Technology Overload

With growing technology it is becoming more and rare for people to sit down and read a book or newspaper.  Why is that? The answer is simple. It's not as fast as the internet or television. People are running their lives at a faster pace nowadays so keeping up to date on news is best done on internet sites like 'yahoo' and 'msn'.  That is not to say that no one reads books or newspapers but the "reader" is becoming a dying breed.  This shift is occurring not only in The United States but across the sea as well.  In Japan, newspaper industries are trying to keep up with the internet hype by giving subscribers the option to add web editions. Although this is smart for keeping customers, the same can’t be said for keeping jobs… “The paper and printing industries have a lot riding on newspapers, so much so that the government subsidizes newsprint.” Japanese Times

Along with the popularity of reading tangible print, could the existence of books become obsolete as well?  That is what Bradbury suggests in his book Farenheit 451.  Most people would think that idea is nearly impossible.  The burning of millions of books seems farfetched, but we are headed that way.  In fact we have already done it.  During the Holocaust , under the Nazi regime thousands of books were burned for their educational content.  Holocaust Book Burning    

Since new technology has replaced old forms of receiving information and knowledge the need for books is diminishing.  While we get information more quickly we also get a dumbed down version of everything.  A quote from Farenheit 451 hits the nail on the head… "The zipper displaces the button and a man lacks just that much time to think while dressing at dawn, a philosophical hour, and thus a melancholy hour." If we as human beings decide to delete reading a book from our lives then we delete this ability as well. This is the reason that critical thinking skills will be lowed as well.  Instead of wanting to hang on to books people won't see the need for them because of their lack of thinking skills. A dumbed down society won't care if some authority decides books aren't good for them anymore, so Bradbury's theory becomes truth.  We have to alter this path if we stand a chance to make our mark in history, or even have a history. 

Technology Overload

With growing technology it is becoming more and more rare for people to sit down and read a book or newspaper.  Why is that? The answer is simple. It's not as fast as the internet or televison. People are running their lives at a faster pace nowadays so keeping up to date on news is best done on internet sites like 'yahoo' and 'msn'.  That is not to say that no one reads books or newspapers but the "reader" is becoming a dying breed. 

Along with the popularity of reading tangible print, could the existence of books become obsolete as well?  That is what Bradbury suggests in his book Fahrenheit 451.  Most people would think that idea is nearly impossible.  The burning of millions of book seems far fetched, but we are headed that way. 

Since new technology has replaced old forms of recieving information and knowledge the need for books is diminshing.  While we get information more quickly we also get a dumbed down version of everything.  This is the reason that critical thinking skills will be lowed as well.  Instead of wanting to hang on to books people won't see the need for them because of their lack of thinking skills. A dumbed down society won't care if some authority decides books aren't good for them anymore, so Bradbury's theory becomes truth.  We have to alter this path if we stand a chance to make our mark in history, or even have a history. 

Should reasoning skills be taught in primary school? Why or why not?

     Should reasoning skills be taught in primary school? The answer is Yes! And further more I want to know why I was not taught any of these skills in my primary school experience.  If someone would have taught me how to make educated decisions early on, maybe I would be making better decisions now.  The sooner the better it is for children to learn useful skills, because young kids are capable of absorbing more information.  If children were taught early on how to reason they could formulate better decisions later on, understand the learning process, and be overall more educated.  
     Abc's, counting, and pronouncing short words are all part of a first graders learning agenda.  Along side of those skills, a variety of reasoning skills should be incorporated into the learning process.   The idea of weighing options and assessing outcomes is a great thing to learn.  I am sure even some adults would like to improve those skills.  To give kids a leg up they should be learning these skills in primary school.  Their future selves would thank their elementary school teachers for giving them these valuable tools. Don't you wish hip hop artist Cam'ron was taught better reasoning skills.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wTwipn-Fp_U&feature=player_embedded
     Secondly, didn't you always want to know why math was important?  Children are famous for the question "why?".  "Why do I have to go to school?"or "Why do I have to learn this?" are asked even early on.  If a child is provided with stronger reasoning skills the answers to those questions can be understood.  (Although some learning subjects will never be understood.:))  When the reason you are learning something is clear and makes sense to a student learning becomes more engaging.
     Finally,  it makes perfect sense to teach reasoning skills in primary school.  Human beings are always looking for ways to increase intelligence and get more out of education.  Teaching reasoning skills would give children a better chance for success.  Some people would say there is no reason to learn these skills so early.  Well, they obviously don't understand how the developing mind works.  A young mind is very sponge-like so it makes it easier to learn.  For example if you want to teach a child a new language you teach them as early as possible.  They have an advantage over older people because of their developing minds. 
     Putting the opportunity to learn reasoning skills in primary school is the best thing we can do for our society.  I fully support this idea.                  
    
http://cals-cf.calsnet.arizona.edu/fcs/bpy/content.cfm?content=decision_making