The Disadvantages of the Internet.

When the Internet was first introduced to the public, it marked an extraordinary change in every aspect of our lives. Today, with the explosive increase of sites on the Internet, technology has taken another dramatic rise. In the midst of this technological explosion, we might stop and ask some key questions. Is the Internet good or bad for education? Are students learning more or less? And what, exactly, are they learning? Although, using the Internet to research instead of encyclopaedias has become a reality for most high school students, the idea of the Internet being is a place where everyone can easily access reliable information is only a myth. We often make a great mistake by calling the Internet something along the lines of "best source of information", when, really, it is nothing but an unreliable, and bias source of information that develops bad habits in us.

If you are the type of person who does a lot of research for schoolwork, you would probably be familiar with much of the useless information on the Internet. More often than not, finding useful information is challenging, tedious, and time consuming. A large portion of the information on the Internet is commercial and useless for research. Also, determining whether the information on a certain website are based on actual facts or a point of view is virtually impossible - especially when you have two or more websites that contradict each other. Since most websites do not associate any dates to their information, many people receive out of date information that is only misleading. Next to all these obstacles, there are the Internet advertisements that pop up when least want them to distract you and make you research even harder and more time consuming.

While you are on a chatting with friends or writing an e-mail, you may think of the Internet as a democratic space where everyone around the globe can access the same information. However, if you consider the price you usually pay to get Internet access and the price someone in a third world country might pay to get access to the same information, you will start to see some of inequalities in the Internet. Similarly, some websites require users to pay a certain amount of money to access its information giving the wealthy and high-class people and advantage over low class people. Equal access is still only a theoretical dream, not a current reality.

Every time I use the Internet, I am reminded of the numerous tasks that used to be done by hand and are now done electronically. Those tasks may now be easier to perform but they are not as educational as they used to be. For instance, when writing letters was done by hand, we corrected our spelling and grammar errors. Today, most of us would simply hit the spell check button to correct any spelling and grammar errors we might have. Also, the very attractiveness of most websites, with their colour graphics and ingenious links to other topics, promotes dabbling and skimming. The word "surfing" is appropriate for the Internet, because most sites encourage only the most surface exploration of a topic. The Internet thus accentuates what are already bad habits for most students: Their short attention spans, their unwillingness to explore subjects in depth, their poor reading and evaluation skills.

Although making the most use out of today's technology is the ultimate goal for most of us, we must still consider its sociological effects on us.

What many of us are saying about the Internet being "the best source of information" is clearly a total exaggeration. Not only is the Internet inaccurate in terms of its information, but it is also the least effective when it comes to developing thinking skills and creativity. So the next time you plan on doing a research, find the information you need in a way that will improve your skills and hopefully teach you something new.