The following are some brief reflections on selected quotes from Douglas Thomas and John Seely Brown’s book A New Culture of Learning: Cultivating the Imagination for a World of Constant Change.
Chapter 1:
Quote: “The new culture of learning actually comprises two elements. The first is a massive information network that provides almost unlimited access and resources to learn about anything. The second is a bounded and structured environment that allows for unlimited agency to build and experiment with things within those boundaries” (Thomas & Brown, 2011, chapter 1, section 1, para. 6).
I chose this quote because I thought it highlighted two resources that schools actually already have and offer students. What seems to be important here is actually how we look at these resources and how far we allow students to use them.
Question: Most of the theories and ideas presented here are somewhat vague. I understand the importance of giving schools and districts the freedom to implement ideas how they see fit, but I also wonder how much more willing schools and teachers would be to consider these ideas if more concrete direction was offered.
Connection: All of the schools that I have worked at so far have had Chromebooks to use in the English classes, giving students access to the vast resources of the internet. What varies, however, is the teacher’s comfort level when it comes to the amount of autonomy one is willing to give to the students when they are using Chromebooks and the internet.
Epiphany: Restructuring and changing education doesn’t necessarily require a complete reworking of the current system. Instead, it requires us to look at how we define the roles of teachers, lessons, curriculums, and school facilities. The groundwork already exists (both literally and figuratively); it is the mindset that remains to be changed.
Chapter 2:
Quote: “One of the basic principles of this kind of cultivation is that you don’t interfere with the process, because it is the process itself that is interesting. In fact, the entire point of the experiment is to allow the culture to reproduce in an uninhibited, completely organic way, within the constraints of medium and environment—and then see what happens” (Thomas & Brown, 2011, chapter 2, section 3, para. 2).
I chose this quote because I thought it was a great representation of one of the things that makes teachers and others in education so uncomfortable about this “new culture of learning”: not knowing the end result.
Question: How does one document this kind of learning? What current assessments, if any, would be appropriate here?
Connection: When I did my first semester of student teaching at High Tech High, I got to see Project-Based Learning in action. It was really eye-opening to watch how well the students responded when given the freedom to explore on their own. Many of the students went above and beyond what was expected.
Epiphany: The ideas behind this new culture of learning are very interesting, including the idea of letting student learning happen more organically. I am excited by what I’ve seen so far, and I think there is much to be said for this type of learning. However, I still wonder if there is essential information that students will miss with this new culture of learning. I understand that this may be a mindset from an older generation, through which we see learning as a laundry list of facts that a student needs to know before graduation, but it is hard to shake the idea that we need to have a very clear picture of exactly what students are actually learning. I think this is still possible, even when the learning is happening more organically.
Chapter 3:
Quote: “Throughout the twentieth century, particularly after the Second World War, we have had a slow-moving river. Stability, continuity, and maintaining the status quo defined our culture, and progress was carefully controlled. This environment influenced both education and technology” (Thomas & Brown, 2011, chapter 3, para. 2).
I chose this quote because it really surprised me when I read it and made me stop to think of how the pace of technological advancement has changed in the past few decades and how the system of education often reflects the values of the current society.
Question: Where does the balance lie between giving students freedom to use their own devices and maintaining a safe school network? Do schools really need to “protect” students from content that they are going to see as soon as they leave the school wifi network? Isn’t that the world we should actually be preparing them to critically analyze and assess?
Connection: When reading about technology, I frequently come across evidence of the fast-moving nature of technological development in the recent decades, including concepts like Moore’s law. I see new technology being implemented slowly and gradually in schools (often at a pace that is too slow for my liking), and one of the biggest concerns that the older schools have seems to be about how giving the students more freedom when it comes to devices and apps could threaten the current system that the school has.
Epiphany: I started to think about the ebb and flow of history and how periods of massive disruptions and global violence—incredibly destabilizing events—might lead to periods of calm, when people are weary of the instability and instead seek to create in their lives and in society a more stable socio-political environment. Through this lens, I could see how the role of the teacher might have changed to reflect this desire for stability and how that focus has had an effect that has rippled through the system of education in the decades to follow.
Thomas, D., & Brown, J. S. (2011). A New Culture of Learning: Cultivating the Imagination for a World of Constant Change (Kindle Edition). Retrieved from Amazon.com
Chapter 1:
Quote: “The new culture of learning actually comprises two elements. The first is a massive information network that provides almost unlimited access and resources to learn about anything. The second is a bounded and structured environment that allows for unlimited agency to build and experiment with things within those boundaries” (Thomas & Brown, 2011, chapter 1, section 1, para. 6).
I chose this quote because I thought it highlighted two resources that schools actually already have and offer students. What seems to be important here is actually how we look at these resources and how far we allow students to use them.
Question: Most of the theories and ideas presented here are somewhat vague. I understand the importance of giving schools and districts the freedom to implement ideas how they see fit, but I also wonder how much more willing schools and teachers would be to consider these ideas if more concrete direction was offered.
Connection: All of the schools that I have worked at so far have had Chromebooks to use in the English classes, giving students access to the vast resources of the internet. What varies, however, is the teacher’s comfort level when it comes to the amount of autonomy one is willing to give to the students when they are using Chromebooks and the internet.
Epiphany: Restructuring and changing education doesn’t necessarily require a complete reworking of the current system. Instead, it requires us to look at how we define the roles of teachers, lessons, curriculums, and school facilities. The groundwork already exists (both literally and figuratively); it is the mindset that remains to be changed.
Chapter 2:
Quote: “One of the basic principles of this kind of cultivation is that you don’t interfere with the process, because it is the process itself that is interesting. In fact, the entire point of the experiment is to allow the culture to reproduce in an uninhibited, completely organic way, within the constraints of medium and environment—and then see what happens” (Thomas & Brown, 2011, chapter 2, section 3, para. 2).
I chose this quote because I thought it was a great representation of one of the things that makes teachers and others in education so uncomfortable about this “new culture of learning”: not knowing the end result.
Question: How does one document this kind of learning? What current assessments, if any, would be appropriate here?
Connection: When I did my first semester of student teaching at High Tech High, I got to see Project-Based Learning in action. It was really eye-opening to watch how well the students responded when given the freedom to explore on their own. Many of the students went above and beyond what was expected.
Epiphany: The ideas behind this new culture of learning are very interesting, including the idea of letting student learning happen more organically. I am excited by what I’ve seen so far, and I think there is much to be said for this type of learning. However, I still wonder if there is essential information that students will miss with this new culture of learning. I understand that this may be a mindset from an older generation, through which we see learning as a laundry list of facts that a student needs to know before graduation, but it is hard to shake the idea that we need to have a very clear picture of exactly what students are actually learning. I think this is still possible, even when the learning is happening more organically.
Chapter 3:
Quote: “Throughout the twentieth century, particularly after the Second World War, we have had a slow-moving river. Stability, continuity, and maintaining the status quo defined our culture, and progress was carefully controlled. This environment influenced both education and technology” (Thomas & Brown, 2011, chapter 3, para. 2).
I chose this quote because it really surprised me when I read it and made me stop to think of how the pace of technological advancement has changed in the past few decades and how the system of education often reflects the values of the current society.
Question: Where does the balance lie between giving students freedom to use their own devices and maintaining a safe school network? Do schools really need to “protect” students from content that they are going to see as soon as they leave the school wifi network? Isn’t that the world we should actually be preparing them to critically analyze and assess?
Connection: When reading about technology, I frequently come across evidence of the fast-moving nature of technological development in the recent decades, including concepts like Moore’s law. I see new technology being implemented slowly and gradually in schools (often at a pace that is too slow for my liking), and one of the biggest concerns that the older schools have seems to be about how giving the students more freedom when it comes to devices and apps could threaten the current system that the school has.
Epiphany: I started to think about the ebb and flow of history and how periods of massive disruptions and global violence—incredibly destabilizing events—might lead to periods of calm, when people are weary of the instability and instead seek to create in their lives and in society a more stable socio-political environment. Through this lens, I could see how the role of the teacher might have changed to reflect this desire for stability and how that focus has had an effect that has rippled through the system of education in the decades to follow.
Thomas, D., & Brown, J. S. (2011). A New Culture of Learning: Cultivating the Imagination for a World of Constant Change (Kindle Edition). Retrieved from Amazon.com