A Silicon Valley School That Doesn't Use Computers 333
Hugh Pickens writes "Matt Richtel writes that many employees of Silicon Valley giants like Google, Apple, Yahoo and Hewlett-Packard send their children to the Waldorf School in Los Altos where the school's chief teaching tools are anything but high-tech: pens and paper, knitting needles and, occasionally, mud. Not a computer to be found. No screens at all. Computers are not allowed in the classroom, and the school even frowns on their use at home. 'I fundamentally reject the notion you need technology aids in grammar school,' says Alan Eagle whose daughter, Andie, attends a Waldorf school, an independent school movement that boasts an 86 year history in North America. 'The idea that an app on an iPad can better teach my kids to read or do arithmetic, that's ridiculous.' Advocates for equipping schools with technology say computers can hold students' attention and, in fact, that young people who have been weaned on electronic devices will not tune in without them."
Re:Not all schools are equal (Score:2, Informative)
"...in a large percentage of cases around the country, where the teachers are in fact poor.." - *citation needed*
Certainly there exist poor teachers, but a "large percentage?" I doubt it. I have had one or two teachers in my day that I didn't care for, but I wouldn't rate even them as "poor." I have used computer tutorials also, in have more often than not found them bad to awful in quality.
Assuming for the sake of argument that there are a large number of poor teachers in "poor schools," these are also the schools least likely to be able to afford computers, or to afford to keep them running.
What we really need to do is follow the example of countries where schools and teaching are much better: Pay the teachers more, and require better trained teachers. Most especially, we need to counter the right-wing canard that teachers are "overpaid" when in fact they are more typically overworked and underpaid.
Fair disclosure: I was married to a teacher, and she was one of the hardest working, most dedicated people I know. The same was true of most of the other teachers she worked with.
That would be a Steiner/Waldorf School? (Score:5, Informative)
Described as "Mystical Barmpottery" (a lovely english expression we should all use more):
http://www.dcscience.net/?p=3528
and some wonderful racism in there too:
http://www.dcscience.net/?p=3853
The only Waldorf I'd want my kids taught by is the one who sits next to Statdler on The Muppet Show.
Re:But deep-tissue massage in the classroom is OK. (Score:5, Informative)
My 11 year old daughter has attended a Waldorf school practically since birth and, while there are definitely uber-hippies and a few anti-vaxxers, her school is nothing like you describe. Waldorf schools reflect their leadership, and if nuts are in charge the school is nutty (like every organization, really). There is none of this deep tissue crap, none of this anti-wifi hysteria - please don't paint all Waldorf schools with the same brush because they aren't all the same. It's been a great education and my daughter does just fine with computers - and has even programmed a little python on an OLPC. For some reason - probably because they end up loving to learn and haven't had creativity beaten out of them - many Waldorf kids end up going into the sciences. They end up fine, because appropriate things are taught at appropriate times.
The play focus in preschool is totally appropriate - and IS learning. At that age, kids need to learn how to interact with each other and solve their own problems as peers, and play (and storytelling, another huge part of early Waldorf education) is one of the best ways of "teaching" that. It lays a foundation for kids that're able to interact in healthy ways and solve problems on their own. How many smart people have you met that're unable to deal with interpersonal problems or even minor conflicts?
Anyway - I am not a blinder wearing Waldorf fanboy. There are some wacky things (Eurythmy? hokay. . .), but the end results of a good Waldorf school are hard to argue with. They end up being well rounded, centered kids who by and large kick ass in high school and end up happy.