Mamas. I teach college students at a university, and I need to ask you a favor. Please, I’m begging you:
Teach your kids to type.
Let me explain. Students are often assumed to be technology literate, meaning, they can do it all because they’re on their devices all the time. And this is truly an issue, but separate from what I’m talking about. I’m just as terrified of the fact that when you stick a computer or laptop in front of a college-aged student, they’re still pecking at the keyboard.
What I’ve found over and over and over again is that while they can text a million words a minute on their phones, they simply can’t type, so when submitting homework and especially papers – they struggle. Big time.
Because of this skill deficit, they don’t want to write papers (or full sentences half the time) as it takes them too long to complete the work due to typing one finger at a time. I’ve also had students attempt to do their homework on their phones, which means there’s NO editing or formatting done, and often, “text vocab” is used out of habit or autocorrect. While I know my students are smart and know the answers to the work they are completing, I’m realizing how hard it is for them to jump this hurdle of working through their lack of typing skills.
How do we fix this? Teach your kids to type properly, now!
Education World reports it’s much more helpful to practice accuracy and precision over speed until you are competent. There are many programs online, free and fee-based, that can help with this.
Your kids will complete their homework faster, feel less afraid of papers and reports they have to submit, and ultimately, be better prepared for the workforce. And – if you’re in the boat of people who never learned – imagine how motivating for your kids it will be if you’re learning how to type alongside them.
Make a game out of it, challenge one another, and both you and your kiddo will be ready to take on the world (or at least the next homework assignment). You will reap the benefits of this activity and, I assure you, the educators of your children will thank you!
