Two weeks ago, our Social Studies department asked for a cart of REAL BOOKS for their classroom.  Their reason? Just having computers in the same space with teenagers is distracting.  The teachers want students to READ the information.  On the internet they are more likely to skim the surface and not really get an understanding about the person they are studying.  They hope that having REAL books will encourage more actual … reading. The end product of the research task will be a panel discussion where each student will portray a Renaissance person.  They must be ready to answer interview questions in detail.

Gives you pause, doesn’t it, when classes have to read books in the classroom, because your technology enabled library is too distracting?  Too bad the architect didn’t understand the need for library spaces dedicated to both creative AND contemplative work.

Another wandering thought….  Would it be a good thing for our students to have a litte less “screen time” and a lot more “think time” in thier lives?

I’ve been collecting articles about screen vs. print reading.  You can visit this page – The Future of Reading.