Posted by: Christopher Fulton
Reflections
The train slides into Fanling Station, and I jot down ideas coming to me.
What's is it about this course that is somewhat frightening? For someone who has given such assignments, I suspect it's the challenge of creating or innovating. We are being asked to design learning activities; this means creating, innovating and possibly imagining something new. A real challenge.
In a traditional course, I might be required to analyze or synthesize ideas or arguments. Such ideas of education appear to have emerged from Benjamin Bloom's taxonomy of the educational objectives.
What is being asked of us, willing participants, is that we develop five learning activities. I am reminded of Sir Ken Robinson's talk on TED (https://myhkusu1.hku.hk/owa/redir.aspx?C=700272ef889b46ecbf9922b4025e5e2a&URL=http%3a%2f%2fwww.ted.com%2fspeakers%2fsir_ken_robinson.html). His position is that education systems that prepare learners for the future will prepare students to be creative. Arguably, understanding, knowing, analyzing, and synthesizing information or ideas is quite different from creating.
I should add that I do see technology as a catalyst for change, and cost-effective change. As private companies make mobile devices and networks more readily available and affordable, the opportunity for educators to scale up education on mobile platforms is, I believe, inevitable. I see an opportunity for educators to get a jumpstart on the technology that will be used in future learning environments. In addition, I think this technology could greatly improve the chances of poor and underprivileged people to receive an education -- or opportunities to participate in society -- that they may not otherwise receive.
The train now jostles into Lo Wu station. Might my next blog entry end with "sent from a mobile device"?
Chris,
ReplyDeleteit seems like a diary ,wasn’t it noisy in your train, coz, I have been used to sleep in long journey, and I think it is a good opportunity for mind relax, don’t you think so?
Ok, come back to your journey diary.
As you said: understanding, knowing, analyzing, and synthesizing information or ideas is quite different from creating. Yes I agree with you, but in my mind ,this problem(creativity) should be rare in west countries, because you accepted heuristic education at the beginning. Not like China, we all know, spoonfeed pedagogy is the main method for Chinese teachers, so Chinese students are more and more lack of imagination when they grow up(I am an example).
Emma.