Are Computers the Enemy of Educational Productivity?

Computers, I think you'll agree, have done a lot of good things for the world, but I think they also have a lot to answer for in the education system.

Let me start by saying that for the main part I think that computers in education are largely unnecessary. Yes, kids often enjoy using them, but this is just because children tire quickly of almost all tasks and, as they say, a change is as good as a break. Don't get me wrong, I do beleive that children should be taught the basics, they should be taught how to use an office suite (preferably not MS Office, but a free alternative) and they should also be taught the basics about how computers and operating systems work (Again, staying away from the expensive options), but that is as far as it should go. If kids want to learn any more, if they find computers interesting, they should have access to them, but valuable contact hours should not be wasted with kids staring at screens for hours on end.

You could be forgiven for thinking that the overuse of computers stops when children leave school, but this is not the case. When new students embark on their university career they are urged to 'invest' in a new computer, but for what? Facebook? I can guarentee that at university, the abolition of students having personal computers and having access to things like facebook would lead to an increase in productivity. Yes, the internet can be a useful tool for research into a given subject field but that is all it should be used for.

The problem stems from the separation of work time from leisure time. When you are using the same tool for both it is very hard to restrict yourself to doing only work. For this reason, university computers should be used only for work, and if the student does not have a computer of their own then, who knows, they may sit down and read a book, possibly even a book relevant to their subject. Either that or they'll turn on the TV and watch X Factor, but don't get me started on television...