A reader writes:
We are stripping the young of their youth. Why on Earth are we shoving the technological world on kids 4 to 10 years old? Kids that age need to be learning socializing skills, study skills, teacher interaction skills, learning to take instructions from people other than their parents. They need to develop their creativity, apply their real-world experiences in their relationships with their peers, and to feel comfortable in learning in mildly competitive environments. This is all more about dollars and less about education.
Diane Ravitch's blog 
I’m glad I had a great childhood where I could play for hours on end. I’m glad my friends could do the same. I’m glad I grew up in great neighborhood in Washington, DC when I did, and attended schools that were and still are exceptional. I am truly thankful. I feel for kids today. I don’t know what’s wrong with my contemporaries. All I can do is teach, advocate, write, blog, tweet and hope in the end that it will pay off for a better future.
In the meantime- it’s refreshing to know that in Scotland someone has the right idea regarding children. I hope it’s contagious and spreads here.
Play Scotland plea to give Scots children legal right to play. Charity Play Scotland said children’s wellbeing was improved with play. Children in Scotland should have a legal right to play, a lobby group has told MSPs at Holyrood.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-scotland-politics-19626766
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When I went to Kindergarten way back in 1957, we played and socialized and learned our ABC’s and–yes!–took naps! But the thing I most fondly remember about my classroom was a gigantic slide that was in the room! We had such fun with that and, because only one child could go down at a time, it taught us patience (to wait our turns)
and sharing, two of the most important life lessons.
What do tests teach Kindergarteners?
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My experience is similar. I went to a public school in Illinois that offered both pre-k and kindergarten. What do I remember? Dolls, dress-up clothes, blocks, story time, puppets, and a wonderful playground. Yes, we also learned to take turns on the slide. At age 62 I still have a clear memory of showing another child how to tie his shoes. The teacher complimented me for being helpful. Why do these memories stay clear and true after half a century? Because they helped make me who I am. I don’t recall any test or assessment or grade I received in elementary school.
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My wife and I are both big on the play time; we both loved our unstructured time alone and with friends growing up. American schooling today is too engineered, too mired in a defensive need to justify itself by demonstrating its “practicality”.
The real problem is that we have lost sight of what we want to define as an education. By losing that vision we have become prey to every “innovation” and every opinion, whether justified or not, since we have to standard for comparison.
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Fixed a few goofs:
My wife and I are both big on play time; we both loved our unstructured time alone and with friends growing up. American schooling today is too engineered, too mired in a defensive need to justify itself by demonstrating its “practicality”.
The real problem is that we have lost sight of what we want to define as an education. By losing that vision we have become prey to every “innovation” and every opinion, whether justified or not, since we have no standard for comparison.
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I make sure my 1st grader has plenty of unstructured play time at home, just as I enjoyed as a child. The rest of her day at school is so rigid.
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This is a straw man argument. Of course there’s nothing incompatible between exposing young children to our technology-suffused information and learning landscapes AND doing all of the things that your reader describes above. It’s not an issue of either/or. It’s all about balance (which, since you decided to share it, I wish you had acknowledged in your introduction to your reader’s comment).
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“…develop their creativity, apply their real-world experiences in their relationships with their peers, and to feel comfortable in learning in mildly competitive environments.”
These are all areas where technology can be beneficial.
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Beneficial maybe, but human relationships matter most
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