The video above, A Vision of Students Today, was created in 2007 by Kansas State cultural anthropologist Michael Wesch and 200 student collaborators. Although it focuses on the state of teaching in 3rd level education, the lessons are equally applicable to learning in the public sector.
Actually, it would be more appropriate to say it’s relevant to teaching and training in the public sector, as the message is that the current educational structures – more or less unchanged for 100 years – aren’t delivering much learning at all.
“I will read eight books this year, 2,300 web pages, and 1,281 Facebook profiles.”
“I will write 42 pages for class this semester and over 500 pages of e-mails.”
“When I graduate, I probably will have a job that doesn’t exist today.”
The need for learning – in the public sector and elsewhere – to adopt the tools that people are using in their daily lives anyway, is becoming a bit of a theme of this site. But if we take it a step further, we should also be looking at how this will be increasingly true for future generations.
As a generation of ‘digital natives’ (those who have grown up in a digital world - the eldest of whom are already in their early thirties) increasingly become the driving forces of our workplaces and public bodies, the way that we teach and train must begin to reflect the way they learn and absorb information.
What are your thoughts?
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
Don Armando Pelen was registrar at El Zamorano, an agricultural college in Honduras. He used to say that all you needed for learning was, some people who wanted to learn, someone who could help them and a tree to provide some shade. The shade provides an environment conducive to learning and I believe technology can do the same.
Well, to soon to say if it’s good, but at least it’s well designed.
I mean I thought I would be blocked after adding some interests, but the site helps you to add more.
Cheers