Kids, Computers and You

Brenda Reed is the curriculum and reference services librarian in the
Education Library, Queen’s University.

According to the authors of this informative book, educational computer
policies of the last two decades have had discouraging results in the
province of Ontario. Student access to computers varies widely across
the province, equipment in many schools is either not functioning or out
of date, and many teachers are both untrained in computer skills and
unaware of the role computers could play in the curriculum they teach.

This book encourages parents to find out about computer policy in their
local schools, offers advice on how to work with school boards and
teachers to increase computer access, and names specific software
programs that could be integrated into the curriculum. In a chapter
titled “Schools and the Information Highway,” the authors express
skepticism about the wisdom of spending millions of dollars to connect
every Canadian school to the Internet, when in fact “Canadian content
is lagging way behind the wiring process.”

Every Canadian educator should have access to this sensible and
jargon-free examination of the past, present, and future of computer
education in Canadian schools.