Education itself is a problem, and technology isn't going to help until people in charge of education realize that more classrooms, more teachers, more administration and more books do not make an education better. In fact - they typically make it worse. Technology is the same thing.
The problem is very simple, the solution very complicated. We have more to teach, yet the curriculum for any course is rarely upgraded, and the turn around time for print books is a big limiting factor. Where everything else is determined by Moore's Law in our society, we have books that are released once a year. How often I remember the quote by Mark Twain (paraphrased): "Do not seek medical advice from books, you may die of a misprint.". The publishing system for school books is a limiting factor. Solution? Publish on the web - and let all schools share. The books can be printed out, or viewed online. No computers required in the classroom if books are locally published - and the local labour prices the book. This means that the curriculum will have to change faster: Same answer. This means that students will be more in touch with the real world - which is the point, isn't it? To prepare them for the reality of the world? It's no wonder to me that the present academic system has created people afraid to leave the academic system. Now, if you look carefully, there's no need for computers in classrooms yet. But there is much that computers can do in classrooms once an infrastructure to support them exists. It has to come from the top. Thomas A Webb wrote: > Any one that's ever spent any time in front of a class knows that what > happens with learners is mostly the result of emotional "touch"; > vicarious or otherwise. The key to all this is the quality of the > curriculum as well as the method of delivery. Good technology is a big > help in a classroom, but when I read something like Bonnie's quote > below, I have to say "Well.. Duuuuhh".. > > I am a "Techie" myself and have taught computer science for almost > thirty years. There's a lot of ways to produce a divide between haves > and have nots; one of the best ones I can think of is putting 35 kids to > a teacher in a lowincome district. Computers won't fix that problem. > > Bonnie Bracey wrote: > >> According to a report by education professor Robert Zemsky at the >> University of Pennsylvania and professor emeritus of education and >> business administration William Massy at Stanford University, >> educational technology has not fulfilled its potential for >> revolutionizing the classroom and making higher education more >> profitable. Despite rapid growth in online education, many faculty do >> not use innovative technology in their classes, and many administrators >> have not benefited substantially from their technology purchases. The >> report, titled "Thwarted Innovation: What Happened to E-Learning and >> Why," surveyed e-learning at six institutions over a 15-month period. >> Chronicle of Higher Education, 24 June 2004 (sub. req'd) >> http://chronicle.com/prm/daily/2004/06/2004062401n.htm >> Bonnie Bracey >> [EMAIL PROTECTED] >> >> -- Taran Rampersad [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.knowprose.com http://www.easylum.net http://www.worldchanging.com http://www.fsc.cc http://www.a42.com
