Confessions of a Modern Luddite: A Critique of Computer- Based Instruction
George M. Bodner · 2012
Ludd " is questionable, the agrarian revolt associated with those who claimed to be his followers was real and the "Luddite " movement spread rapidly through northern England. By 1813, the Ludds represented a serious enough threat to justify a series of trials in Yorkshire that resulted in hangings and transportations. The Luddite movement resurfaced in 1816, during the depression that followed the Napoleonic Wars, but a combination of vigorous repression and economic recovery led to its demise in 1817. In 1830, "The Society for the Diffusion of Useful Knowledge " felt compelled to publish an eight-page pamphlet entitled "An Address to the Labourers, on the Subject of Destroying Machinery", which reflected conventional wisdom among proponents of the industrial revolution at the time. After surreptitious replacement of a few words here and there, it also reflects conventional wisdom among proponents of the information highway that is supposed to transform society at the turn of the 21st century. "The word Machine seems to convey to your minds, some contrivance necessarily attended with mischief to the Poor; whereas in truth, the word Machine means the same as Tool or Instrument... Man... as soon as he feels... the necessity of finding food... first invents the most simple tools; the hoe, the spade, the rake, the axe, the flail. As men... extend their knowledge further,