Arlo,
On Mon, Jan 13, 2014 at 8:43 AM, ARLO JAMES BENSINGER JR <[email protected]>wrote: > [John] > I really like those animated talk things. They seem to capture our > attention in a broad way. > > [Arlo] > They are very well done, for sure. Here's another one I see come up now > and again: EPIC 2020 (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5gU3FjxY2uQ) > > Its a recast of an older video (EPIC 2014, > http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eUHBPuHS-7s), which was primarily about > the shifting information 'mediascape', using the same 'future voice' to > describe educational changes that occur between now and 2020. However, if > you watch them both back-to-back, you'll see that the original one (2014) > wasn't presenting a utopic future per se, but asked critical questions > about where these changes took (take) us, and what unintentional > consequences may be. J: Yes I was getting tired and in a hurry but I should have said for Point 3: The average child now experiences fast-paced stimuli on an almost constant basis like never before. That's a big issue for the future. A: The education one (2020) is nearly entirely utopic, condemning the present > state of education and presenting an future-perfect scenario where online, > open, automated (AI), degree-less, tuition-less, 'education' functions so > well that only 'misguided' and 'misinformed' people do not turn to > intelligent online programs for all their informational, educational needs. > > J: I believe more than half the school's function is to socialize humans. It's already being lost to a virtual world, what happens when you eliminate all contact with the outside world? Shivers. > "Phædrus remembered a line from Thoreau: "You never gain something but > that you lose something."" (ZMM) > > [John] > And I think that's a good thing because you always value the teaching most > that you seek out rather than have shoved down your throat whether you're > in a receptive mood or not. > > [Arlo] > If I'm understanding, this is mostly a comment on public/compulsory (K-12) > education? Post-secondary education, whether technical, academic, > vocational or otherwise is voluntary, so the act of self-registering is a > form of seeking out 'information/learning'. Is this, then, a call for > eliminating compulsory education all together? Or is it more a call for > reform to the way curricula are adhered to (the factory model of ken > robinson's video)? > J: I'm mostly focused on the k-12 area, yes. And it's not the compulsory I despise, it's the compulsory along very narrow lines. I'm for decentralizing the education system through vouchers, remeber? :) > > [John] > Also I realize that this style isn't appropriate for every subject but it > seems to me that for the art of programming - and the culture of > programmers- it's uniquely appropriate. > > [Arlo] > How do you mean? I see this simplified to something like "programmers > should not be forced to learn things (about programming?) they don't > value"? Would you say that one of the goals for the instructor is to > demonstrate 'why' something is valuable that not all students may initially > understand? Or is this, too, some form of educational-violence? > > J: For one thing, I think these kids are often the smarter ones. And the smarter kids do better at a go-at-your-own pace. I think many times they are held back and bored by the system which HAS to be one-size-fits-all and cater to the lower common denominator. I'm saying the same pack instinct that puts nerds together and outcast from most other people at every school, is a good argument for creating a school tailored to the tastes and needs of nerds. > [John] > Again, programming is different. If you're good at it you can get a good > job. It doesn't matter if you have a degree or are self taught. > > [Arlo] > How would a prospective employer know you're good at it? J: That's an easy one. Have one good coder do the interview and ask some questions. And usually a programmer is hired on the basis of the work he's already done. His code IS his resume. > Believe me, I do not think 'degrees' in and of themselves prove a person > can do anything (one of the more recent 'techno' reforms is digital > badging, an idea built off of older competency-based models of education), > but if we eliminate degrees/grades, how do you suggest our skill(s) be > packaged so that an employer can see what we can do? Portfolios try to > address this, do you think these are better? What about certifications? I > see computer jobs all the time that advertised for people with so-and-so > certification. Would that go out with degrees? > As I said, I don't think all degrees are useless. I just think there are some people who don't need all that and could use a place of learning without the academic distractions of record keeping and grades. But I went and took college courses without paying attention to what grades I got or whether I got a degree. I made good money in construction (once upon a time... sob ) and didn't need an education for professional reasons but personal ones. John Moq_Discuss mailing list Listinfo, Unsubscribing etc. http://lists.moqtalk.org/listinfo.cgi/moq_discuss-moqtalk.org Archives: http://lists.moqtalk.org/pipermail/moq_discuss-moqtalk.org/ http://moq.org/md/archives.html
