The headlines are the same every year: 'Exams are getting easier', 'Higher pass rate than ever before'.

But in the midst of this year's exam frenzy, another headline caught my eye - 'Teens cannot function at work'.

The story reported that more than half of employers say school leavers often cannot function in the workplace owing to a lack of basic maths and literacy, according to a CBI survey.

But the poll of 507 firms also suggested youngsters' IT skills can give them an edge over their bosses in the area of technology.

There is no denying that most teenagers can run rings around their parents when it comes to using IT and despite being an IT professional, I am a good example of that.

My sons seem to have an instinctive, intuitive relationship with technology which, despite more than 15 years in the industry, I don't have.

And it is evident from the schools we work with that IT skills are at the core of the school curriculum.

Gone are my school days when computers were locked in one room and used for a couple of hours a week.

Now technology permeates every classroom, in fact every aspect of a student's school day - from an electronic register to handing in homework online.

And this use of technology is no bad thing - everyone from teachers to businesses providing work experience has told us how much it can benefit students.

But the concern the survey raises for me, as a parent as well as an IT professional, is whether excessive use of technology is, in effect, making students lazy.

Does having a calculator or a spell checker constantly on hand take away the urge or even the need to learn to add up or spell?

Or is it more accurate that the skills students learn are changing and it is becoming less and less relevant to be able to add up and write?

Should we be now referring to the need for reading and typing skills instead of the three Rs? In a world of typing, texting and calculators seemingly on every mobile phone, do we need the three Rs anymore or are we trying to adhere to a learning system which hasn't changed by any means as quickly as technology has?

I'm playing devil's advocate here, especially as a large percentage of the work Innovit does is providing IT equipment and support to schools which are built on the cornerstones of reading, writing and arithmetic.

But this survey and similar research into the subject are throwing up some areas for debate which we are going to have to address as technology progresses at an increasing pace.

And this debate should engage not just anyone who works in IT or education, but the business world, parents and students themselves. I am not claiming to have all the answers. I know as an employer I want staff who are computer literate first and foremost, but I also want literacy and numeracy.

As a parent, I want well-rounded children who have all the skills to succeed in every situation, not just when a computer or a calculator is around.

But I also recognise that in the last 24 hours I have written hundreds of emails, done the company forecasts on Excel, bought the shopping online, updated my diary and not once picked up a pen.

It's given me food for thought - let me know what you think. Email me at adent@innovit.co.uk.

* Andy Dent is managing director of Innovit (www.innovit.co.uk). E-mail adent@innovit.co.uk.