Julia's Interview

Julia:  Do you think our growing dependence on technology, both inside and outside of the classroom, is important?  Why/why not?

Rose (parent, secretary): There are many factors here, each of which make the problem important.  First, children today are not learning the importance of penmanship.  As an individual who works with kids, I can say that most have completely illegible handwriting.  When I went to school, we were taught cursive writing and how to form our letters properly.  In fact, a woman would visit each grade level once a week to instruct us and to observe our handwriting.  In today's world, students are hardly ever required to write with pen and paper, except for bubbling in circles on tests or completing their in-class assignments.  I recently had a conversation with a little boy who was thoughtfully arguing in favor of technology.  I told him that it is beneficial to learn how to properly write, as we cannot afford the luxury of a computer every second of every day.  He strongly disagreed with my opinion, stating that computers can be found everywhere and in response, began noting the location of several in the classroom.  This discouraged me.  Even artistic activities such as map making have become a challenge, as students would rather find a computer program that will draw it for them.  In addition, students are losing the wonderful feeling of being able to curl up with a good book.  I have always regarded it as a very comforting feeling, especially if it is one of your favorites.  You will enjoy turning every page.  Essentially, there is so much technology in the world today.  Can't we just say "no" to electronic books and to the dependence on technology in general?

Julia:  Do you think that others in the community think this is important?

Rose: Yes, I believe they do.  I hear many people talking about how fast technology is moving today and how it may actually be causing harm to our children.  When operating a computer for so many hours a day, some students say that it sometimes causes them to have the feeling of being "hyper."  The printed word is also becoming obsolete.  Many magazines and newspapers are losing business because people are downloading information rather than purchasing hard copies of books and other publications.  This will certainly result in economic changes in the workplace.  More and more people will be out of jobs in the printing industry.  After all, why should a company pay to have brochures or books written and pay for printing and bindery when the information can simply be downloaded?  This is a shame because these printing industries have been around for years and they are, in themselves, an art form.

Julia:  Rose is not aware of any policies surrounding this issue/problem/topic.

Julia's Reflection:  Rose's views proved very similar to my own.  An avid reader, she is evidently very passionate in her belief that an abundance of technology is taking over the world of print.  I especially appreciated her thinking question: "Can't we just say 'no' to electronic books and to the dependence on technology in general?"  The reality of it is that we certainly have the power to say "no" and to refuse these advancements, but do we really want to?  The majority of us do not because, frankly, technology simplifies our lives.  Rose is absolutely right when she discusses students not knowing how to properly form letters or to complete specific school assignments.  Our dependency on computers has most certainly increased and will continue to.  Although we can never completely rebel in favor of the "good old days," we can take steps to preserve the ways of our past.  Individuals can opt for print books and, as I have, amass a physical library that they can be proud of.  Another thing that I enjoy doing is penning letters and mailing them.  Such a practice exercises one's penmanship while also helping to maintain traditions, though some might refer to them as "old-fashioned."  In interviewing Rose, many of my own thoughts were affirmed.  It is comforting to know that I am not the only one against our growing technological dependence.