Byron_Davis_Web20

= A Response to __Understanding the Net Generation's Texts__ = = = "Classrooms tend to encourage and reward individual knowledge stored in the head, not distributed knowledge. They don't often allow students to network with each other and with various tools and technologies and be rewarded for doing so . . . . classrooms tend to narrowly constrain where students can gain knowledge, rather than utilize widely dispersed knowledge."

I agree with this statement. I think that our assessments have generally remained very traditional despite our best efforts towards progress. The tools we are using have seen a lot of progress, but every teacher was once a student, and we all have a very particular notion of how one demonstrates knowledge. When the word "test" is mentioned, paper, pencil and stress come to mind for a reason. Those of us who have jobs now proved ourselves time and time again via the paper and pencil test. Now that we have access to computers, the tests are on a screen, but they are otherwise the same thing.

In education we focus on teaching knowledge and skills. We seem to put a lot more focus on the content knowledge, and a lot less on the skills. Often, skills are even assessed by knowledge of the skill, rather than demonstration of the skill itself. Assessing in this manner has likely developed naturally from practical circumstance, but it is a failing if it is the only type of assessment we do. This method is a formula for developing a lot of heady coaches and no players. Process matters at least as much as content knowledge, and it is time we shift our focus towards process.

At one time, Abraham Lincoln was more than just a guy who freed the slaves. As we progress through time and add more to history though, the amount of information continues to expand - not only in content but in process. Information is contextual. A book will be written about a person or a subject, and some time later be condensed to a chapter, then a page, a paragraph, a sentence, and a footnote. No one is writing books about churning butter anymore. Nothing lasts forever.

We are learning how to access, exchange and create information faster than we ever have before. With more information to teach than we can, and an ability to access and manipulate information that previously did not exist, I believe the educational system requires a radical change of focus towards teaching students how to use tools and away from tests on specific information. I believe students should be learning how to use a variety of tools and then using those tools to create projects and work that they can demonstrate and share. I believe that students should have guidance, but should have more choice to explore their own interests and to access the information that excites them. I want to find the best way to prepare students for the challenges they will face. Reading and understanding information, and then synthesizing that information to collaborate and produce is what I believe the world demands - both socially and in the workforce.

The current setup promotes technology, but is not yet conducive to the vision I have of education. The change I hope for is something I want, but do not truly expect to see in the near future. I believe it can be done if we would only first have a serious discussion about what our goals are - now that things have changed, and then find the best way to align ourselves to those goals.