Too much ICT in school life?

With the new curriculum, “Kunnskapsløftet”/”Knowledge-Promise”, ICT is now a part of all subjects. Some subjects are more affected than others, however all subjects are influenced to a certain degree. Is this really necessary?

I would state that there are both advantages and disadvantages when looking at the use of ICT in schools.

One advantage is that the use of ICT may make school-life easier for some students. Those who struggle with fine motor skills and literacy skills would be able to produce work which is up to standard without having to worry too much about handwriting and grammars. There are also a number of schoolbooks which may be found as audiobooks that the students could access and benefit from.

Another important factor is that the students should get used to using a computer. At our school we do not have a Learning Management System (LMS), however as this is a system which is used in many high schools today it is important for the student to be able to access and understand how to use a computer and LMS before leaving secondary school. One can not argue the fact that we live in a highly technological society and being able to use a computer is a valuable skill which most people will use as a part of either their education or work.

Another advantage to why one should learn how use ICT is that you can use the Internet as an important source of information, however to make sure the information is valid one has to be critical to what is found on the Internet. For students to learn a little about netiquette, what is right and wrong-doing on the Internet, is therefore very important. All of this can not be achieved without giving students the opportunity to try it in practice. And it is a fact that not everyone has the same opportunity to do so at home.

However, the use of ICT in schools may seem somewhat frightening to some. Many teachers, particularly the elderly, are not familiar with ICT, and they are therefore reluctant to use it as part of their teaching. It can be difficult to change a teaching method they have worked with for many years, to allow for ICT to take over.

It's not that I'm against the use of ICT in school, I actually think it is a really good tool for many and it can be very helpful at times, however sometimes I would say that it is being used too much. And do all schools really have the capacity to keep up with ICT and the “Knowledge-Promise”?
At our school where there is just enough computers to cover the needs of the students at the moment, which makes it difficult to follow all the new and improved requirements stated by the “Knowledge-Promise”. Good time-management and organization skills are vital when trying to organize for 150 students to share 10 computers. But I don’t think that our school is the only one struggling with this problem.

Clearly it is important that students learn the use of ICT, but does the computer have to be implemented into all aspects of learning now? What about those who do not have a computer at home? It is in fact so that not everyone has access to a computer at home. Should those students then miss out on some of the learning that those who have computer get? Naturally one can learn and do most of the work whilst at school, but in some subjects there is homework that needs to be done on a computer.

To conclude I would say that it is important to include ICT in schools, however the amount of ICT used and in what subjects it should be included can certainly be discussed.

What's the point of age limit on Facebook?

There have recently been several debates about Facebook and age restrictions. One can hear both on the radio and on television that many people have strong opinions about this topic, both for and against why kids should be allowed to have profiles on Facebook.

The guidelines on Facebook state that one should be over the age of 13 to create a profile, however there are many kids younger then that who have already created their profile. Why is there an age restriction when it's so easy to avoid it? Is it too easy to create a profile?

The fact that it is too easy to avoid the age restriction is obvious. It shouldn’t be so easy to ignore the age limit when they have made rules stating the age restrictions. You can simply change the year of birth to one that states that you are old enough and you have successfully created a profile.

In the beginning Facebook was for the slightly older population while the younger crowd preferred Nettby and other similar social media. But nowadays the younger adults and kids seem to gradually shift to prefer Facebook, a tendency which can be confirmed by the increased number of kids creating profiles on Facebook. Why this tendency when the rules state that one must be over the age of 13 to create profiles? Adults, especially parents, must take some of the responsibility. After discussing the problem with some of the kids, many of them new, young members on Facebook, they said that their parents had helped them create a profile. The parents then set as a requirement that they have to be friends so that they can monitor what their kids do on Facebook. But is this right when the age restriction is there? What signals are they sending to their children?

There are not a lot of people who are aware of the guidelines on Facebook which states that profiles of all kids under 13 years of age will be deleted if they find out that the profile belongs to someone that young. It also states that those who are older may provide information about any such profiles they see, but this is something very few do. Why is it so? This is something we who are older should acknowledge and think through.

But why is it there age limit on facebook?
The only reason I can mention right now for why there should be age limits on a social media such as Facebook, is to prevent older people to easily get in contact with young adults and kids. You hear all too often about adults, particularly men, pretending to be far younger then their real age to establish contact with much younger girls.

To conclude I would say that it is unnecessary to have an age limit when it is so easy for those younger then the limit to create a profile anyways. It would be better if everyone could have a profile with their correct age, so that children who are 8-9 years old don’t have to pretend that they are older then they really are.

Lying on their age on Facebook (in Norwegian)