Cynthia Selfe’s article “Technology and Literacy: A Story About the Perils of Not Paying Attention” seems to be existing on two different levels.The centerpiece of her argument is essentially that the inequality of education in the United States supports and is supported by the Capitalist class system. The introduction of computer technology into our educational community maintains that status quo and at the same time creates a more efficient consumer. Her examination of education and class inequality forced this reader to ‘pay attention’. She concluded her article with suggestions for potential changes on a local level. Some of her recommendations; to develop critical thinking class conscious students, and “to insist on and support more equitable distributions of technology.” I find myself wondering about the reality of these suggestions. Many young students don’t know what critical thinking is, and if they did I wonder how sympathetic they would be towards poor people of color. I remember thinking during the Presidential debates that neither candidate mentioned the poor. There was much talk about the middle class, but the poor become invisible during the election. And now, with cries of socialism surrounding a health care bill, I have to question whether this country believes in and wishes for equality. To me the big issue in education is the leveling the playing field and then worry about technology.
Paying Attention
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October 7, 2009 at 6:46 pm |
The poor are always forgotten and it truly saddens me because I am starting to realize exactly what role “money” has in the future of one’s education. Equality is something we will continue to struggle with as carnal human beings because there will always be someone who questions the “difference” or finds discomfort in an even playing field.
October 8, 2009 at 3:01 pm |
As you may have noticed in class, Eric, I too find Cindy’s recommendations unrealistic, and always have. She is a wonderful person with an extreme concern for the disadvantaged, and that’s nothing to criticize. But her call for somehow distributing (and I do mean “somehow”) computers and connections to people who can’t afford them ring hollow to me. It’s the sort of thing that everybody stands up and cheers, and then sits down and shakes their head. I think this is one instance in which the market is working well, as the power of computers increases and the cost decreases. Ten years ago the issue may have seemed more pressing, of course.