The second workshop in our Summer Teacher Institute for Technology and Curriculum Innovation featured noted educator and author Will Richardson.  Will’s session, Writing and Connecting in a Networked, Digital World, engaged participants on the shifting notion of what it means to teach:

“This is a very challenging moment for educators. Our children are headed for a much more networked existence, one that allows for learning to occur 24, 7, 365, one that renders physical space much less important for learning, one that will challenge the relevance of classrooms as currently envisioned, and one that challenges our roles as teachers and adult learners.”

Will covered a lot of important ground and each of the teachers in attendance (whether physically in the room or joining us via UStream) undoubtedly took something different away from the experience.  Although it’s not possible to summarize all that was discussed/learned over the span of six hours, a few points in particular resonated with me as an educator.

Technology Lets Us Form Groups

The concept of groups, as it relates to education, typically involves grade levels, athlectic teams, extra-curricular clubs, academic departments, and other assemblages that are connected and constrained by physical means.  Students and teachers don’t create groups, they join groups from an often limited and prescribed list of options.  In an online environment, however, there are no limitations in terms of interests or learning opportunities.  A class of students in a brick-and-mortar settting only have their teacher and each other; consider how the boundaries expand when the knowledge of  a global audience can be leveraged:

Whether it’s through YouTube, social bookmarking, a Twitter network, or another of the countless tools readily available, we have the power to form groups that can learn and grow together.  And while the possibilities are endless and the entry points enticingly simple, students largely navigate and contribute to these online spaces without adult guidance.  If our students are going to lead transparent lives, we need to teach them differently.

In Media Today, We Are the Editors

Will noted that four years of video is uploaded to YouTube every day and that there are nearly three million articles on Wikipedia.  How does the quantity of information compare to that which existed just a few years ago, and why such an explosive growth?  Anyone can contribute.  What is the quality of all this information?  It depends on us, because in media today, we are the editors.

Clay Shirky, author of Here Comes Everybody, candidly observed that the problem with information isn’t overload, it’s filter failure.  Clay is  spot on, but we must learn how to not only  filter effectively but to produce and edit effectively.  When we interact with digital content, we do so as “prosumers” that can shape and vet media for the collective “group” that we commonly refer to as the Internet.

Reading and Writing are Social

All of the attendees, regardless of their discipline, were well read and shared a passion for the written word.  As Will demonstrated, however, reading does not have to be a solitary endeavor and the concept of audience can be elevated to a global scale.  Annotating documents using Diigo, contributing to a wiki, or maintaining a blog are but a few example of how reading and writing have become social:

These three ideas–forming groups, acting as editors, reading and writing socially–are powerful, interconnected, and represent only a small portion of today’s conversation.  If you were fortunate enough to attend in person or online, feel free to participate in this networked, digital world and share your thoughts; who knows where they might lead you.

Posted: 06|9|09 at 7:43 pm. Filed under: Summer Teacher Institute.
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