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How a Radical New Teaching Method Could Unleash a Generation of Geniuses

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Re: How a Radical New Teaching Method Could Unleash a Generation of Geniuses

#41

Post by vdaniuk »

Florin_Andrei wrote: post #35
pinaceae wrote: post #20

let's have some dissenting opinion here. not all kids are equal. not all kids want to learn. in each and every discussion over this topic people bring up quotes by very smart people, like kubrick, sagan, etc. on how organised learning is not needed, a young mind wants to learn, grows like a flower, all by itself, even better without the shackles of structured education. i call bullshit. this is biased through the peo…

Frankly, I hope none of the education-related ideas coming out of high tech hubs such as the Silicon Valley, come true. Nothing wrong with the fine individuals living and working here, but we are not the most gifted ones when it comes to figuring out how human beings function. We are great at figuring out systems . Hardware. Computers. Robots. Networks thereof. But self-aware nature-made wetware... please, just step…

Wow, so nice to see a refreshing attitude here on HN. You nailed the arrogance of SV types. Not everything can be improved with technology, just look at these massive failures in disrupting education : Coursera, Edx, Udacity. I, too, hope that engineers will just step away from education. /s

Re: How a Radical New Teaching Method Could Unleash a Generation of Geniuses

#42

Post by crusso »

truthteller wrote: post #28
noonespecial wrote: post #13

“I think the big mistake in schools is trying to teach children anything, and by using fear as the basic motivation. Fear of getting failing grades, fear of not staying with your class, etc. Interest can produce learning on a scale compared to fear as a nuclear explosion to a firecracker.” ― Stanley Kubrick

"I believe educational policy should be made under the assumption that everyone is a highly intelligent, curious and creative individual like myself" -- Stanley Kubrick

Instead, education policy is the opposite of that. It's lowest common denominator ass-covering, enforced through monopoly of control on the whole system.

Re: How a Radical New Teaching Method Could Unleash a Generation of Geniuses

#43

Post by vdaniuk »

riggins wrote: post #21

I always find it a little sad to reflect on education because I think we can unleash a generation of geniuses. I don't think it even takes a radical teaching method. I think it takes a radical reordering of priorities. Instead of glorifying athletes and closet organizers famous for making sex tapes ... we need to glorify education, hard work, and resourcefulness. And parents need to reinforce the message by rewarding…

Glorify hard work? Madness. We don't need these protestant values in the coming post-scarcity economy. We should glorify efficiency, curiousity, self-sufficiency and internal state of tranquil happiness.

Re: How a Radical New Teaching Method Could Unleash a Generation of Geniuses

#44

Post by a_c_s »

ef4 wrote: post #30
pinaceae wrote: post #20

let's have some dissenting opinion here. not all kids are equal. not all kids want to learn. in each and every discussion over this topic people bring up quotes by very smart people, like kubrick, sagan, etc. on how organised learning is not needed, a young mind wants to learn, grows like a flower, all by itself, even better without the shackles of structured education. i call bullshit. this is biased through the peo…

Ah, but how can you possibly know whether the average person is innately stupid and incurious or whether school makes them that way? Anyone who spends time with small children knows that before they reach school age, they are all absurdly curious about the world, and they absorb information like a sponge. I suppose you think it's just a coincidence that they lose that curiosity right around the time they start being…

1. I dispute your assertion that children 'lose that curiosity right around the time they start being stuffed into classrooms' - I don't think most people lose their curiosity. I think some people who chafe against rules and conformity may, but I don't see most people being in that category.

2. I also find being able to focus on subjects that are not innately interesting is a useful skill, as are conforming to simple rules. There can be other reasons for following rules than oppressive social control. Maybe preschool teachers have to show up on time so the children in their care can be supervised appropriately, or drivers have to stay in their lanes to avoid accidents.

3. 'because they demonstrably don't work at conveying a "base level of education"' - 99% of people in the USA are literate. I don't know of comparable data, but nearly everybody can preform arithmetic too.

Re: How a Radical New Teaching Method Could Unleash a Generation of Geniuses

#45

Post by crusso »

pinaceae wrote: post #20

let's have some dissenting opinion here. not all kids are equal. not all kids want to learn. in each and every discussion over this topic people bring up quotes by very smart people, like kubrick, sagan, etc. on how organised learning is not needed, a young mind wants to learn, grows like a flower, all by itself, even better without the shackles of structured education. i call bullshit. this is biased through the peo…

In fairness, the article is entitled, "How a Radical New Teaching Method Could Unleash a Generation of Geniuses"

It doesn't say something like, "How a Radical New Teaching Method Will Make All Children Geniuses".

Personally, I think that your dissenting opinion (and its bag of implications) fosters mediocrity in education that hurts the kids on the lower end of the learning curve almost as much as it hurts the kids on the upper end... maybe more so.

Re: How a Radical New Teaching Method Could Unleash a Generation of Geniuses

#46

Post by aantix »

vdaniuk wrote: post #41
Florin_Andrei wrote: post #35

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Frankly, I hope none of the education-related ideas coming out of high tech hubs such as the Silicon Valley, come true. Nothing wrong with the fine individuals living and working here, but we are not the most gifted ones when it comes to figuring out how human beings function. We are great at figuring out systems . Hardware. Computers. Robots. Networks thereof. But self-aware nature-made wetware... please, just step…

Wow, so nice to see a refreshing attitude here on HN. You nailed the arrogance of SV types. Not everything can be improved with technology, just look at these massive failures in disrupting education : Coursera, Edx, Udacity. I, too, hope that engineers will just step away from education. /s

Khan Academy?

"Today, there have been 85 million users to date. Each month, there are 6 million unique users on the Khan Academy site. In total, there have been 260 million lessons delivered and over 1 billion problems answered on the related exercises." http://jpalfrey.andover.edu/2013/05/09/khan-academy-meets-ph...

Re: How a Radical New Teaching Method Could Unleash a Generation of Geniuses

#47

Post by Ologn »

evunveot wrote: post #40

Unsurprisingly, the headline's "new" teaching method isn't particularly new (as the timeline sidebar in the article itself makes somewhat apparent). For example, the Sudbury Valley School [1] has been around since 1968 and is even more "radical". No grades, no curriculum, no classes, no separation by age. The governance of the school is democratic, with all decisions -- including those regarding budget and staff -- d…

You're right that there is nothing new about almost all of these ideas. John Dewey covered a lot of this in his 1902 book "The Child and the Curriculum".

Re: How a Radical New Teaching Method Could Unleash a Generation of Geniuses

#48

Post by thehme »

This article tells an amazing and inspiring story. I love the burro tale and how it illustrates the positive attitude of these kids who really want to learn. I hope that everyone donates to http://www.wired.com/business/2013/10/student-centered-movem...

Teachers like Sergio Juárez Correa are an example of what teachers should be doing, specially in rich countries like the US.

Re: How a Radical New Teaching Method Could Unleash a Generation of Geniuses

#49

Post by fexl »

"The exterior of his schools will be mostly glass, so outsiders can peer in."

That reminds me of one of the technical schools I saw in downtown Lima, Peru. It had a huge number of large glass windows on the front, and as I walked along the main street, I could peer in and see row after row of tables, each with several large Apple monitors, each with a student or two in front of it. It was massive.

I'd really like to go in there next time I visit and find out more about their techniques.

(Incidentally, several blocks away there was a high school named "The Albert Einstein Institute". :)

Re: How a Radical New Teaching Method Could Unleash a Generation of Geniuses

#50

Post by pradocchia »

pinaceae wrote: post #20

let's have some dissenting opinion here. not all kids are equal. not all kids want to learn. in each and every discussion over this topic people bring up quotes by very smart people, like kubrick, sagan, etc. on how organised learning is not needed, a young mind wants to learn, grows like a flower, all by itself, even better without the shackles of structured education. i call bullshit. this is biased through the peo…

The child who doesn't want to learn is the child who doesn't learn to walk and talk. They are few and far between.

Things may happen later on that co-opt or subvert whatever gets the child going, and by the time you come along the child doesn't want to learn, not on your terms at least, not in the ways that you recognize.

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