1 thought on “Future of teaching”

1. I actually thought this had an excellent point, and one that continues to need to be hammered home. I happen to enjoy sitting in a chair and listening to a lecture, absorbing information by writing notes. However, my teacher's training and experience has taught me that I am in a small minority. The majority of people from elementary school through college do not internalize information in that way at all.

   When I put my high school students in a computer lab, the work they produced was vastly superior to the work they produced in the classroom. Why? Because it broke down a barrier for them: they were uncomfortable with pen and paper; it brought up all of the things about math that made them not really "get it". They were comfortable taking risks on a computer; the format made them feel that they could delete it, open a new file, etc. if they made a mistake. Plus, it was a format to which they were accustomed – everything in their lives was played out on a cellphone or on a computer.

   That said, I understand that college students are different than high school kids. However, I think the point of them internalizing information by different means than by sitting in a chair and listening remains true. For what task is their college experience ultimately preparing them? To sit in a chair and listen? As a former teacher and future professor, I would certainly hope that's not the goal.

   I believe that all of this has lead to most people disliking school. I always enjoyed learning – there is just nothing like being absorbed in a new set of information that I never previously encountered. Most people don't feel that way, and that's really tragic. If information is presented at the right level and in the right way, it may not equal the entertainment level of a Wii tennis match, but it should be mildly absorbing. It should at least be interesting enough that the student comes out on the other side with a certain level of satisfaction.

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