As the power and application of technology has increased exponentially over the past decade, the need for computer skills in a competitive economy has created a stark divide between the computer illiterate and the tech savvy. Many fail to realize how their community is affected by the issue, and dismiss this important situation. This problem has become more prominent in certain areas nationwide, which raises the question, “Is the technology education in our public schools sufficient enough to allow students to have success in finding a career?” This issue has been realized over the past few years in Trenton, as there has been a push to incorporate this type of education the school curriculum, as well as a pending initiative to provide less expensive computers and internet connectivity to less-fortunate families. What we hope to achieve in this discussion is an analysis of the fundamental issues of the Trenton public school’s curriculum, whether it meets the standards necessary for a thorough computer education, and possible solutions for improvement. We also wish to discuss what type of technological skills are necessary for obtaining a rewarding career, and if the Trenton school system is teaching this or how to use computers to create new technology.
There are also multiple levels of solutions that can be put into action to remedy schools that have a current computer science program that is lacking content. The first step to making a better program is to expand the educational options to the students. More often than not, school districts restrict themselves by only offering certain classes that teach the bare basics of computer usage, without really delving into computer designing. By expanding your program to include designing, you are preparing these students for their possible careers path and giving them more opportunities in the technological age we are currently in. Another solution to this growing issue of computer illiteracy is to provide education to the teachers. Occasionally, these teachers need to be educated on the material themselves so they are able to teach it to their students. Having teachers with a lack of knowledge on the course can provide a major hindrance to the educational value the students take out of the class. Overall, there are many solutions to computer illiteracy and many ways to remedy an ailing computer science program.
We are planning on hosting the live discussion on CoveritLive.com on Sunday, April 21, 2013 at 3:00 PM. If you have been invited to this chat already, you will receive an invitation to the event via e-mail. If you have not been asked to join the discussion but would like to participate in the conversation, please use the link below to receive a email below.
Digital Divide by Kim Pearson is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.