“Searching C” the new Steven Spielberg hit about a wild man and his bit-wise computing sidekick. Compelling times to come.
From what I can tell, anyone under the age of thirty nowadays have one basic approach to coming up with information and that is to Google it, to click the Wikipedia link, and then consider the case closed. A few years back when I had a question, I had to go to a subject matter expert, either in company or at the library in order to get the answer that I had the most confidence in.
But don’t worry, there’s hope for folks out there and for getting information that actually makes a difference in the world. We just need to be able to train and focus folks so that the internet effect on education is a positive and not a negative. Here are a couple of points to consider.
No More “Not Enough Info” Excuses
There is a great thing about all the information that’s available. No one can ever truthfully use the excuse that they don’t have enough information to come up with an answer. There’s so much information out there in blogs and article repositories, in virtual libraries, and in electronic books that anyone that can’t find information is really just not trying hard enough.
Granted, there are skills that need to be grown when it comes to vetting the information that’s found on the internet, but that’s not the point here. We’re not talking about becoming a bunch of knowledge activists or anything. The point here is there’s always an answer and information is abundant.
There’s Too Much Information
Unfortunately, a lot of this information can paralyze people in an instant. There is far too much information out there in the form of blog posts, videos, podcasts, news articles, tweets, Facebook updates, and the other numerous ways that we are inundated with information. The ability to sift through this information and filter out what matters most is a necessary skill for this new age of learning. Or else our brains just might give up on us.
Reliance On Instant Gratification
Sometimes it’s best to just slow down and see what’s going on around you.
All of this leads into the fact that people have come a little bit too complacent in their research and due diligence. They’ve become accustomed to instant gratification for the questions that they have. In most cases, there isn’t a whole lot of incentive for them to go off and find the deeper meaning behind anything they’re looking for.
They simply pop in their question in Google, get the answers from the first couple of results on the page, and have sufficient information to calm that burning question. Unfortunately, that’s not the most useful approach to research. There needs to be some real concern that the sources, information provided, and usage thereof are proven worthy from all angles.
Education Can Grow, Instead of Go Slow
While it may be scary, I have to say that the internet effect on education is not the biggest issue. When we consider that the excuses of not having information have gone away, that a proper filtering of the too much information that’s available, and quelling the reliance on instant gratification are important factors consider, then we can start to get useful results out of today’s level of education. If you want to dive much further into this topic, here’s a book that will change your mind on this entire subject.