January, 2007
Teacher: For this assignment,you will be required to do library research and to check out at least one book or periodical to coincide with your paper. You need a total of 3 sources, but one must be a book.Student 1: BOOKS??!!! We can't just get it off the internet? I hate reading books!Student 2: The library? You mean, downtown? I don't even know where my library card is! I haven't been to the library since I was like 7!Student 3: My library card has money due. I ain't gonna go up there. I don't have $30 or those books anymore!Although these lines aren't word for word, I've had similar conversations over the years with high school students in my attempts to get them to write research papers and essays. Other complaints included - "Why do I have to write everything out first? Can't I just type it and be done? I don't wanna do a rough draft!" Is this laziness or just a cultural phenomenon of getting things done fast - even if it is poor quality? This is a dilemma I have yet to find an answer to.I am a proponent of the written word;however, "progress" continues to come in the form of technological advancements (i.e., computers, pda's, iPods,cell phones, etc.). We are a society convenienced by technology, but made distant and cold by it as well. What ever happened to going to the library? Checking out a good book? Kids today haven't seen a library card since the early 90's! What about writing letters to people? It's a lost art. In a world so consumed with having everything fast and quick, it's no wonder that our nation's youth are among the lowest in the world when it comes to academic progress. Oh well, that's the price we pay for defaulting to web-based media!
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