http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/us_and_americas/article6460962.ece

And for the other side of the coin, we have this - http://www.sliceofscifi.com/2009/06/05/professor-technology-making-kids-...

Sure, one can argue that it makes kids dumber, if the kids aren't instructed on the proper use of technology.  Texters are marketed as a fast and easy way to communicate and kids are always looking for a fast and easy way to do anything.  As a result, and as a I mentioned in the podcast, they don't know anything about email etiquette.  I also saw my fair share of text term papers handed in when I first started.  I learned quickly that you need to instruct the students on the proper use of technology, such as using the right research sites, if you wish to avoid what the professor speaks of in the article.  This isn't happening in all schools.

I don't have a teacher's insight on the topic of technology in the classroom (I've never used or even seen a Smartboard, and I tend to think they sound impossibly futuristic like something out of the Jetsons, or maybe Logan's Run) but I often help students use the internet for research.  One of the major obstacles we had to overcome when internet access came to the public libraries was educating our patrons that just because something was on the internet didn't mean that it was true.  A lot of students have learned (or have been repeatedly told by their teachers) that wikipedia isn't a trustworthy source, but they need to remember that wikipedia is just a microcosm of the internet as a whole, and that anyone can put anything on the internet.  And that ".org" or even ".edu" doesn't always guarantee a reputable source, unfortunately.  If there's one point I will always make when I'm talking to students about using the internet to do research, it's that there is a lot of good information on the internet but there's also a lot of garbage, and that it's their job as researchers to find the good information because search engines like yahoo or google won't evaluate that for them.  Here are some sites that I recommend to all of our patrons, but especially to students and teachers:

www.kidsclick.org

A web search for kids by librarians, including pre-screened sites on a variety of topics (arranged by the Dewey Decimal System, of course).

http://homeworkNYC.org

Includes research guides written by brilliant librarians from all three public library systems in NYC, as well as ask-a-librarian and dial-a-teacher services and several online math textbooks used in NYC schools.

www.nypl.org/databases

Databases that are available through the New York Public Library website, many of which are accessible from anywhere with a valid NYPL library card (if you don't belong to this library system, check your local library's website to see if they have an equivalent service).  These databases provide access to magazine and newspaper articles, encyclopedias, and many other reference sources.  I always mention the World Book Online Reference Center, which gives even more information that you could find in the printed encyclopedia -- the "advanced" option, for example, gives links to primary sources on your topic that are available online!

Oh, and for those teachers who are still trying to convey the idea that anyone can put anything on wikipedia, I often refer them to this Sheldon cartoon, which is one of my personal favorites :)

As a former educator, I have often wondered if any discussion has been done regarding the teaching of science fiction in the classroom setting. I feel that if you could get a teacher or two, and maybe even a high school student with his or her head on straight, this would make a great episode and might even work as a thesis for someone taking education in college.

What do you think?