Identifying Barriers While Learning (and Teaching) to Leverage Technology

I am reading two books now that are challenging my thinking and helping me review my philosophies on learning, technology use, and human connection.

You might have heard about both of them and if you have, it could be on social media, where I started seeing a buzz about them.

They are Jonathan Haidt’s “Anxious Generation” and “Digital Minimalism” by Cal Newport. Both advocate for less time on technology, with Haidt’s book being more focused on lessening (which probably is putting it mildly) technology usage under the age of 18.

I don’t disagree with the philosophies of either book, but I don’t necessarily agree with them either.

Their writings also contain a tinge of hypocrisy and irony.

For example, I am reading both books on my iPhone through the Kindle app. If both authors contend that technology usage should be lessened considerably, why make the texts available on a mobile device? 

I also noticed this post from Haidt on Instagram, which had over 2000 “likes” at the capturing of this screenshot:

I don’t disagree with the poll’s results; my question is, if technology and social media usage are wrong for kids, what makes them suitable for adults?

The image shows Haidt’s user name and the #FreeTheAnxiousGeneration hashtag, which is probably intended to spread a movement through social media to get students and kids to STOP using technology.

A couple of things to consider: do the authors benefit monetarily from spreading their message, and/or does social media enable and empower them to start a movement based on what they are writing about? And if they have those opportunities, how do we teach others to do the same?

I saw this comment in the original post and can’t say I disagree with it (especially the part about MapQuest!).

There are times when I wish social media would disappear from the world, and there are other times when I am grateful for the doors it has opened for me and for some of the deep connections I have made because of its existence.

This is not a simple “yes or no” conclusion on this idea. 

I have experienced struggles with mental health because of social media, which has made me alter not only my view on the technology but also on how I use it in my personal and professional life. 

Many schools are grappling with this as well. I often see the question, “Should schools allow phones in classrooms?” Many districts and states are banning them outright. If we step back, we have to ask if this is the right question. I am not sure. However, what many might see as a solution to one problem can be a pathway to another issue. 

I watched one Superintendent share that phones were banned in their schools, “effectively eliminating Cyberbullying.” My question is, did it eliminate Cyberbullying, or did it stop happening in school while continuing elsewhere? (Side note: most of the issues I hear about in terms of Cyberbullying involve adults, not students. Just saying.)

Did we solve a problem by pretending it didn’t exist, or could it get worse because we pushed it elsewhere without the support of adults? It all feels kind of “Lord of the Flies“ish, where we just hope the kids figure it out themselves.

“There aren’t any grownups. We shall have to look after ourselves.”

If you have read the book, you know that strategy doesn’t turn out well.

But I have also benefitted tremendously from a career standpoint, as well as a way to spread views that I am very passionate about. You are currently reading this on my blog, which I started in 2009 and have posted on at least once a week since I first started. You might have come here on your own volition, or it could have been sent to you. But sharing in this space has created opportunities for me that I didn’t know existed when I first started.

In Newport’s book, “Digital Minimalism,” he shares a statement that I think is closer to my current philosophy today rather than where it was ten years ago:

In fact, my change in philosophy was documented in “The Innovator’s Mindset,” where I was more intentional about promoting “less” technology and focusing on depth rather than breadth.

Connecting that passage from “The Innovator’s Mindset” and Newport’s book, I think a great variation of a question we should ask is, “What are hopes and principles for learning in our schools, and how will technology support those goals?”

How often do people go to tech conferences, see some incredible new tool, and then try to integrate it into the school environment without aligning it with those principles? I can honestly say I have done it in the past, which is why I am trying to be more thoughtful in the future.

In summary, I am not for or against any technology. I am glad that both authors wrote these books and believe they are providing proposed solutions to many agreed-upon issues. These are essential conversations for not only education but life.

What I am trying to do is to share a perspective of my own from a place of experience.

I have used technology to open doors for myself, and I see the benefit of leaving those doors open for others while teaching them how to open and go through those doors themselves.

The best way we can effectively do that is a) through our example and b) by teaching.

There are opportunities and barriers to almost everything. I have learned through many mistakes and hope to share those hard lessons learned while helping others leverage opportunities moving forward.

For years, I have asked others not to embrace an either/or mentality to this stuff but to get into the conversation. I am so glad to see it happening, and I wanted to share my perspectives.