It wasn’t until high school that I first learned to type. Before that, handwriting was the only game for communication, and I wrote voraciously, with words and pictures. Today, I use a mix. Typing is much faster, but a pen and paper is always available.
The generation graduating high school, voting, and entering the workforce has had a much different experience. Because of widespread focus on standardized tests, administered by computer, schools were forced to teach typing in the early elementary grades. With no additional instructional hours, what got cut? Snail mail letters, cursive, and art.
Flash forward to the present day, and typing on computers is being replaced by typing on phones, usually in short, quick bursts. The faster the better, and if you pass along someone else’s words, well that’s even faster! We pass on links before we have thought about whether they are credible. Checking sources is quick and easy, but with only one screen in front of us at a time, it’s a bit of a hassle and often skipped. Who has the time? We have to get to the next thing to read and pass on. We are metaphorically putting other people’s words, verbatim, into our mouths.
I have certainly done my share of “doomscrolling” lately. But it isn’t the only way I interact with the universe. I also spend time with a sheet of paper and a pen writing down ideas. These are my ideas, and my words. I can come back to them later to question or remember. I can link ideas together graphically, whether it be in outline form or whatever “bubble” form might be popular. At that point, I type them up. I’ve put more thought and more feelings into them, I’ve considered the past and future, and I’ve left time and space for them to breathe. It’s like kneading dough, knocking it down, letting it rest, and letting it rise.
What happens to a generation without this skill? What is being taught to our elementary school kids today? Who and what will they vote for in 2035?
-Kristin
Kristin Ann King 