Getting more done faster?

This week in class, we again discussed what people use computers for. It is surprising that there is really nothing "new" going on here. . . we are using computers to accomplish the same types of tasks (or entertainment, or creations) that we accomplished before, without computers. Carter mentioned that somehow, with the addition of computers in our classrooms, the expectation levels have changed. We are now expected to do more, with less, and faster. Sounds familiar.

But wait, a little voice in my head shouts out. . . computers do help us do more, with less, and faster!! Instead of going to the library and finding books the old fashioned way (kids in tow as well), I just go online, find what I want quickly, and put it on hold. A trip to the library is now faster and easier. When my husband watches a movie and wants to know more about an actor he just say, he pulls out his ipod and quickly searches IMDB. Bingo, at his fingertips, all the information he needs. Fast! If I want to make a movie of my 4-year-old's birthday party, I just drag the photos into a slideshow, add the movies, insert a disc, and there you go -- a DVD is burning (theoretically, anyway). So why doesn't this work in education?

I am thinking the difference is that the tasks have become faster, but the learning doesn't change. We may be able to gather more information quickly, but then someone still has to sift through it all. We can automate tasks for our students, but they still have to do the work. And most importantly, there is no shortcut to actual learning!! No matter how much information we throw at our kids, they still have to build on it, experiment with it, absorb it. This process cannot be hurried or our children will be shortchanged. Computers can speed things up . . . but they can't (and shouldn't!) speed up our children!