I was watching my eight-year old nephew teach his mother a few tricks on the laptop. He was so confident and comfortable – guess it happens if you are born in an age where laptops seem omnipresent, and face threats from tablets!
It made me think – most folks from my generation were introduced to the computer in the later years of school. A mobile phone became part of our lives only in college. Projects had to be hand-written and not typed. Typing became the norm at the work-place.
Today’s tech-savvy children are comfortable with typing even before they step into their adolescence. They don’t write letters – they mail, message, tweet. Which makes me wonder: will the art of writing soon become a thing of the past?
Schools have started using iPads to teach. Laptops are essentials at home. The next generation will find writing redundant soon. And the generation after that will probably think of it as an ancient skill, given how deeply technology will be embedded in their lives.
We had handwriting competitions at school – you showed off certificates that credited you with neat writing. Illegible writing was a source of laughter – you spent many an afternoon trying to decode what your friend had scrawled on the note. It was important to write neatly if you wanted people to read what you had written.
With gadgets and technology invading the learning years early, today’s children know that typing and not writing will help them make a mark. And when you know it won’t really help in the long run, why focus your energies on it? Writing will only go the e-way. And handwriting…?
