If we program them right, kids can do stuff!

You, too, can fuel the corporate machine!

Dear Diary,
Am feeling v cynical after Prensky’s talk. Are all ppl involved really so shallow and simple? Have we, as parents, truly underestimated our children and alienated them for generations and we are just now finding out that they are capable of doing stuff?? And who-in the history of the universe- ever EVER thought that “in the old days you could engage kids with a good lecture”?? DUUUUUDE. Talk about your oxymoron: good lecture. And for children, no less. IF a lecture ever was good it likely would remain so, even for today’s preprogrammed brains.
Anyway there is a lot to disentangle: facts and numbers and truths (his) need to be separated from discouragement and bad attitudes (mine). 
Grown people would be wise to stay curious and thoughtful regarding children (students of all kinds) and ask questions. Rather than seeking to GET kids to engage- how about engage with them ourselves?? If we are interested in them as fellow humans perhaps there might be some element of reciprocity. This is called a RELATIONSHIP. It needn't be a friendship, per se, but being able to relate to our students is a fantastic place to start in the teaching universe.
Yes, technology is a useful tool. But as Ani DiFranco reminds us “Every tool is a weapon if you hold it right.” Are we, as educators, weaponizing students? Are we teaching them to become cogs in a capitalist machine? Is the chief aim of teaching to raise up people who can make money? Is money the metric of success? That was the impression that I got from this fella.
A quote from the 2014 talk: “We’re used to young people not having capabilities and now they do.” Well, guess what, Bub?! Young people have ALWAYS been capable, but they have been underestimated for generations and shame on us for that! We’ve been holding them back, keeping them quiet, and, recently, anesthetizing them with screens to avoid dealing with them.
Any time immigrants and natives of any kind approach one another each would be wise to be good listeners. Let the other surprise you with their abilities and insights. 
I’ll be pleased to use technology in an art classroom as it is available and relevant to the specific students entrusted to me. Adobe products are fantastic tools for growth in drawing, illustration and design. There are also free and inexpensive alternatives that are readily accessible to anyone with access to a computer. Procreate is an intuitive product that children love playing with! Digital media can be wonderful for learning experimentation in style because students are able to work in layers and easily erase/undo things they want to change! Phew! No pesky graphite ghosts and eraser bits everywhere!
Prensky’s assertion that “wisdom...is what we’re all after” is noble and idealistic but so completely untrue. Gosh! But he IS on to something! Wisdom may well be the highest pursuit. Beyond money-making what if educators infused a love of learning and seeking of wisdom the greater aim? Rather than $$ getting good grades to get better jobs $$, what if we didn’t care much about grades and focused on personal growth for the purpose of building healthy, thriving communities?
There is beauty in slowing down- I learned this from my elderly neighbor in her garden.
Doing hard work strengthens the spine- I learned this watching my dad run his small business.
Quietude is fertile ground for growing one’s own thoughts- This I learned from a preschool friend. Here is a sweet one who will engage in imaginative play, all on his own, for a good long time! 
When the screens are off.

Ring! Bananaphone!