Is the Internet Hindering Education?

Carr raises many questions about how the Internet and new media affect the way we think. Several of his points interest me:

•            The amount of time we spend on a web page – discouraging for someone like me who maintains a corporate blog!
•           Different thinking fostered by Internet use
•           Linear reading vs. online reading
•           Multitasking

Throughout this class, our readings have hinted toward the use of technology and web 2.0 media in classroom settings. Carr led me to ask, if the Internet overflows our cognitive load, and our ability to retain information is hindered, then should Internet use of children be limited?

We may be better off giving our kids books instead of computers.

Carr hints that our obsessive use of the Internet may even change our brains to the point that we develop ADD when “we find distractions more distracting.” Furthermore, he references a study that found “the multimedia technologies so common to the Web…seemed to limit, rather than enhance, information acquisition.”

This is especially interesting in a time when electronic text books are proposed and laptops given to students at young ages. Are we helping or hurting our youth?

Are any members of the COM641 class doing their final paper on the topic of education and new media?