The Big Idea

What's the big idea?

"Technology often forces us to choose between quality and convenience." -Kay

This quote from the Kay reading sums up my view of educational technology quite well. When building tools for learning, developers often pick from the low hanging fruit, those easiest to asses and implement. As a result, computers and technology have been used, as Papert pointed out, not to revolutionize education, but to re-purpose old methods of education. The recent stimulus package passed by congress a great example of Papert’s assertion that education is often about immediate problem solving and not a holistic approach to education; how well intentioned problem solving addresses the symptoms, rather than the cause. Obama has finally provided school districts with large amounts of funding to reach the goals of No Child Left Behind, providing funding for exciting new technologies and professional development. However, these funds were provided with provisions that districts meet strict standardized test score benchmark set out by NCLB. What happens then, when a child enters the 6th grade at a 3rd grade math level? They are bombarded with kill and drill software that will help them succeed on standardized tests. But have they actually learned the material?. I find it ironic that Papert uses the success of one of his students on old tests to show the success of logo. Until we change the way that students and teachers are evaluated, educational technology will continue to be designed for the path of least resistance to success on small ideas.

“An educational system that tries to make everything easy and pleasurable will prevent much important learning from happening.” Kay

One of the reasons “kill and drill” software is so pervasive is that it harnesses the power of computers to quickly asses and respond to students. For instance, FastMath keeps tracks of how quickly students are able answer math facts and keeps asking the students problems they have trouble with. Imagine if computers were used instead to scaffold more nuanced problem solving. As the above quote by Kay alludes to, the key to learning is often in creating a good problem. Good problems can encourage students to find the big ideas that Papert refers to. However, I found these good problems the most challenging to generate. It is difficult for teachers to adapt to the varying needs of their students. Technology could provide a great helping hand in this arena.

Big Ideas...

What is a big idea? Too often in education we equate bigger and faster with better. Reading bigger and bigger books faster, memorizing more and more facts, counting higher and higher? Do big ideas always have to be more complex or advanced? Most of the Media Lab’s projects are designed at helping kids to access more advanced ideas. Even Papert’s 1971 paper on using computers in classroom, which provided exciting examples to bring engagement and discovery to the classroom, focused primarily on helping kids to understand advanced principles. While flashy programmable robots and kids learning Newtonian Physics are impressive, I found the example of child discovering zero, more significant to that child’s learning. Technology can not only give students access to understanding complex ideas like calculus, but can also help them grasp more fundamental concepts such as inquiry or addition.

“At the same time, the new technologies should provide children with conceptual leverage, enabling them to learn concepts that would have been difficult for them to learn in the past.” -Resnick

My issue with Logo…

While the examples of kids really embracing Logo, how do you inspire kids to put in the initial effort of learning the language upfront? Clearly, not all kids took to programming the same way Michael did. It seems like this document is just a manual to be copied, not on to help kids discover on one’s own. Examples are great! They help us learn. But how do you give examples to learn from but still allow for discovery and creativity. Can you give the tools to solve problems on their own without providing manual or almost identical examples?