The Americanization of Everything

Although we do not realize it on a daily basis, our lives today depend/revolve around major corporations and chains. In an average, suburban town, it is not unusual to drive by multiple McDonald’s stores and several Starbucks Coffee houses. This is not only happening in America, globalization, an increase in interconnected and interdependent nature of communication systems, economies, cultures, and politics of contemporary societies, is occurring in foreign countries across the world. McDonald’s stores have even sprung up in Havana, Cuba. While globalization seems like a good idea to some because of the extended wealth and products that will be available to more people, increased living standards, and shared values worldwide, it also evokes much criticism and doubt. Perhaps we as a world are becoming too “Americanized”.

            I am a first generation American born to Chinese immigrant parents. Living in the United States has almost entirely disintegrated my Chinese roots and culture. Although my parents are very traditional in their upbringing of my brother and I, because we interact with other Americans everyday and growing up in an extremely American suburb (Milford, Connecticut), we have inevitably adopted an almost entirely American set of values. This is what people refer to as Americanization. Apparently, because the United States is such a dominant and influential world power, the world is becoming westernized and homogenized.

            However prevalent America and the West have become in the world, I do not believe the world will become homogenized. This summer when I went to Beijing, China for the first time in my life, I didn’t know what to expect. I thought I would see people dressing in the same brands and fashions as in America. Instead, I got off the plane and couldn’t find one person wearing a Hollister or Abercrombie shirt. Much of the clothing they were wearing were either brandless or from an Asian company. It surprised me to see that as “cool” and “modern” as we Americans seem to other countries, people in Beijing had their own fashion and style. I saw styles of clothing I have never encountered in America. This shows that however prominent the West becomes in the world and no matter how much influence it may exert, people will never truly lose the sense of their own background. There will always be something unique to their culture that they will be proud of and cling to.

            As long as countries don’t lose their sense of identity and uniqueness, I do not see why Americanization is a bad thing. If other countries can pick out the good parts of America to utilize them in their own societies, shouldn’t that be a good thing? Being more like America in some aspects, can unite the world and create a better understanding of ourselves as a whole and not separate, unreachable countries. 

Laptops in class? Blasphemy! or perhaps not? Should we be more open to incorporating technology into education?

All my life, the only type of class/classroom I was used to would be that of a traditional lecture. The teacher would prepare a lesson or a Powerpoint and stand in front of the class copying down the notes from her notebook onto the blackboard behind her or reading off slides projected onto a screen while the students would try to copy down everything she says and writes on the board. Recently though, due to the rapid rise of technology and use of the internet, we start to ask ourselves if this traditional style of teaching really is the most efficient and effective. Now, in more and more classes (mainly in college), students are allowed to bring their laptops and tablets into class to take notes or view the daily agenda of the class. Could allowing the use of technology and laptops in the classroom enhance the learning that takes place there? Some experts and companies encourage the development of online classes as a substitute for traditional classrooms arguing that it is innovation and that it provides low cost, but high quality education. Still others argue that the best kind of learning takes place inside a traditional lecture/seminar style class where no technology is allowed. These advocates for traditional classrooms are mainly concerned with students getting distracted in class/distracting others who prefer taking notes with pen and paper and also losing the sense of classroom community and the connection between students and teacher.

            Today, in a consistently improving and progressing world, is it possible to continue living in the past? Is it practical for us to ignore innovation and remain confined by methods that have worked in the past while stopping our quest to find more efficient ways of doing the same thing? I feel as though stalwart opponents of bringing technology into the classroom are, in addition to avoiding the problems it may bring, also preventing possible advancements. Timothy Snyder, a professor at Yale, is a strong opponent of letting students bring laptops to class. He argues that students will develop the habit of being easily distracted and it will spill into the workplace. He says that students who want to take notes become distracted by the call of social networking sites or catching up on the newest episode of their favorite TV show. In addition, students who bring laptops to class become a distraction for the students who are trying to take notes using pen and paper. “The ability of one human being to reach another by speech s an irreplaceable part of what it means to be human. In seminars, laptops are still more harmful serving as physical barriers that prevent a group of students from becoming a class” (Snyder). I can understand this concern as it does become difficult to engage a class while everyone is on their laptops doing something different.

            By limiting the use of technology in lesson plans, teachers also hinder possible student interaction and critique. Cathy Davidson, a professor at Duke University, through comparing her students’ writings on their blog and their traditional written papers, discovered that the writings they had to post on their blogs were considerably better than their papers. “Research indicates that, at every age level, people take their writing more seriously when it will be evaluated by peers than when it is to be judged by teachers” (Davidson). She also noticed that incorporating technology (iPods) actually promoted connection amongst the students. They figured out themselves ways to turn iPods into social media to actually enhance their learning. For example, in the music department, the students uploaded their compositions to their iPods so their classmates could listen and critique. Letting students discover creative uses for technology will enhance their learning, promote their creativity, and motivate them making them eager to learn. 

            In conclusion, although there are two valid, opposing sides for the issue of whether or not technology should be incorporated more into education and the classroom, I think there are obvious benefits to using technology to enhance learning. We should not be afraid to stray from the traditional classroom style of teaching and try a different approach that may work better. The amount of information and possibilities on the internet is so vast and there is so much potential for it if we utilize it in the correct way. Ultimately, I think that students should be allowed to use laptops in class. If they can take advantage of the information and tools, good for them. If they cannot exercise self control and get distracted, it is their loss but just because it may not be a good idea for certain students does not make it automatically detrimental to all students.