Posted in Articles
Is exposure to too much technology affecting our children's ability to read?
An Associated Press article, "Scientists ask: Is technology rewiring our brains?" highlights the life of a 19-yr-old computer enthusiast who spends 6 to 12 hours online daily. He admits that he spends a lot of time online with his friends, but insists that they lead totally normal and perfect socials lives. But, I have to ask, when does he have the time for reading books, let alone obtaining the ability to read literature requiring deep thought and reflection?
"Life in the age of Google may even change how we read.
Normally, as a child learns to read, the brain builds pathways that gradually allow for more sophisticated analysis and comprehension, says Maryanne Wolf of Tufts University, author of "Proust and the Squid: The Story and Science of the Reading Brain."
She calls that analysis and comprehension "deep reading." But that takes time, even if it's just a fraction of a second, and today's wired world is all about speed, gathering a lot of superficial information fast.
Wolf asks what will happen as young children do more and more early reading online. Will their brains respond by short-circuiting parts of the normal reading pathways that lead to deeper reading but which also take more time? And will that harm their ability to reflect on what they've read?"
