I had an experience with this just this past Monday - a student came up to me and said that she didn't have her homework because her printer was broken. (Assuming that was true) I asked her why she didn't problem solve (I actually did use these words) - she could have emailed it to herself and printed it at school - she could have bounced it to a stick drive - she could have emailed it to me.
It seems obvious that we should think about teaching problem solving skills while we also teach specific computer applications. But then, if you start thinking about this seriously, you realize that problem solving on a computer is hard to directly teach. What do you do - show kids every possible problem that could occur with any given app, and then how to solve it? That would be an exercise in futility...
Therefore it seems more sensible to simply teach problem solving skills themselves - and not necessarily married to the computer. Kids don't need so much to have a battery of problems and fixes memorized in their heads as they need to learn to attack new problems and look for any possible solutions. Now that would a real skill worth developing....
I had to chuckle when I read this. You are so right. Many students seem to have very few strategies for solving problems. Many are used to having adults solve their problems for them. In fact, I think it is a characteristic that separates successful students from those who are disengaged from school. Thanks for reminding me to keep asking students "What are your options for solving this problem?"
ReplyDeleteSad to say I believe the problem is deeper than the online / computer issues. There are powerfully few of us who find the need to solve problems a niggling itch that won't go away. I wonder how much of the apparent inability of students to solve problems is really just passing the buck back to you, the person who set the problem on their desk in the first place.
ReplyDeletePassing the buck - I agree. Many kids could probably solve their issue if they had to, but they feel that it isn't their job. They made some kind of effort, encountered an obstacle and then feel justified in saying - "hey - I tried." This may be an overly negative view however.
ReplyDeleteOn a similar note, a student in one of my AP Lang classes read an article which he analyzed last week which made an argument as to why South Korean school strategies - which involve much longer school days - could not be adopted by Americans. One of the many observations made in the article, however, is that while S. Korean students perform higher than American students on tests, they often do worse - much worse- in college. The author theorizes that this is due to American student's advanced creativity and problem solving skills. In most colleges - particularly in the west - problem solving is emphasized, particularly in the engineering and business programs which incidentally are favored by Koreans among others. This makes sense if you think about it, as Korean schools emphasize conformity over individuality, and make it a point not to encourage their students to "think outside the box." (terrible cliche at this point I know...."
This discussion calls to mind the adage our computer shared with students. "Don't get stuck on and elevator." It is a reference to a youtube video which is pretty amusing. Students understood the message and many of them were encouraged to find a solution when technology failed.
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