I Wonder If What We Think Is Best

I've noticed something at our elementary school lately.  I hadn't seen it until about six weeks ago.  When I tell you what it is, you're  going to say to yourself, "that's not that big of a deal," I think it is. 

What is it that I have noticed?  

Students using the voice dictation tool on the iPad.  

I have noticed our primary students using the tool on their iPads without their teacher or me prompting them to use it.  I was teaching a Book Creator lesson a couple of weeks ago in fourth grade and a student found the newly added voice to text feature all on their own.   I sat and watched the student dictate a paragraph (with no errors) to add to the Halloween book they were authoring. 

Stop.

Let's go back to 1988.  I'm sitting in Mrs. Soderman's typing class at Centura Public School.  The hum of 25 electric typewriters fills the room.  I'm sitting in the second row trying not to look down at my fingers to make sure they are on the home row keys.  I'm trying to type as fast as I can.  I LOVED that class. In fact, it was my favorite.  It was all about winning for me.  I didn't care that Mrs. Soderman told us that we would need this essential skill someday.  All I cared about was typing faster than the classmate seated next to me and getting to my goal of 82 words per minute.  Yes, I achieved that goal, and I am so glad that I learned the skill of keyboarding.  It has served me well.  It's a skill that I use every day in my job.   Heck, I even got paid to type up a couple of papers in college!  

Back to 2017.  

We are having conversations about what keyboarding programs we should be spending money on in our schools.  We hear from business leaders in our communities that keyboarding is an essential skill that will be needed. 

Yet I have a first grader hammering out an assignment using the voice dictation tool.  Do I tell them to stop and show them how to place their hands on home row? Or do I let them use a tool that allows them to easily express themselves? 

I'm trying to imagine what their world will look like 10-15 years from now knowing how efficient voice dictation has become just in the last three years.

And most importantly...

I wonder if our pre-established norms as adults sometimes get in the way in the world of education.