Tim Streater wrote
Bernard Peek wrote
Tim Streater wrote

[1] They need a lesson to understand what an OS is, and that there are others besides Windows. They need two more
lessons to
understand what Word and Excel are, and a quick overview of what
they do and what they might be used for. And that there are other
programs which perform the same sort of function. That's it.

It depends on what age they start at. My beef is that the reason why
sixteen year olds need lessons in word-processing is that they didn't get those lessons at age eight when they would
have been more appropriate.

Why do they need lessons on the detail of word processors at all?

Because many of the employers need that sort of capability and schools
are there to educate the kids on stuff that they may well need. It makes
no sense for employers to have to educate many of their employees on
stuff as basic as that instead of having the schools do it.

Corse whether thats better done in primary, secondary
or trade schools is another matter entirely.

Like Bernard, I'd personally do it in primary school, but obviously how viable
that would be depends on what those primary schools have computer wise.

On how to add a footer or change the font? You'll teach them how to do that with Word 2007 or something, next thing
you know is that MS has changed the front end completely.

If you teach them properly, they will be able to cope with that.

When you teach them to read using physical books, they can handle ebooks fine.

So all that teaching suddenly was a waste of time.

Nope, not if you teach them properly.

Thats true of your OS example too.

They need to know what a word processor is.

They also need to know how to use one effectively, if only so they
can use one to do quite a bit of their school work, assignments etc,
let alone what so many of them will use once they are working.

They need to know that you *can* add a footer (and to know what a footer is) or change the font for a paragraph or
that you can justify the text.

And the best way to teach that is to get them used to doing that.

The detail of how it's done, they can learn for themselves at home.

Makes a lot more sense to teach that at school where they can get immediate
assistence from the teacher when they stuff it up, particularly with the 8 year olds.

They need to know that there are other word processors than Word, too.

Only that there are others that anyone who can use Word can use.

It's the *concepts* that matter,

Yes, but there is also a need to teach them how to actually use what so
many of them will use while in school and at work. It makes no sense to
leave that to their employers to teach them, thats what schools are about.

and the stimulation of their natural curiosity.

Yes, but just waffling to 8 year olds about what a word processor can
do and not letting them actually use one doesnt do that very effectively.

With Excel in spades.

And then there are decent databases which leave Excel for dead for some stuff.

It makes more sense to be teaching that sort of thing rather than programming
languages which few will ever use in real life once they have left school now.