Blogs

Part 2 of my year-end look at the important trends in ed-tech. This one: The Maker Movement (and the trend that, quite frankly, makes me most hopeful for the future)

“Lose the do-rag.” A dozen or so years ago, I actually had to say that to a student who was on his way to a job interview. It simply hadn’t occurred to him that wearing a “do-rag” (a bandana over his hair) would be a problem. (Now, faculty tell me, similar conversations occur with young women who favor bare midriffs.)

At a General Education course training, I was disconcerted by a colleague’s presentation which showed carefully selected personal notes from students, which she made them write at the end of every session. I was equally perturbed by other news that one of my younger colleagues has been cooking(!) in his Southeast Asian History class; and another opted for a study tour in place of a written final exam.

“A synthesis of cognitive research endorses the idea that deep understanding of subject matter transforms factual information into usable knowledge. Knowledge learned at the level of rote memory rarely transfers; transfer most likely occurs when the learner knows and understands underlying concepts and principles that can be applied to problems in new contexts. Learning with understanding is more likely to promote transfer and application than simply memorizing information from a text or lecture.”

Audrey Watters has a great piece this week in her Hack (Higher) Education column Top Ed-Tech Trends of 2012: The Business of Ed-Tech What resonated most with me is her assertion that: "…for all the finger-pointing about the flaws in the business models of higher education, it's not clear that the business models of many education companies, particularly startups, will fare that much better."

Several years ago, I found myself at Cleveland, Ohio’s own Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. One of my fellow visitors pointed out an exhibit that showed a report card from John Lennon. It seems that John Lennon had a difficult time with math, which surprised us. We had both always thought that math and music went hand in hand, that learning music would help one excel in math, and that mathematical talent would help one learn a musical instrument. I thought of this recently when I observed my daughter’s Christmas concert, performed by all the students at her school who are taking lessons to learn to play a band instrument.

For years, I've used the metaphor of lifestyle diseases -- obesity, diabetes, heart disease -- to help students understand that seemingly desirable behaviors, when taken to excess, can lead to negative and entirely unintended consequences. Eat too much, enjoy too much leisure, degrade a system -- your body -- that evolved to prosper under circumstances of scarce food and regular exertion. As a metaphor, it's served to help students understand that seemingly desirable social behaviors like production, consumption and energy (particularly, fossil energy) utilization can degrade a climate system that served humanity well under circumstances of minimal resource utilization and long-term carbon (coal, oil) sequestration.

How might institutions that focus on science and engineering provide a more blended education that provides opportunities for students to study and apply what they have learned outside the sciences?