It feels a bit odd to start off the year by talking about something that we're taking away. Or worse, about how I am planning on making a lot of people's lives more difficult than they already are. And the amazing thing is, I get applause (from certain quarters) when I announce what we're doing.
So if you attended Upper or Middle School Back to School Night last week, you heard my announcement: For several years, I have been threatening to declare a "day without email" and this year, we're finally going to do it. The date will be in early October and we'll give families plenty of warning with more details in late September.
And for most of you off campus, it will pass like any ordinary day. But for all of us here, it should be quite stimulating. No computers will be allowed into the building, no internet access will be available, no hand-held devices. Those who send an email to MPA will receive a "bounce back" message describing what we're doing and why, and instructing anyone with a time sensitive message to call the school directly - on the telephone.
Yes, we are travelling back in time to a day when the telephone was the primary long-distance communication device. Why are we doing this? Why are we purposefully unplugging the systems that make so much of our work possible? And why is everyone so simultaneously anxious and excited? Like they're about to see a train wreck happen right in front of their eyes?
Honestly, the whole idea has generated a lot more interest and discussion than I expected. Which may be the ultimate point. Here's a sampling from the upper school hallway this week when I asked random students how their lives would be different if there were no electronic devices - computers, cell phones, TVs, hand held devices - and no internet or social networking sites or video games.
"be outside more, or over at people's houses playing board games"
"get a lot more work done."
"be disconnected"
"know a lot less."
"spend more time building my jeep"
"write more stuff on paper"
"without google, everything would be a lot harder"
"social skills would improve"
"more disconnected from friends"
"more independent"
"spend more time in person with friends"
Remember, this is a generation that only knows a world of that is driven by electronic communication.
The goal, actually, is to force us all to look seriously at the role this pervasive method of communication plays in our lives. My secret hope is that everyone in the building will actually spend more "face time" together. But we'll probably discover a lot of things we didn't expect. It has already revealed to us how truly dependent we are on these systems. So if nothing else, the exercise will help to prepare us a bit better for emergencies that compromise communications.
I asked students how they thought their lives would be different because I expect that we'll be surprised to find out, and I want us all to think about it in advance. We'll debrief when it's all over.
One student has already surprised me, going to a rather profound place on the heels of my 8:25 a.m. question. He said he thought that at first "we would go through some form of withdrawal because it's such an integral part of our society. So many things rely on these technologies - medicine, etc. Perhaps the death rates would be higher. But," he asked, "would it involve guns and tanks? That might take the death rate down." Interesting.
I mentioned at the start of this piece that the day should pass quite normally for those off campus. But please feel free to join us in spirit and commune with the non-technos at MPA for a day. Try disconnecting at work or at home on that day. See where e-Free Day at MPA takes you. We'll have details out to you - electronically - in a few weeks.
Welcome back to school!
