Google Co-founder Insists on More Computers in Schools
Posted 10/28/09 at 09:22:48 PM by Ryan Whitwam
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In recent years, Google has been taking a larger role in promoting the use of technology in education. It is now fairly common for the search giant to provide free access to premium Google Apps to schools, allowing them to more effectively conduct their business. Now co-founder Sergey Brin has made some sweeping statements that may outline Google’s future plans in the area of education.
Brin himself was a high school dropout for a time. He chalks this event up to the use of dated, uninteresting curriculums in his school. In a speech at the Google campus recently, Brin said, “The curriculum should include computer science. Mathematics should include statistics. The curriculums should really adjust.”
Brin held that schools need to take advantage of increasingly inexpensive technology, and more prevalent broadband availability to further education. He also suggests that students could learn more effectively by teaching computer use to younger students and senior citizens. The Google co-founder went on to discuss what he feels is the deplorable state of teacher pay saying, “They're not really paid a living wage.”
Google may be helping schools at little or no charge, but it’s not like they get nothing out of it. By introducing children to Google products early, the brand leaves an indelible mark on their ideas about technology. As a Google spokesperson said, “If they like Google Apps now, they'll ask for it by name. There is a value there."
Computers in schools.
Submitted by quantumnerd on Mon, 11/02/2009 - 10:36am
Personally what I think students need is just a different teacher attitude. Don't get me wrong- computers are great. They teach you to think outside of the box (menu hunting instead of blankly staring like a "special" person, troubleshooting, organization, etc). Later, coding and rich content creation like digital art and 3d modelling is very good. However, it won't turn the kids into super humans, it'll just help.
The attitude of the teachers is what's killing kids. Teachers and kids think that kids will learn by LISTENING to a teacher rant on about something, then do a million repetitive drills in a row. It works, but very ineffectively. The human brain works by recalling, and a string of drills uses RECENT memory (which means that the kids won't be recalling it, and learning will take longer and be less effective).
Secondly, both sides of a topic are not usually presented in schools. In Canada, we're taught in textbooks that the conservative (right wing non-extremists (extremists would be reformists)) party of Canada believes that anybody who doesn't conform exactly to the mould should be punished. D'oh. It's from the left-wing point of view, but includes no right wing point of view.
We're also taught that Indians and women are continually discriminated against and should almost be treated as super-human (don't get me wrong, they should be treated equal but the way they put it in the books is just extreme). Again, includes the femenist/minority point of view but doesn't really provide the other point of view (eg: people are different, not everybody's the same, and you can't expect all women to behave exactly like guys do and yell at the TV about sports).
Lastly, teachers squashed thinking outside of the box. They wasted several weeks of my life forcing me to draw something and color an entire 8.5' by 11' page with a pencil crayon just because it was what the other kids did and I wasn't allowed to use coloured paper cutouts to be a million times faster. So much for "be creative". Once I told the teacher that putting my freind Dean ( a kid who was a bit different) with the group of girls would hurt him because they would shun him and scar him for life (I should know). She told me to go to the office. I asked her why she was telling me to go to the office. She told me I shouldn't be talking. I asked her why, if she was talking, she didn't have to go to the office. I was again told to go to the office. I pretty much wanted to run away at that point but I had a dream of develloping video games, which kept me in school until I came to my senses and realised I had to put up with the BS.
-=[The name's Quantumnerd, and if you mock my name you're clearly missing the point]=-
Submitted by Trooper_One on Thu, 10/29/2009 - 11:17am
Giving a laptop/desktop toevrey students isn't the solution.
Nothing can substitute a good teacher and ultimately a hard work discipline. Yep, math homework sucks, but only by doing through repetition one eventually learns it.
Parents have to reign in the TV and (gasp!) computer games and kids have to concentrate more on reading, writing, and doing math work.
Disagree
Submitted by 1337Goose on Thu, 10/29/2009 - 3:26pm
You seem to have described a drill and skill approach. Drilling appears to get results, but there are much better methods. I recently read an article published by the University of Toronto describing what they called the Jump program for learning.
It's an interesting way of looking at things that doesn't necessarily condemn drilling work, but rather suggests that tools (like computers) should be used to assist learning and explain topics thoroughly.
~Goose
Submitted by Atomike on Thu, 10/29/2009 - 6:14am
Education is not related to money. In many places, like New York, the average amount spent per student per year is around $30,000 or more. That's PER STUDENT. I send my kids to Catholic school - tuition is around $600 per year. They have higher test scores than New York students.
Computers and technology is not the solution. You don't need computers and fancy equipment to learn math and reading. At the very least, you don't need NEW computers. A pentium 4 will do everything a school needs.
Don't fall for the fallacy. Money and technology does not equal learning.
Submitted by lhatten on Thu, 10/29/2009 - 9:38am
So you think that all it costs is $600 per student. That would work out to about $18,000 per classroom of 30 kids. So you are telling me that you are going to pay the teacher, faculty overhead, upkeep on the building, etc. for 18K per room. Yea right!!
Also, if you are going to spread around data like 30K per student, cite your source. According to the New York times, the cost per student in New York state is $14,119 per student (still quite high, but 1/2 half what you quoted) and the average in the nation is $8,701.
Why don't you try to find out what the true cost of your religious schooling is. Someone is obviously subsidizing the crap out of it if it is only costs you $600.
Submitted by Atomike on Thu, 10/29/2009 - 10:24am
You raise a fair point - it does cost more than my $600, but not much. We have priests and religious sisters that teach and run the library. That costs almost nothing. Despite all that, our school probably spends about 1/10th the New York per student average you site. And we get better test scores. Also, your math is wrong - in my kids' school, there are only about 15 kids per teacher, not 30 like in most public schools.
Any way you slice it, money is NOT the answer. The only people who believe that money = good education seem to be teachers' unions.
20/20 did a great report on public schools you should really watch. You'd change your opinion in a hearbeat if you watch that.
Submitted by guidoracer on Thu, 10/29/2009 - 2:23pm
Wow, you are getting off cheap. My 4th-grader's tuition is $7K per year and the middle-schooler and high-schooler are $12K per year. And that doesn't include all the activity fees and such. Does a Southern California Catholic education really that much more than in other parts of the country?
I agree! Everyone assumes
Submitted by lunchbox73 on Thu, 10/29/2009 - 6:17am
I agree! Everyone assumes throwing more money at schools will solve all their problems (won't somebody PLEASE think of the children!?!?) but it never works. Here in the Milwaukee area years ago there was a push to give every singe kid in the milwaukee publis school system their own laptop. Somehow that was going to turn them all into honor students.
Submitted by COMMANDER_COOK on Wed, 10/28/2009 - 7:11pm
Nice move. Kudos to Brin.
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