The Tyranny of Numbers

I love computers. I was an early adopter. In the same way that I remember a TV coming into the house (small, black and white screen in a huge cabinet), my daughter remembers a computer coming into ours (small, green screen, 5.25" floppy disks), costing more (in real dollars) than the 27" behemoth that now graces my desk. It was an invaluable tool for me as a teacher. Four years ago my computer went south (well, actually, it skipped town without even saying goodbye); I replaced it the next day, its function having expanded from the early days of keeping grades, and making tests and worksheets to an information and communication source and an unlimited to almost overwhelming supply of help and inspiration.

However, I’m not the only one using this tool in education. It’s also being used in offices and state houses, not just to analyze data but to make decisions and judgments. Are you a good teacher? Let’s look at numbers. Is your school doing the job? Let’s look at numbers. Should we interview a candidate for a job? There’s an algorithm that filters those decisions, too, one which factors in GPA, class rank and test scores, no matter how many years old those numbers may be. The problem is that, all too often, allowing computers to make decisions is not just taking the easy way out, but is also taking the human being out of the equation.

I started using a computer gradebook by about 1985. It was convenient to be able to show printouts when kids and/or parents wanted to complain. That tactic was also disingenuous, because I was the human being who entered the data and, I now confess, the data I entered sometimes helped create the outcome I felt was warranted (never in a negative direction, however). My point is, the human assessment, my professional judgment, never left the equation.

That is what is quickly disappearing, and not just in education. Nurses are, more and more, being channeled into data entry workers, away from their patients’ bedsides. A former student has just left the social work profession, another victim (if I’m reading between the lines correctly) of the tyranny of numbers. Police officers seem to be judged on the numbers they generate, from case closures to traffic tickets. Doctors’ hands are often tied by, and their compensation tied to, numbers from insurance companies. Personnel decisions are (too) frequently based on short-term bottom lines; the personal and social impacts of those decisions play no significant role in the process. I would suggest that the abysmal treatment of our veterans is more the result of bean counters and their numbers than systemic incompetence.

The importance of the human connection is rapidly being overshadowed and replaced by computer-generated numbers. While I understand the need for accountability and assessment, to make some number the primary, if not sole yardstick is absurd, especially in the above-mentioned professions or cases. For years my message to my students was, “Don’t ever allow your self-worth be determined by a number: not a test score, not a GPA, not a class rank. You are more than some number.” Sadly, perhaps I should have added, “However, don’t expect society to return the favor.”