Trung Le doesn't design classrooms, he designs learning spaces. In his travels, he discovered that classrooms around the world are almost exactly the same with respect to their primary features. He points out that "we have institutionalized this idea of the classroom as the place to learn." Le notes that every school he goes to wants its students to think critically, to discover, to inquire, and to be curious. He asks what changes should be made to a school's physical appearance to reflect the school's desires and hopes for its students. Upon looking at his design for a middle school in Turkey, Le ponders, "Why do so many girls drop out of school after 8th grade?" He reveals that redesigning schools is really a cultural project. He wants to make people the center of our world.
I think Le has tremendous ideas. I grew up in a school system that relied heavily on exams and tests, lots of homework, and worst of all, made me feel that I really didn't matter. It was the same when I went to college, with some exceptions. Changing the school so that the student is the center would certainly have a positive impact on most students' lives. But Le goes on to describe the effect that technology can have on students, how it can lead to transformation. Technology certainly can change lives drastically for our students.
I didn't have much access to technology when I was in the public system. I graduated from high school not knowing how to "cut and paste" and I had never used email. When I did research projects, I was always required to have sources that were books or scholarly articles, but I can't recall being required to have a source from the Internet. My use of technology in school consisted of a TI graphing calculator and using a word processor to type papers. The sad reality is that there are many students whose experiences using technology in education are about as uneventful as mine were way back then.
One way technology can change my students is by helping them to make social connections. As Le points out, the content of what is taught at universities like MIT and Harvard is available online for free, yet many still seek higher education at those institutions. Le indicates that "it must be the experience, it must be the social capital behind it." That is something educators should consider as we transition to a more global society.
Reference:
Le, T. (2013, June 11). The Future of Learning: Trung Le at TEDxNYED. [Video File]. Retrieved from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AEb2nZWvtGE&index=28&list=PLbRLdW37G3oMquOaC-HeUIt6CWk-FzaGp
I think Le has tremendous ideas. I grew up in a school system that relied heavily on exams and tests, lots of homework, and worst of all, made me feel that I really didn't matter. It was the same when I went to college, with some exceptions. Changing the school so that the student is the center would certainly have a positive impact on most students' lives. But Le goes on to describe the effect that technology can have on students, how it can lead to transformation. Technology certainly can change lives drastically for our students.
I didn't have much access to technology when I was in the public system. I graduated from high school not knowing how to "cut and paste" and I had never used email. When I did research projects, I was always required to have sources that were books or scholarly articles, but I can't recall being required to have a source from the Internet. My use of technology in school consisted of a TI graphing calculator and using a word processor to type papers. The sad reality is that there are many students whose experiences using technology in education are about as uneventful as mine were way back then.
One way technology can change my students is by helping them to make social connections. As Le points out, the content of what is taught at universities like MIT and Harvard is available online for free, yet many still seek higher education at those institutions. Le indicates that "it must be the experience, it must be the social capital behind it." That is something educators should consider as we transition to a more global society.
Reference:
Le, T. (2013, June 11). The Future of Learning: Trung Le at TEDxNYED. [Video File]. Retrieved from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AEb2nZWvtGE&index=28&list=PLbRLdW37G3oMquOaC-HeUIt6CWk-FzaGp