Just read an article in Education Week about this new poll from Common Sense Media that reports that parents are conflicted about the role of digital media in their kids’ lives, particularly in terms of how well it helps them learn to communicate and collaborate. Here’s a sample:

But parents expressed skepticism about the value of many digital media platforms, particularly when it came to whether digital media could teach kids how to communicate and collaborate, skills that are essential in a 21st-century workforce. For example:

• 67 percent of parents said they did not think the Web helped teach their kids how to communicate.
• 87 percent of parents said they did not believe the Web helped their kids learn how to work with others.
• Three out of four parents do not believe the Web can teach kids to be responsible in their communities.

I can’t help but wonder why we would think “the Web” would teach our kids anything. Indeed, the Web is a tool with potential for lots of different types of learning, but if we expect it to teach anything, we have to interact with it. For kids, that means parents and teachers need to help them learn to use the tools in appropriate and powerful ways.

The report suggests that organizations like Common Sense Media need to help educate parents about the risks and rewards of new media. And, I think it’s a reminder to people like me that we need to be careful about the claims we make about new media.

The poll was conducted by Common Sense Media, a non-profit organization dedicated to helping parents and kids enjoy media sensibly. They have ten “common sense” beliefs about media that begin with the belief in media sanity not censorship.