From High School to Preschool

Recently in class, we brought up the topic of technology and media within the high school classroom. As we went around, it was the general consensus that most devices are prohibited within the classroom, even if for educational purposes. Cell phones, laptops, or even speech translators are prohibited from the classroom in order to maintain the style of learning accepted in a high school setting.

Upon analyzing, the idea of prohibiting these devices is completely absurd. In the beginning, I was all for it.I was in high school once and kids at that age are very "ADD". They want to play with everything and anything that doesn't have to do with the academic topic at hand. Weather surfing the Internet or playing pinball on the games menu, kids will be distracted by anything. I changed my opinion, however. Looking back, most kids in high school are not presented with the option to have a laptop. If they are, maybe they will take on new responsibility and use it for educational purposes. This is not to mention the fact that the school can limit what the student can and cannot access on the computer. Same goes for cell phones in that if kids are able to use them, they will eventually get tired of using them it they will only be used for the purpose they serve.

These policies in school are in place for a reason. As times change and technology progresses, so must the policies in these places. We now live in a digital wonderland where everything, both academically and recreational, is in the form of media. As a result, we must extend our high school policies in order to accompany these changing times. Laptops and cellphones are no longer distractions, they are tools for the future that allow our young minds to strive. If we open up media in our high schools and approach it with a academic purpose, who knows how far our innovative minds can bring us.

Moderation

Everything is good for you in moderation. No matter what it is and as long as you take in the approiate amount, it is true that you body needs a little bit of everything. The problem is, however, that most people dont moderate themselves which is why we have people who are everything from morbidly overweight to people who are alcoholics. The easiest example is the general consensis that fatty foods are bad for you. The fact is that you body does need some fat in order to convert to enegery to burn off the unnecessary fat. If you try and avoid fat altogether, which is very common these days, you body tends to store the fat you already have and you end up not loosing any weight at all.

I was reading through the paper the other day and i saw another example of this theory on the front page of the newspaper. It said "New study shows that talking on the phone poses new health hazards." After i stopped laughing, i just wondered how that is considered a new problem? Taking on the phone has a similar effect to a microwave in that if you stand in front of it for LONG enough, your brain waves are interupted by the ones comming from the microwave. The problem is that you need to be standing in front of it for hours before it takes a harmful effect. The same goes for the cellphone issue in that if you are talking on your phone for hours, yes it will have a negative effect on your body. America needs to learn the concept of moderation and with it, I feel that many of our health problems will be solved instantly.