Victor Davis Hanson: Computers Are Sidetracking US Education

Never has a new technology grown so fast.  In his recent “Technology Is Not Wisdom” article, Victor Davis Hanson reminds us that “Americans now have more computer power in their smart phones than did the Pentagon in all its computer banks just 30 years ago. We board a sophisticated jet and assume that the flight is no more dangerous than crossing the street.”

       The birth and rapid growth of the computer revolution has all taken place in one generation. The cornucopia overflows with life-altering wonders. But the newness and bling of the new technology has brushed aside all caution and critical defenses.  The latter has not been lost upon power seekers who want to control us.

       Few question what is seen as a cheap gift horse.  Money flows into corporate coffers and into the national economy. Once again, America seems to have power and influence around the world.  Even so, Hanson believes that education has suffered because the pursuit of knowledge has been sidetracked. “Smart machines are simply the pumps that deliver the water of knowledge – not knowledge itself,” he warns.  “The downside of this complete reliance on computer gadgetry is a fundamental ignorance of what technology is”:

         What does it matter that millions of American students can communicate across thousands of miles instantly with their iPads and iPhones if a poorly educated generation increasingly has little to say?

      The latest fad of near-insolvent universities is to offer free iPads to students so that they can access information more easily. But what if most undergraduates still have not been taught to read well, think inductively or have some notion of history? Speeding up their ignorance is not the same as imparting wisdom. Requiring a freshman Latin course would be a far cheaper and wiser investment in mastering language, composition and inductive reasoning than handing out free electronics.