College Without Technology

Wyoming Catholic College limits students' use of cell phones and computers, and the students seem to be doing just fine.  From the Casper Star-Tribune:

In an era when technology is king, Wyoming Catholic College is positing an against-the-grain conviction: that great advances in technological achievement, while widely celebrated, might not in fact be good for people. And they might actually get in the way of education.

Here, students are encouraged, and in many ways required, to forgo the world of virtual connectivity, and engage with the actual world -- to go out into the woods, the mountains and the horse stables and experience what college officials refer to as "God's first book."

Student Hannah Gaddis of Casper said the school's curriculum kept her so busy and engaged that she never had time to give the school's strict technology policy a second thought.

"You kind of realize how much you don't need these things," she said.

Link: An Audacious Experiment.

I learned about this first from an NPR story (No Tech U) in which they interview a student who clearly gets that technology skills are not that big a deal and not hard to learn when you need them. 

Of course there are other aspects of this school that may not be everyone's cup of tea -- like the exclusively religious and "great (Western) books" curriculum and the apparent endorsement by Bill Bennett.  In America those don't raise eyebrows (not that they should, necessarily) -- but banning iPods sure does.

Comments

[Davis Bigelow]

I certainly cannot speak for the masses, but I do think that I have let technology push out some of my opportunities to soak up nature. Hiking in a tranquil forest, sitting to watch a glacial waterfall morph into spray and mist or gazing in awe from a mountaintop are not even remotely comparable to staring at the screen on my laptop – no matter what is displayed on it. It is obvious to me (but sadly so) that I cannot do enough of what I would like to do, yet I try hard to use technology to free up more time for the quiet times. It is my experience that taking a romantic stroll with my sweetheart requires the complete absence of electronic gadgetry as well as a generous portion of time. As our technology enrobes us and invades our personal, private time and space, I think we all need to be careful to seek balance. Too much of a good thing seems to turn every good thing into a bad one. The fact that students are having their choices limited concerns me, but if they consent, why not? After all, if I want to be a member in good standing, I should expect to follow the membership rules - and that would imply that I had my full opportunity to make my own choice in the matter.