British children to study Twitter in school
The British are looking very hard in the mirror these days. Perhaps it is related to the belief that the country is running out of money.
In any case, who would have thought that they would choose to give up mandatory education about the Second World War and begin teaching their children about Twitter and Wikipedia?
The plans, leaked to the dastardly press (perhaps some devious cove just twittered a tiny URL to a password-protected site), give children relief from having to learn too many dates, place names, and pesky scientific formulas. You can google all that nonsense, anyway.
But if you can't tweet your progress in toilet training, what kind of adult can you expect to become?
The plans declare that children must leave primary school (to which children go until the unofficial drinking age of 11) fully conversant with the delights of blogging, podcasting, Wikipedia, and Twitter.
While I am aghast that Facebook appears not to be specifically mentioned, my eyes become moist when I see that children will be required to gain "fluency" in keyboard skills and learn to use a spellchecker.
Naturally, talking--and, presumably, typing--heads have already offered their 60 pence worth on the topic. Teresa Cremin, president of the U.K. Literary Association, worries about a lack of drama and "no emphasis on reading for pleasure."
Madam, please don't worry. We all read Twitter for pleasure. Can there be any other reason?
Other British critics seem to be worried that Twitter and Wikipedia are merely fads. But ladies and gentlemen, you are the great nation that brought us lasting pleasures such as "Dancing with the Stars," "American Idol," and the Dyson vacuum cleaner thingy. Things that the whole world marvels at and studies every day.
The creators of Twitter and Wikipedia can only hope to match the enduring quality of some of the great British contributions to history, science, and culture.
Chris Matyszczyk is an award-winning creative director who advises major corporations on content creation and marketing. He brings an irreverent, sarcastic, and sometimes ironic voice to the tech world. He is a member of the CNET Blog Network and is not an employee of CNET. 
PSHE, right? Involves social skills? Most of those particular methods are long out-dated by instant messaging, micro-blogging and text messages. To be perfectly honest, learning about WW2 is all well and good, but who really cares when they're in primary school?
And finally, "No emphasis on reading for pleasure". Does looking at how Hitler was a very naughty man emphasise this? I highly doubt it, and at least teaching kids basic online skills will encourage them to use the net more, which includes reading things on there.
Honestly.
I slagged off Wikipedia? Must have missed that..
Thank you for commenting.
Chris
Thank you. There are days when I really think I'm insane. But I had one of those yesterday and it's not often there are two in a row. Well, not in March.
Chris
12 years ago our local elementary school--Portland, Oregon, where most kids actually attend the public schools and still come out moderately well-educated--asked me to sit on the "technology committee" for the school. The plan was how to properly spend the share of the state $165M technology bond. All the teachers were in agreement that "keyboarding" skills were the most important thing to learn, and the big argument between teachers and parents was whether the OS should be Mac or Win (parents in business being on the side of Win, of course).
I ended the argument by telling them they were all wrong and it made no difference, by the time our kids were in the work force their computers there would be new operating systems to learn and the main interface would be voice. OK, I got my details wrong, but the point is that finding and analyzing information to discover answers is the important skill set, not whether kids can handle a keyboard or work within the confines of Twitter or some other equally trite measurement. Criminy, by the time the education system completes developing the curriculum for this Twitter will be gone and replaced by three other social network/applications. As it is, most of the world accesses the Internet on cell phones thee days and we are most likely to continue moving in that direction.
Now, along with my voice interface, where's my flying car and personal jet pack?
In addition to this, the second world war is extensively taught at a secondary level, along with the British Victorians - the aim is actually to teach the subjects at primary school in greater detail, as WW2 and the Victorians are already covered later in our national curriculum.
You have certainly read some history. Thank you for your interesting perspective.
Chris
As "faddish" as Wikipedia and Twitter may be considered now, it is the way that technology in the workplace is moving. We can't help the fact that when I was at school it was felt important I learn how to program in BASIC, a skill I have not used once since leaving but which gave me a confidence with computers that has served me well in the 22 years I have been involved with the IT industry.
Oh and by the way, you can also add to that list pop music, railways, football, radar and the jet engine, I think.
Ian Hendry
CEO, WeCanDo.BIZ
http://www.wecando.biz
- by craig.knapp1 March 26, 2009 5:26 AM PDT
- Perhaps schools should be preparing students for the work force. What about Trades? Skilled labor with technical skiill who can actually build a widget or repair a widget are those who retain their jobs, those who are in finance and management that do not really generate revenue are often the first to be laid off.
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(14 Comments)I don't have the answers, but just like the population had to adjust from life on the farm, we are and have been for some time adjusting from life in the Industrial Age to life in the Information Age. People can work from home, become their own contractor...factories are smaller due to robotics, cities can thus decentralize, the possibilities are endless.
Craig Knapp