To Google or Not to Google

I've come across the phrase "If you can Google it, why teach it?" One example of this can be found here.

I agree with this idea. After all, everyone has a phone in their pocket and can pull Google out at any time. I even find myself doing it at the supper table when one of my kids asks a question that I don't know the answer to.

So we should start changing what we teach, how we run our classrooms, and how we run our schools in light of the existence of Google.

And yet...

One can only create a good Google search if you have enough background knowledge to formulate the right kind of question. For example, in finding the link above I had to try three different Google searches before I found what I was looking for. I had to know such a topic existed, I needed to know proper English (especially since my first search contained a spelling error), and more.

So while we do need to change what we do in schools, we also can't throw everything away.

I agree that we need more Project Based Learning, more student voice and choice, a greater ethic of excellence, and an understanding the technology is disrupting education, we also need to continue with building a solid foundation of skills for our students. There is still a place for rote memorization, drill, practice, and even lectures.

Let me give you an example from my own teaching experience.

When I first started teaching math I insisted that students memorize all of the formulas for our measurement and geometry unit. That was what was expected in high school and I wanted my students ready.

I don't do that any more. I have my students complete careful notes during the lessons and they may bring their notes to the test. In fact, I won't even let them take the test unless they have a complete set of notes that they've created themselves. (Almost always handwritten, but that's a story for another day.) 

The reality is that memorizing all the formulas isn't necessary any more. If someone really needs a formula they can just Google it. That's what I do when I need one.

However, the formulas are useless unless you understand Order of Operations. (BEDMAS, or PEDMAS, or PODMAS, or however else you learned it.) If you don't understand the proper usage of a formula they're useless. So I still require my students to memorize this process and I reinforce it with plenty of drill and kill. Then we practice it in context with question after question and formula after formula. 

I figure that I am a successful math teacher if my students can walk out of my classroom and handle any formula that Google can throw at them. 

So, yes, my teaching practice has changed because of Google and probably will continue to do so, but memorization and repetition remain useful parts of education.