Change Isn't Bad, Is It? Part 2

Last week I posted two articles, one by Nicholas Carr of the Atlantic and one by the Economist. Both took a stance on technology and it's impact upon our society. I wanted to discuss their arguments and present my own opinion.

The Atlantic

Nicholas Carr argues that the Internet has adversely affected how we think. We no longer deep read. He believes that because we are flooded with information through sources like Google we are losing the ability to synthesize information due to the over load of data. While he does state that technology like the Gutenburg Press was received with similar skepticism, his analysis focuses on the fact that the advancement in technology is changing the way we think and that is a bad thing.

The Economist

The Economist article takes a less aggressive stance toward the influence of the Internet and search upon our culture. The author agrees that we are changing but argues that is not necessarily a bad thing. The author continues to state that change is inevitable and if we continue to hold on to the status quo as though it is the only way to think and learn we will do ourselves and future generations a major disservice. The quote that resonated the most with me was the following:

So, no surprise that when we incarcerate teenagers of today in traditional classroom settings, they react with predictable disinterest and flunk their literacy tests. They are skilled in making sense not of a body of known content, but of contexts that are continually changing.

Teachers must recognise that our pedagogical tools are inconsistent with the skills needed to survive in a world where people are always connected to everyone and everything. In such a world, learning to think for oneself could well be more important than simply learning to read and write.

My Opinion

When examining technology's influence upon our culture, of course it has changed us. Is that a bad thing?  Absolutely not. It provides us with opportunities and challenges that would have never been present if the technology was not available. It has made my students more globally aware. When I was my student's age, I had did not know as much about events happening around the world. We were to simply memorize facts. Now my students are discussing global issues with schools around the world. Technology has also opened doors for people around the world to present their ideas and have a change to achieve the supposed "American Dream".

Technology has "flattened" our world. Some like, Carr may argue that the technology has negatively influenced us as we now manage information. But I believe that the advantages of technology: the ability to connect to information almost instantly, the communal environment it has created, and the equity it has allowed heavily outweigh Carr's argument.

Creative and innovative ideas are now more widely accessible and the ability to solve today's global problems will be easier as you have more and more perspectives on these problems. Technology's ability to connect people around the world builds upon the idea of the Wisdom of Crowds. Problems will be solved by not simply relying upon a few minds but opening them to the public. So while we may lose a few skills with the advancement of technology, it is technology that will help us save our planet.

photo credits: Mrs. Maze and Jimee, Jackie, Tom & Asha

Teaching In A Cognitive Age

A Shift in Thinking

I have read a few articles over the last few days that deal with cognition and how our world is evolving in the 21st century. The articles by David Brooks of the New York Times, Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, and Wayne Hodgins all focus on the development our cognitive abilities as a requirement for success in the 21st century. The argument all three state is that our economic struggles and potential successes are not based upon globalization and the expansion of China and India, but rather it is a matter of building and supporting our ability to think. Wayne Hodgins, a "strategic futurist" states,

The future is about putting more and more focus on leveraging and augmenting our cognitive abilities

Teaching and Cognition

Much like I mentioned in my last post about Dan Pink and Johnny Bunko, our success as a nation is dependent upon teaching our students to develop their abilities to think, solve problems and be invested in their work. It is not about memorization or regurgitation. We have computers that do that for us. Sites like Wikipedia make the lecture based classroom obsolete. The teacher is no longer the sole holder of knowledge. Whether you like this or not, the fact of the matter is that we have machines to retain information. For our students to succeed in today's marketplace, we must prepare them for the "cognitive age". The skills we teach and the ability to process information and develop solutions will be much more valuable than the simple memorization of dates or formulas.

Our future success as a nation, rather as a globe, is dependent upon our ability to synthesize information and focus on problem solving. Not only will we be preparing our students for a flattened marketplace but in teaching the ability to think and be creative, our teaching will become rewarding for our students. If the students can see the value of what we are teaching, they will become intrinsically invested. If our students become invested they will be motivated to do well.

It is a linear progression. If we teach cognitive skills to our students, they will be prepared to handle the problems facing businesses in today's global economy. If the students see the relevance of their work and enjoy what they are doing, they in turn are motivated to work hard and do well.

When examining the question of teaching in this cognitive age, we must understand that we can not do justice to our students with traditional methods. Our students must be prepared and that will only come from having them become invested in learning how to solve problems to the topics they face.

With the advancement of technology and a flattened playing field, employers now require their workers to be highly skilled problem solvers. This ability will only be developed by moving away from memorization of facts and teach how to think and problem solve using those facts. If we do not address this gap in our teaching we will do a disservice to our students and our nation's future success.

photo credit: symic and mark(s)elliot