Its Not US Its YOU ...

The article written by Sandy Hingston, Is It Just Us, Or Are Kids Getting Really Stupid?, was filled with more opinion than facts. When I read an article or essay that deals with getting down to the understanding why kids may really be dumb nowadays I expect something to back up all the opinionated statements. Hingston starts off her article by mentioning her son Jake and how his English teacher gave the class The Great Gatsby movie to watch instead of the book to read. Personally, when that comes to mind I feel as if it’s the teacher to blame. The teacher doesn’t give enough credit to her students.
When I was in high school I remember being able to watch the movie after we read the book, which at that time was a gift. Now looking back, I’ve realized that being able to read the book was the real gift. I can proudly look back and be grateful to have read a classic in literature. Going back to Hingston’s issue with her son, she seems to be able to criticize easily but makes no effort in encouraging him, at least that’s what I grabbed from the article. What bothered me the most was when she compared her son Jake to most kids. She explains that kids consume themselves with one thing instead of learning all they should. Hingston goes on to critically judge her son and every other kid, saying they could be ‘a better human being’ if they spent their time listening to classical music instead of playing computer games. The main issue I see is with the writer. She constantly throws out her opinions for an important issue without backing anything up; she only uses personal experiences, as if her experiences can relate to everyone else.
One man that brought out an interesting statement was Ian Haines, the Special Education teacher. Haines said, “It’s not only that their attention span is shorter, the feedback span is shorter, too.” We all rely on the computer, cell phones, and other tech fads to get us through the day and because of that our generation has depended upon instant gratification. I have noticed that if it takes too long (more than 7 seconds usually) to load a web page I’m inclined to exit out of it. Naturally, that’s what today is about fast paced give and receive type attitude. I don’t think its that kids are getting dumber, its we lack the patience’s we once had before the dependence of technology. For Hingston to judge a entire generation from a strong judge point is a bit off key. Her generation was the ones that made the computers we are using today and the internet we live off of. It’s faulty to blame us for being deprived of our classic American culture when they the adults, supplied us with the tools they criticize us for using.
Another ludicrous point Hingston brought up was that the internet is an easier way to steal others ideas from artwork to essays. Throughout the course of history, people have always had the tendency to be part of three different group types: those who stole, those who were inspired by others ideas, and those who created. The cycle of people stealing, being inspired and creating will never end. The internet is not to blame and neither are the kids using it, its human nature.
After reading this I could honestly say we can’t really argue for saying kids are dumb and the internet rots our brains, it would be too much of a contradiction. As we right this up we depended on the power of technology to help us conclude our thoughts. I know I have learned a lot from the internet and I believe its not making me less smart, let alone millions of other kids. This tool that we use is something that was placed on our laps to use and explore, if we are being persecuted for that then something is definitely wrong here.