for a roof. I told him the calculator is just another tool, and if he really wanted to do it old-school he'd be pounding nails in with a rock on a stick.

iPad? More toy than tool for a classroom.
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iPad's are mostly used in the special needs classrooms. For them, it's more useful than a toy.
 
LeninGHOLA said:
Computers shouldn't be a tool to help you shut off your brain, they should be a tool for learning more.
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this is why these measures are needed.

school systems are already troubled, and the education that the child receives is suffering the most from it. you cannot build a complete curriculum with computers as part of the whole process. its simply not an answer to improve the skills and education of the student.

(screw research, we have google. wtf is a book, my source is wikipedia.)

there is a reason you didnt use calculators in grade school.
kids may be fairly smart, but often lack problem solving, and critical thinking. they are dumbed down by a system of test prepping that limits their actual learning. computers are a tool to simplify the workload for people who already know how to solve things. not prevent them from learning how to do it in the first place.

computers should probably be used in a well structured curriculum at a high school level, teaching real skills, innovative skills like computer languages and programming or design, something that would stand a chance of sparking some really smart students to getting into something that has a bright future, teach them useful skills while they are at their brightest. instead of gimping them, or hoping they learn on their own.

im in my 30s, computers while i was in school were typically used to play games, or learn extremely simple programming like logo, or for a typing class. not used as part of a strong curriculum.

computers are 10x more affordable now, then when i was young. its up to the parents to give kids access to them, and get them to use them for something other then a gaming machine/social networking. however in most cases in a single computer home, the adults will be on the computer, while the child rots their brains on the tv, or fragging their friends on the console.
 
Im 30, computer class was minimal, nay, "uncool" growing up. I Taught myself Perl using Google. If you want to learn technology and have some type of drive the Internet will teach you everything you need to know. Kids have plenty of time at home to learn computers.

Kids need to learn how to control their hands and write with a pen/pencil, they need to be able to read an analog clock, and they need to be able to do general math in their head.
 
invisbob said:
...We tried the computer thing a few years back. Implementing and training wasn't worth it....
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I know not every business requires computer systems, but just the way you said it...you should have added 'dagnabbit'!

Thank you for the good laugh.
 
I wholeheartedly support this.

While a child can indeed learn to use a computer as a tool for learning, the problem lies with the parents that are too lazy or ineffective. They will go about and do their own thing while their kid is blissfully entertained by the computer -- SOME parents are responsible and limit their child's use of a computer, or a console, but unfortunately this is the minority.

Sports also needs to have a severe reduction in funding. Sports can teach you a lot, and it can definitely make you into a better person, but you don't need all the expensive equipment or fancy buildings: when I was in high school, the administration built a gym. Cost over 3 million dollars to build. The science wing? Oh, it's only having major leaking issues when it rains, and a part of the roof may have literally fallen on a teacher -- but they're nerds, they can figure out how to fix it, right? How about the music class? Oh, they receive all their instruments via donations anyway, and the only instruments we care about are for the football band.

But I am going off topic now -- we don't need to be all old school about it, we just have to use common sense and exercise responsibility.
 
Completely support this. Let's face it, schools simply cannot keep up with the pace of technology to be effective at teaching computer skills. Kids are going to learn this on their own at home with the family PC, their smart phones, etc. What most schools really fail at is teaching basic reading, writing and critical thinking skills. I rather than spend the time and money schools waste on PCs, laptops etc. on adding critical thinking classes and a stronger focus on science, math and humanities.

Plus let's be honest, too often technology becomes a mental crutch to hide how little a student knows, understands or can effectively communicate.
 
Blaming computers for problems regarding education is, at best, insane. A computer is a tool. It is inherently neutral. The problem lies not in the tools used (or not used) in classrooms but in the educators, school administration, and in the Department of Education and its completely asinine requirements that make standardized tests the end-all-be-all of all education. Those tests are a crock and everyone knows it but is too complacent to challenge it. Kids aren't taught skills, they don't hone their abilities, they are trained to take tests. State educational systems make it worse by adding even more standardized tests that are required. Standardized tests mean everything to school districts. They determine their federal funding and their state funding. In the most real way, they determine what the school's focus will be. If you want to know why science and history are completely foreign to students, and that advanced maths and English skills are few and far between it's because none of that is a factor to the standardized tests. They are all about meeting the minimum requirements to maintain funding. Children who are more capable and genuinely interested aren't shunned necessarily, but are seen as obstacles because so often they become bored that their scores tank simply from that boredom and apathy. On the other side you have children who know how to game the system, to score just enough to get by and to slack around the rest of the time and yet are genuinely bright kids. I left high school utterly furious at all of the bureaucracy. I felt completely swindled out of an education. I genuinely wanted to learn but my opportunity to do so was hampered by a completely apathetic school system who found me completely uninteresting because I wasn't in the top 1% and wasn't in the bottom 50% of their test scores. It's been over 5 years now and I still get mad over it.
 
blitzkommando said:
Blaming computers for problems regarding education is, at best, insane. A computer is a tool. It is inherently neutral.
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While I also agree with you in the entirety of your post, the idea here is that technology is being limited or banned to give way for teachers to educate children in what I think are the basic -- and most important -- things like science, math, reading, critical thinking, etc.

Kids are kids -- they will use technology as a toy, not as a tool. Especially if you've weak-willed parents who will simply not enforce discipline in how to use said tools. As you said, the tool is neutral -- but it doesn't mean it's given a free pass either.

There is nothing wrong with admitting that in certain cases a neutral tool can cause more harm than good.
 
Hell, I think computers should be present at school even before kids can read or write. Maybe especially so.

They're not here to replace teachers, and obviously their usage should be closely thought off and monitored and restricted, but banning them altogether make them sound like the bad wolf and we all know what happened with the defended fruit.
Computers are part of out world just like any other matter, so they should be taught at school. It can certainly create a common cultural background for kids just as much as learning about medieval European history. And if you don't start with the basics at an early age, there is no way kids are gonna be proficient in just that one last year at Waldorf. Having a computer at home is not going to help them understand computers, or initiate them to programming; only schools can do that.
 
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