Today's Newsletter: Ed Tech Luddites

Maybe it’s just Monday, but the T&L newsfeed is full of cranky Luddites naysaying the value of education technology this morning. Anya Kamenetz in Slate puts the dampers on MOOCs in developing countries: “The danger in overreliance on global MOOCs is that they don’t build local capacity for education, research or knowledge creation in the education sector.” Charles Kenny in Businessweek falls back on this old trope: “Computer labs are still no substitute for teachers with the flexibility and incentive to teach backed up by parents with a commitment that their kids learn.” Tia Ghose even dares to question the true educational value of iPads: “Many of these games are only "educational" in the loosest sense of the term, and almost none have been tested in rigorous studies, say scientists. The ones that have been tested show modest results.” I need to point these people to techlearning.com! —Kevin Hogan, Editorial Director