On one side of the classroom, students are typing on Chromebooks — distractions abound: cell phones, social media, videos. On the other side, students are working at typewriters, and the chatter of the mill abounds. Typists, immersed in their work, press on with ideas, and page after page flies off the machines: one draft, two drafts, three drafts.
One of my students initially looked confused as she prepared to work at a typewriter. “How do you insert the paper?” After a brief demonstration, she replied: “OK, so it’s not rocket science.” And then the words, the ideas, began to flow…
It’s not “rocket science,” but innovation in education is sometimes elusive. We have new technologies, but few good ideas. At a subject-area meeting in my school district, one teacher commented: “Why do we buy books anymore? Students can read PDFs on their Chromebooks.” They can, but should they?
Right now, the bell has rung… students are pouring out of the classroom… the typists remain…
© 2018, Mark Adams. All rights reserved.
Good to see a student at the typewriter.
It’s frankly shocking that some teachers, who should know better, are so easily bamboozled into believing that digital = better.