Information Overload
In this digital and electronic age information comes and goes very quickly.
There is a huge debate over the effects of this cornucopia of breaking news and
technological advance and whether or not they are beneficial. Some of the last
bastions against the storm of progress are those cornerstones of society: public
schools. Many factors must be considered before allowing information technology
to completely transmute the halls of learning; among them the effects on
attention span, culture and broader society, creativity, and connection with
reality.
Attention span and creativity are two elements of personality that are seen
to be strongly affected by the profluence of information technology in today’s
world. The internet and television are especially seen to shorten the attention
span and creativity of those using them. On the internet “the instant you get
bored, click the mouse and you’re somewhere else” (Gelernter). This ability to
instantly change activity leads children to not develop the ability to spend
hour pursuing the same endeavor. The speed of the of the world is greatly
increased by the velocity with which information can travel. Creativity is also
harmed as people go to the internet for their pre-packaged entertainment that
“stifle a child's imagination rather than stimulate it,” rather than to the
traditional resources of imagination and the natural world (Dyson). The constant
influx of information technology has led to a decrease in the imagination and
attention span of today’s youth. These are both hugely important qualities in
school, and must be taken into consideration.
The profluence of information technology in today’s world has also affected
both our culture and our connection to reality, both of which institutions of
learning are dedicated to preserving. Students sit and watch programs on the
‘tube’ when they could go into the world and have the experiences themselves
(cartoon). Our culture has become commercialized and sound-bite oriented,
decreasing the importance of our heritage and making it so that “too many
American high school students have never read one Mark Twain novel or
Shakespeare play or Wordsworth poem, or a serious history of the U.S.”
(Gelernter). The profluence of information technology has affected the culture,
education, and connection to reality of today’s youth, and these must be taken
into consideration when weighing whether integrating technology into schools
would be a positive influence or a negative one.
Education is very important to society, and thus all factors must be weighed
when considering information technology into the educational experience. These
factors include the detrimental effect on attention span, creativity, connection
to reality, and culture. Once all factors have been weighed, then a decision may
be made.
In this digital and electronic age information comes and goes very quickly.
There is a huge debate over the effects of this cornucopia of breaking news and
technological advance and whether or not they are beneficial. Some of the last
bastions against the storm of progress are those cornerstones of society: public
schools. Many factors must be considered before allowing information technology
to completely transmute the halls of learning; among them the effects on
attention span, culture and broader society, creativity, and connection with
reality.
Attention span and creativity are two elements of personality that are seen
to be strongly affected by the profluence of information technology in today’s
world. The internet and television are especially seen to shorten the attention
span and creativity of those using them. On the internet “the instant you get
bored, click the mouse and you’re somewhere else” (Gelernter). This ability to
instantly change activity leads children to not develop the ability to spend
hour pursuing the same endeavor. The speed of the of the world is greatly
increased by the velocity with which information can travel. Creativity is also
harmed as people go to the internet for their pre-packaged entertainment that
“stifle a child's imagination rather than stimulate it,” rather than to the
traditional resources of imagination and the natural world (Dyson). The constant
influx of information technology has led to a decrease in the imagination and
attention span of today’s youth. These are both hugely important qualities in
school, and must be taken into consideration.
The profluence of information technology in today’s world has also affected
both our culture and our connection to reality, both of which institutions of
learning are dedicated to preserving. Students sit and watch programs on the
‘tube’ when they could go into the world and have the experiences themselves
(cartoon). Our culture has become commercialized and sound-bite oriented,
decreasing the importance of our heritage and making it so that “too many
American high school students have never read one Mark Twain novel or
Shakespeare play or Wordsworth poem, or a serious history of the U.S.”
(Gelernter). The profluence of information technology has affected the culture,
education, and connection to reality of today’s youth, and these must be taken
into consideration when weighing whether integrating technology into schools
would be a positive influence or a negative one.
Education is very important to society, and thus all factors must be weighed
when considering information technology into the educational experience. These
factors include the detrimental effect on attention span, creativity, connection
to reality, and culture. Once all factors have been weighed, then a decision may
be made.