What education should include
- April 9th, 2005
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I was just reading the latest new on slashdot when I came across an article about Hitachi’s newest microdrives. A microdrive is a very small hard drive, very similiar to compact flash drives seen in digital cameras.
Besides the news that 20 GB microdrives are headed our way in 2007 (think about how many 8 megapixel photos you could take with that), I was excited to see a very well put together animation explaining how the technology works. It was entertaining, yet at the same time informative. It was akin to the ‘School House Rocks’ type educational songs from the 70′s. I think they need to bring back these sorts of educational methods, but maybe I am weird for finding these things entertaining.
Check out the Hitachi Video Microdive Video!
I totally think School House Rocks is a great learning tool and we need more programs and tools like that these days. The one misconception many teachers and students have now a days is that learning isn’t fun anymore. Teachers stand there and lecture about an old book or about formulas and theories. Just because we are older and in college now doesn’t mean that learning can’t be fun anymore. Oh how I wish I could be back in elementary school learning how to count with school house rock.
Stepping aside from how I wish college should be taught (maybe I’m just weird like that) I think secondary education should also have those tools in teaching students. Many middle schoolers and highschoolers are bored with school now. Espcecially in their teenage years when their attention span is shorter than anything you can think of, they need something to motivate them and show them how fun it can be to learn Math, Science, English, etc. When I do become a teacher, I am going to make learning fun and exciting. ^_^
Its funny you call it a misconception now a days, cause it makes it sound like once upon a time there was a good education system which made learning fun! The fact is that todays education system started over 2000 years ago with Plato. His styles and philosophies are mimic’ed in Colleges and Universities, including the University of Washington, to this day.
I think fun may not be the best word. I agree with what Anh is saying, but engaging might be a better word to use.
The truth is that the education system is a very old system and there are only so many ways to teach someone a subject. I don’t think the problem lies in the fact that the education is fundamentally flawed. I just think that society has changed over those past 2000 years of education. The problem is that the education system has not been able to change fast enough.
Granted, new forms of media have been introduced into the education system, but just introducing them does not guarantee improvement or success. Since people may make this assumption the technology becomes a crutch for them without them realizing it. Maybe people have forgotten how to teach as well.
I think the problem with engaging students is that students lives have changed significantly in the last 15 years, so what they need and respond to is much different then when a lot of their teachers were in school. Hopefully these issues will change.
I still need to say that there are a lot of great things about education too … like CSE!