Re:tools and learning (Score 1)

i agree with your statement about teaching computers as a tool. but there should also be something said about the quality of the rest of the teaching in schools. why is it beneficial to teach children the use of computers when they have difficulty teaching them to read? Will children really learn how to use MSWord if they can't write a complete sentence? And who is going to teach them how to use a computer? most of the children will learn faster than the teachers. so after the first four months, the kids will know everything the teacher does. what comes next? will the school boards pay for the teachers to take additional courses on use of computers? And what about content? will they teach the basics of using programs, or the basics of java programming? or both? does surfing the net count as a learning experience? and for the money these school boards are looking to spend, they'd be lucky to get a Speak 'n' Spell. how do they expect to get $6000 machine for $500? and kidproofed to boot. instead of spending millions on laptops that will be lost, broken, hacked, stolen (because we all know that telling a child a machine is impossible to break will only produce a new way of breaking things), the school boards should be improving the schools and teaching basic concepts. if they want computer exposure, install a computer lab. Teach the kids the bare essentials and let them goof around on the machines. self-teaching is much more fun, and ultimately how anything is learned.