Interesting observation made by Postman that writing may potentially threaten memory. Did he mean a collective memory of humanity, a memory of a certain society, or an individual? I would love to read his arguments when I have time because usually something written is considered to be well remembered in the future. (Unfortunately, I couldn’t download his book on the spot.)
As for TV, I think it has lost its influence, and modern kids are more inclined to read and write to keep in touch with their peers.
Thank you for recommending Oxford Learner’s dictionaries to us, Ernesto! I personally prefer the Cambridge electronic dictionary mostly because it differs British and American pronunciations of words. Collins electronic dictionary is especially good with the phrasal verbs though Cambridge is not bad either. Longman is quite trustworthy too. I believe we can agree that all dictionaries are good and useful, even the Urban dictionary.
Hi Anna,
I like how you mentioned that TV is losing influence on kids today. Instead, writing and reading are the main source of communication for kids. When I was a kid, TV was the main source of entertainment and kids bonded over the shows we watched. When I would hang out with my friends as a kid, we would go outside to play or watch TV. Now, kids write and read each other’s text messages, Instagram messages, TikTok comments etc to entertain themselves and communicate with others. You made me realize that kids today are actually writing and reading more than before (in terms of having it as the main form of communication). Kids are also using more visually aides to communicate with each other (eg. Memes, gifs). I do not think one method is better than the other (eg. F2F versus virtually). However, I do believe that kids need to learn how to socially interact F2F as this is a crucial skill.
Thank you for your comment, Leilani! I appreciate that!