After reading Larry Magid’s article on the NECC yesterday, I decided to see what else he had written. One article titled Kids cheating with tech but are schools cheating kids? caught my eye.

He started by revealing some statistics on how kids were using cell phones to cheat in school. He then went on to ask if schools were cheating students by not allowing them to use technologies that would help them now and in their future. He even wondered out loud if phones could be used in tests.

This, of course, resonated with me. But rather than say what I always say, I’ll quote a librarian that Magid cited:

“We can’t teach 21st century literacy and assess with 19th century methodology. We have to look at what we really need students to be able to do when they leave us” and we must ask, “What is my student learning outside of school and how can I get them just as engaged?”

To the point. Nail on the head. Bull’s eye.

I think that in future when I talk to teachers and principals or when I conduct workshops, I’ll ask them: Are you cheating your kids?