Editorial

Classroom or Laptop?

Ever thought about an imaginary school where a student cannot see his/her teacher or classmates and can only see his/her study guides and assessments? It is extremely alarming to hear Overseas Family School’s declaration of becoming the world’s first IB school to deliver their entire curriculum online by 2015.

As the spokeswoman of the spiritual community, I believe that it is an outrageous decision to do away with the traditional system of schooling as we believe that a school is a place of worship. It is a place where individuals learn to respect each other. Though we do acknowledge the fact that the upcoming generations will be highly technologically advanced, it is important to note that coaching students online isn’t going to help them be bold, independent citizens. They will not be able to survive in this competitive world without being confident and strong, all of which cannot be developed online. However, online learning for research for example, could be a better option.

English teacher Mr Glover hit the nail by stating that “ ‘Students’ increasing dependency on technology on every aspect of their academic lives is a double­edged sword”. And it sure is!

Everyone would agree that school life is exciting and thrilling. Imagine your school days ­ lunch hours with friends, lectures from teachers, extracurricular activities, etc. Now imagine your child’s future school where he would be sitting in front of a computer learning how the Demand and Supply curve is drawn and how to learn origami online. Don’t you think he would have a temptation to log in to other websites rather than studying? Will you as a parent believe that what your child is learning is true and not some trash posted on the web? Will you not have a fear that your child is being left in the wrong hands? Our communities and schools can do much better.

Although many parents have expressed their great joy in this new innovative form of education, they have turned a blind­eye to the fact that they might have to pay a hefty amount for online education. So if you, parents, are willing to pay loads of money on just powerpoint slides and examinations and in wasting 6 and 1/2 hours of your child’s day in front of a desktop, you might want to think again. Unlike the futurists, we have to live in the moment and not a fictional life. We must not spread false hopes that technology will help solve the problems faced by mankind today because technology is not the answer to maintain happy and sustainable life.