Introduction:
Thanks, again, to my mother-in-Law, Joyce, I read this brief interview with world renown expert with boys and literacy, Jon Scieska (pronounced Sheska). Jon is the founder of Guys Read and a major inspiration in my involvement with boys and literacy. Be sure to read "Our Guys Read Project" which explains the Guys Read group I was invloved in.
Highlights of Interview:
Since this is such a short interview, there are only a few pieces to mention in this post. Jon Scieska says not to argue when a boy complains that reading is boring. He says to "…find a book that will spark his or her interest." When asked about computers, TV, and and other technologies,
Scieska reminds us that a book is also considered a form of technology. His point – instead of always fighting kids with technology, they just need reminders that books can be useful too.
Questions to Discuss:
What are your ideas and opinions about the influence of technology with boys and literacy?
What are ways that technology can have a good impact?
Rose
My boys are very much into computers and internet. They know their way around online games, music downloads and social networking. As for school related matters such as doing research online, they can also manage by themselves.
All these computer and internet technology entail reading and comprehension. They may not be reading e-books but for sure, what the boys are doing online requires them to read and understand instructions i.e. how the game should be played, etc.
zemlene
My students are into computers, may it be games, research works and social networking as well. Some of them are my contacts in friendster and in facebook. At some points, my students are even the one who taught me how to make my homepage look good. The boys also taught me how to play online games as well. They are well- informed with such things. Which is also good for them because these technologies could also help them do well in school and become a well- versed professional one day.
ayoubmarket
I think technology hypnotize the kid’s brain, HOW ? by making him lazy and he will only do some clicks (copy/past) to make the home work done, I remember when I was student we used to< search for hours in the libraries and books until we find an “Introduction” that may be suitable for our project, but now and as a Teacher I see all students copy some past works and give them as a complete work; because they don’t went to have A or B they only went to pass to the next year what ever it is the way they took.
C.AYOUB
vanessa_cruz0615
Technology really influenced boys and literacy…Sometimes It’s funny that I have all my nephews who knew every detail in the computers rather than me… I also told them that though this computers were invented to help them work fast, they should also read books because reading books give a different pleasure..
Mike McQueen
zemlene: I guess I have not really even thought too much about all the reading that is involved with social networks. I think that would be a great topic for another blog article.
You bring up a very good point Rose, "internet technology entail reading and comprehension." Quite often kids become very proficient reading and researching online. David Warlick, is a bigwig in our country. He tours the country and talks about his book, Redefining Literacy for the 21st Century. He also has a very popular blog – davidwarlick.com/2cents/
Chuck
What are your ideas and opinions about the influence of technology with boys and literacy?
Technology is one of the major things my students love to read. Especially with computers. When their clique talks about technical terms about a mother board, a hard disk and what not my jaw drops to the ground. They know such terms which I do not understand. They talk gibberish! They talk Greek and these are high school boys!
Once a kid, a boy for that matter, sets his heart on something he likes or interested in, he certainly would not need you to push him to read on it or research on it. He would, on his own, read and read and read.
Technology is able to catch a boy’s attention.
Siena70
I simply adore special search engines (e.x.. torrent files search engines ), with their help the search of necessary info or file becomes much quicker.