Mark Bauerlein, author of the book The Dumbest Generation, explains how our generation has a number of benefits due to today’s media. We are using sophisticated technology that was not available during our parent’s generation. It is amazing how children as young as 6 months are familiar with the technological devices being used.
Bauerlein argues how the “Millennials”, our generation, is flourishing in a Digital Revolution. Our parents did not have half of these advances that are available to us today. The “Millenials” are constantly texting on their cell phones, surfing the Internet, beating the tenth level on a video game, and trying to uncover an unsolved mystery on their favorite TV show. The media allows us to enter a new world, explore, and discover. “Millenials” are learning from the media and understanding more information than their parent’s generation.
I believe we are not the dumber generation but we learn differently. In his book, Baurelin refers to a higher-ed consultant named Richard T. Sweeney. He says, “they want to learn only what they have to learn, and they want to learn it in a different style that is best from them” (86). Students are flourishing and understanding the world through the media’s eyes. Our generation is forced to learn in a unique way.
The media lets us determine what comes next. While books “involve judgment”, they “don’t allow the readers to determine the next chapter or decide a character’s fate” (88). In gaming, we are learning to make decisions. On the Internet we are able to “pool knowledge and compare notes with others toward a common goal” (84). We are gaining several perspectives opposed to one.
Our generation is not dumber but receiving a different education. We are “beginning to mobilize (through the Web)” and we are “forming (our) own ways of learning” (85). The Web and the media is a tool opening our brains to understand and explore new concepts. The “Millenials” have a number of options which are broadening our horizons (opportunities) for learning and becoming smarter.
1 comment:
I agree with you! I don't think we are the dumbest generation. Just because we are learning differently, doesn't mean it's wrong. Right? I think there are so many different technologies that force us to have different lifestyles and learning habits. You can't compare the generations when the situations are not the same. The generation before us would be texting constantly, too. They just didn't have the chance.
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