They ARE Smart, We Just Bore Them

Faculty nationwide are bewildered and frustrated with the students they see in their classrooms today (see this article, to feel their angst). Many believe there has been a fundamental change in the way contemporary students view knowledge and derive meaning... and it is vastly different from that of their instructors.

Annette and I think kids are as sharp as ever and probably more creative. It's not their problem that they are growing up in a world full of dynamic colors, sounds, video, and interactivity but when they go to school they are told to sit down, shut up, and listen. Sure, if you tell most kids to write a 500 word essay on a book and you'll probably be disapointed. But give a 5th-grader a camcorder or an iPod and they'll read parts of the book out loud and tell you why they like it, they'll make a short video to show you what they got out of the book, or they'll do interviews. Then you'll see the lights go on.

They're not dumb... they're bored.

See Jane sit and listen.
See Dick take notes in a book.
See Spot poop.

Um, let's try again... can Jane surf, take classes online and help save the coral reefs at the same time? Can Dick travel the world, maintaining a blog about the different cultures and the wild variety of ways they've adapted to media-based urbanization? Can Spot sit by Jane's beach towel and guard her laptop while she surfs?

All this was inspired by the following article at the Washington Post: The New Teacher's Pet.