30 05, 2014

A Must-See Video of the Impact of Technology on Our Lives

By | May 30th, 2014|Categories: Technology|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |0 Comments

In my recent post, I argue that opportunity costs (time spent doing one thing is time not spent doing other things) may be the greatest threat from technology. A friend just sent me this video titled Look Up that powerfully demonstrates what we miss–life, love, beauty, opportunity!–when we immerse excessively in technology. Here are a few great lines [...]

28 05, 2014

Taylor Quoted in Article about Children’s Use of Technology

By | May 28th, 2014|Categories: Parenting|Tags: , , , , , , , , , |0 Comments

I was recently quoted in a newspaper article about the role of technology in children's lives. I was in the minority opinion based on those the writer interviewed. What do you think? Whose side are you on (hopefully, your children's)?

21 05, 2014

Are Opportunity Costs Children’s Real Problem with Technology?

By | May 21st, 2014|Categories: Technology|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , |7 Comments

There are a lot of “techno-evangelists” out there spreading the gospel of technology as the cure for all of our ills. For this group, technology can do no wrong. At the same time, there are plenty of Chicken Littles running around saying that our cultural, social, and educational sky is falling. For this group, technology is the ill that needs to be cured. I place myself firmly in the middle of these two camps. Think of me as the Paul Revere of the 21st century—“The techies are coming!” I believe that technology is inherently neither good nor bad. But neutral does not mean it is benign. As with most things in life, technology is healthy or harmful depending on how it is used. One challenge for us is technology enters our lives before we can know what effect it will actually have on us. The speed at which technology is becoming deeply woven into the very fabric of our lives is breathtaking; as if we’re holding onto the railing of a caboose of a runaway train. Innovations are launched and become a part of our culture so quickly that there isn’t time to step back and consider the implications of new technology on us. It is only in the rearview mirror that we can see whether a technological advancement has been beneficial or damaging. And by then it’s too late to go back; the new technology is already irreversibly embedded in our individual and societal psyches.

18 05, 2014

New York Times Publishes Taylor Letter to the Editor

By | May 18th, 2014|Categories: Education|Tags: , , , , , , |0 Comments

Last Friday, May 16th, the New York Times published my letter to the editor in response to a recent article about the introduction of computer programming into classrooms of students as young as second grade in Mill Valley California (my home town). Said one mother of a second grader when asked why she signed him [...]

7 05, 2014

26 Photos Show How Technology Has Changed Our Lives

By | May 7th, 2014|Categories: Technology|Tags: , , , , , , , |0 Comments

This series of 26 photos vividly captures how technology has changed how we interact with others and our world. THEN: Girls catch sight of The Beatles, 1964 NOW: Girls catch sight of One Direction, 2013  

16 04, 2014

Can Technology Save Itself from Itself?

By | April 16th, 2014|Categories: Technology|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , |0 Comments

With the 20th anniversary of the birth of Internet just passed, I thought it a good time to step back and reflect on the role of technology in our present lives and the role it may play in the future. There is no doubt that the technological developments of the past two decades made possible [...]

13 04, 2014

Taylor Highlighted in NY Times Article about Children and Social Media

By | April 13th, 2014|Categories: Parenting, Technology|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , |0 Comments

An interesting question is posed in a New York Times article in which I am featured: Do parents have a right to post photos of their children on social media without the children's consent or against their wishes?

11 04, 2014

Teens Leaving Facebook in Droves

By | April 11th, 2014|Categories: Technology|Tags: , , , , , , , , |0 Comments

A new survey by PiperJaffray shows that Facebook is no longer the dominant social media platform among teens. Says one girl, "It’s like the mom and dad version of Instagram and Twitter." Now, Instagram and Twitter are the primary forms of social media among this important demographic. From a financial perspective, you would think that this would spell [...]

11 03, 2014

Parents’ Use of Technology Matters

By | March 11th, 2014|Categories: Technology|Tags: , , , , , , , , |0 Comments

A cautionary article in The New York Times describes the important role that parents' use of technology has on their children in a variety of ways. The article cites a study in which caregivers (it wasn't always possible to judge whether they were the parents) with their children were observed in restaurants for their use [...]

26 01, 2014

Educational Media? Yeah, Right.

By | January 26th, 2014|Categories: Education, Parenting, Technology|Tags: , , , , , , , |0 Comments

As many of you know from my most recent parenting book, Raising Generation Tech: Prepare Your Children for a Media-fueled World, I'm not a big fan of screen time by children. In recent years, I've gotten push back from parents who say that their children learn a lot from so-called educational" media, whether TV shows, [...]