I'm surprised that no one has brought up the US Department of Education meta-analysis of June 2009 in which it was concluded that higher education programs that incorporate online learning tools are more effective than face-to-face/classroom-based learning only. The meta-analysis, which examined a 12 year period of learning, found the most beneficial being a blended learning program. You can read more about it here: http://blog.litmos.com/2009/07/online-learning-more-effective-than.html

The world has changed and our younger generations should have access to the new technology that's available for learning because the skills they will learn through using these tools will be relevant in their lives. When I went through school English grammar was no longer taught as it had been in my parents' day. I remember they were horrified, but really, was I disadvantaged by not being taught what a pro-noun and an adverb was as a kid? I went on to specialize in foreign languages, so I ended up learning it all anyway as part of learning a new language structure. I think the same will happen with the younger gens - do they still need to have such a focus on handwriting in schools? These kids will probably grow up using a keyboard of some sort in place of handwriting for the majority of their needs. If they go on to a career that requires hand writing documents, they will pick up that skill at the time.