Moving at the Speed of Creativity by Wesley Fryer

Toffler on Feeling Overwhelmed (in 1980)

Do you feel fearful about new technologies and overwhelmed by the pace of change all around us in society? You’re not alone. In 1980, futurist Alvin Toffler wrote the following statements in the introduction to his chapter, “The Mental Maelstrom” in his landmark book, “The Third Wave.”

Never before have so many people in so many countries— even educated and supposedly sophisticated people— been so intellectually helpless, drowning, as it were, in a maelstrom of conflicting, confusing, and cacophonous ideas. Colliding visions rock our mental universe.[1]

That was 1980. This is 2013.

Toffler was and is a prophet of our times.

How is the curriculum at your school changing to reflect our dynamic (and yes, revolutionary) times?

overwhelmed in light by gogoloopie, on Flickr
Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic License  by  gogoloopie 

[1] Toffler, Alvin. The Third Wave. Bantam, 1980. p. 289.

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One response to “Toffler on Feeling Overwhelmed (in 1980)”

  1. Whitney Bizjak Avatar
    Whitney Bizjak

    Dr. Fryer,

    Whitney Bizjak from Dr. Strange’s EDM310 class again. I am so glad I was able to read this blog post. I for one am terrified about the fast pace of technology in the world today. Some would say that all the technology in the classroom is for our own good and that our education system will be better than ever. But for some reason I am just so scared that there will be “too much” technology in our classrooms. If that even makes since. I would just hate to see our students become dependent on technology and never learn to write or draw on a piece of paper. In a way I feel it might kill creativity. Now don’t think I am bashing technology completely because I do think technology in the classroom to a certain degree is a wonderful thing. I would just hate to see it take over.

    Thanks again Dr. Fryer for such a great blog post. I will be posting a summary of my visits to your blog on my blog tonight!

    http://bizjakwhitneyedm310.blogspot.com