Growing Up Digital, Wired for Distraction…?

There is an interesting article in the November 21 edition of the New York Times titled  Growing Up Digital, Wired for Distraction that speaks to technology consumption habits of teenagers.  It is worth reading…  Below are some interesting segments:

At Woodside, as elsewhere, students’ use of technology is not uniform. Mr. Reilly, the principal, says their choices tend to reflect their personalities. Social butterflies tend to be heavy texters and Facebook users. Students who are less social might escape into games, while drifters or those prone to procrastination, like Vishal, might surf the Web or watch videos.

The technology has created on campuses a new set of social types — not the thespian and the jock but the texter and gamer, Facebook addict and YouTube potato.

Another interesting quote from an English teacher at Woodside High School,

“You can’t become a good writer by watching YouTube, texting and e-mailing a bunch of abbreviations.”

One final segment, which points to the conflict that ubiquitous access to technology can foster,

Teachers at Woodside commonly blame technology for students’ struggles to concentrate, but they are divided over whether embracing computers is the right solution.

“It’s a catastrophe,” said Alan Eaton, a charismatic Latin teacher. He says that technology has led to a “balkanization of their focus and duration of stamina,” and that schools make the problem worse when they adopt the technology.

“When rock ’n’ roll came about, we didn’t start using it in classrooms like we’re doing with technology,” he says. He personally feels the sting, since his advanced classes have one-third as many students as they had a decade ago.