Reading about how many teachers still regard the use of technology and even the words associated with Web 2.0 as a fad, I thought about how some educators still cling to the idea that traditional teaching must work because people have been educated this way for years. It also makes me consider the idea that traditional learning requires the students to learn on their own and I wonder if today’s students do that. With the consistent improvements in technology, life has become increasingly simpler and easier to get by without a lot of work. Education is a perfect example of how students become used to completing just the minimum and expecting that meeting the assignment is enough to receive an A. Very few student’s try to go beyond the expectations of their teachers to fully engage and learn the content in a meaningful way.
While instructors may consider the use of Web 2.0 in the classroom to be overrated, what about the truth behind the students desire and use of resources? Teaching research methods in my class, I find out quickly that even in a less technologically advanced area in which all students do not have regular access to a computer, they still only consider the Internet as the best place to find materials. The reason students like the library is the convenience.
I found a press release that looks at another aspect of why people don’t go to the library. Last year the New York Library Association released a report that public school library books are over 20 years old on average. The costs that states are paying for books have not been kept up and the book in the libraries are outdated and not accurate or relevant. When I was in high school, I know that the only time I visited the library was when we visited as a class. I did not check out books and remember a small number of popular books always being checked out. These books were for enjoyment and usually the last purchased as an enticement to keep kids coming into the library. If I needed to do research, I went to the public library. I remember there being a lot of outdated books there as well, but more books on the shelf.
http://www.nyla.org/index.php?page_id=1520
The trips that I have taken to libraries recently make me question the money that seems to be missing. Many are outdated or focusing on newer materials, but not replacing books that are reference materials. Many libraries seem to be having problems bringing youth into them and away from the bookstores. How can we create a library that is more geared toward younger students, especially digital learners?
On the website engadget, I found an article that discussed how one school is changing the library to stay current in today’s technological world. How would you react if your child’s school were nixing all books in favor of e-readers? A Boston prep school is doing just that. The headmaster feels that books are outdated. The new learning center will include, “three flat screen televisions, laptops, 18 e-readers, and a coffee bar” (2009). I know that while many will be hesitant to welcome this endeavor, I sure would be excited as a student. I would spend more time in the library. The more time students are in the library or high tech learning center, the more opportunity they have to learn and pick up a book- even if it is a Kindle.
http://www.engadget.com/2009/09/05/boston-prep-school-nixes-all-the-books-in-its-library-replaces/
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