My sticking point behind this post is not that teachers are being `brainwashed` by corporate America, it is that when teaching search and the use of web applications to students, some diversity thrown into the puzzle would be appreciated and I hope Boards of Education take this into heart.

Sure Google, Yahoo, Live.com and Ask.com offerings are all amazing in their own way, but having students only use offerings from one company in the classroom will not enhance their user experiences.

In this case, it`s not Coke or Pepsi, Nestle or Mars… it`s information; and I hope to never see the day when search engines or Internet services are signing contracts with schools to be their `official` service.

first off the above poster is right.. Education majors (and subsequently teachers) on average have lower scores across the board, they really are dumber than the rest of ut.

Secondly, I used to do technology support for school districts, and yes it’s the administrators who make the decisions, but the old saying applies: those who can, do. those who can’t, teach. Those who can’t even teach, administrate!

How many other jobs can you think of where you are managing and training 30 people, expected to pay for your own continuing job training, and take work home with you (even on weekends), and after 10 years on the job are still paid less than 40k/year?

As far as the choices about hardware and software, those choices are not made by teachers, but by the all-knowing school executives.

As far as ranting against teachers, I suspect you would not be able to read or write without the intervention of a teacher.

“The rest of the world went forward with reasonably good, functional technology”
What tech would that be? AFAIK Macs vs PCs is a worldwide thing, and by far most of the world is not computer literate, that is most of China, India, Africa, Indonesia…

It is a FACT that teachers have lower IQ scores, reading, writing, and math skills than the population as a whole. When it comes to technology – THEY ARE MORONS!!!!

For Christ’s sake – in many school districts they are still arguing MAC vrs PC or WordPerfect vrs WORD!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The rest of the world went forward with reasonably good, functional technology more than a DECADE ago – Google is dragging these idiots into the 21st Century (usually kicking and screaming) and you want to make it out to be a “conspiracy”.

Don’t know who is more ignorant – you or the typical teacher – oh wait, another option just occured to me – maybe you are one of these dipsh@ts yourself!

Teachers give assignments requiring research all the time. Are you suggesting students should use other methods of research? If so who chooses which ones and who funds the education?

I may hav3 missed your point, What are you suggesting should be done?