Steli Efti

Mini Session 12: Alternative Education and EduBlogging

Last but not least - The Bonus Guest Speaker: Tiara Shafiq

There's definitely plenty of edublogs out there to keep you busy. A lot of them have to do with traditional schooling: teachers talking about what works in the classroom, debates on current issues with school systems, students using blogs to record their classwork, educators developing ways to keep classes and school entertaining. Alternative education, though, doesn't get as much attention.

Alternative education basically refers to any form of education outside the context of traditional schooling. This encompasses all sorts of things: study abroad, internships, mentorships, volunteering, activism, job shadowing, entrepreneurship, careers, alternative schools, homeschooling, and unschooling. The general idea behind alternative education is that one does not need traditional school systems - classes, grades, exams, etc - to gain an education, and people should be free to explore how they best learn

Now there are certainly plenty of blogs that focus on certain types of alternative education. The homeschooling movement is especially prolific, with their own Carnival of Homeschooling, an About.Com section and plenty of discussion amongst various homeschooling sites, including the tight-knit unschooling community. Many students on study abroad programs keep logs of their travels and share ideas and recommendations, such as on the LiveJournal "F0reignExchange" community and the Cultures Shocked forum, geared mainly towards Rotary exchange students but open to all. Of course, most of the other topics (careers and activism, for example) get their own blog attention, though not a lot of it is through an alternative educational perspective.

Despite all that, though, there are barely any blogs that touch on the idea of alternative education as a whole. The idea of gaining your education and learning through other sources besides school (or a school-like system, such as homeschooling or alternative schools). Of learning through unorthodox means. Not much is discussed about the implication of alternative education on today's society and school systems - creating change, using out-of-the-box thinking, going beyond the notion of "top schools" and "straight As".

Why is this?

Why does BlogHer's Research, Academia, and Education section only talk about traditional academia and teaching, but never alternative education? (I don't recall ever seeing an article on homeschooling, even!) Why do homeschooling blogs get segregated from other edublogs - and what about edublogs that don't quite fit either mold? Why aren't more people talking about methods of learning that don't involve a blackboard and an exam paper? If you're not a teacher, parent, or educator, but just someone interested in these sorts of things, where do you go?

(As an aside: where are the left-leaning/liberal education blogs? Plenty of the homeschooling blogs, as well as some of the biggest general education blogs, tend to have a right-leaning bent. I, a very liberal person, subscribe to Australia's Educatin Choices  magazine - and I'm surprised at how right-wing it was. A liberal girl like me can't seem to find any likeminded people! Aren't there any liberals interested in education in general, let alone alternative education?)

Education isn't just about school. As edubloggers, we should all know that. Let's think about other ways that people learn! Let's talk about people that have succeeded in life and have learnt a great deal outside the confines of school! Let's question the conventional and traditional norms and truisms of schooling and education! Let's encourage others to learn however they want to learn, school or no school - and not just homeschooling!

Let's think about alternative education. Let alternative education have some attention once in a while.

What do you think? Do you think alternative education receives enough attention from edubloggers? Is there a space in the education blogosphere for alternative education? How can we encourage this space?

Tiara Shafiq writes about education issues, alternative education, and youth in EducateDeviate. She can't possibly be the only one doing so.

Group Discussion . . .

Tiara can´t be with us today - but she will come back in the next days to answer all questions and till then...let´s talk!

Mini Session 11: The 7 Lessons We Learned @ School That Could Possibly Ruin Our Lifes

Speaker:  Steli Efti

There are 7 basic lessons I defined that the public school system tries to teach us
(successfully or not) to inhibit our development

Lesson One: Be afraid of failure
Lesson Two: Focus on doing it right
Lesson Three: Learn not to learn
Lesson Four: Intuition isn´t important
Lesson Five: Your believes are irrelevant
Lesson Six: Don´t decide
Lesson Seven: You aim too high

What lessons did you had to unlearn after school so you could have more success and happiness in your life?

Let’s open the Q&A . . .

Mini Session 10: Community of Practice as a Model for Change in Today's Schools

Guest Speaker: Pat Aroune

Unfortunately - Pat couldn´t make it to this event! I will publish his article as soon as he´s ready so that we can have a great conversation around his topic asap! Much power to you Pat! Stay tuned folks...it´s a half hour break till the final post round :) Let´s Rock´N´Roll!!!

Mini Session 9: Is Anonymity Critical to the Success of the Edu Blogosphere?

Guest Speaker: Steve Dembo

We live in a world containing predators.  Those that prey upon the weak and the helpless.  Because of this, schools make it a priority to protect their student's identity, in the media, in print and on the Internet.

Once students leave the school building though, students thrust themselves into a completely different arena.  Their online activities are wide open to the public.  An alias provides little protection when the student has identified their city, state, grade, and even their name.

Almost half of students ages 12-18 use a single online alias for every site (http://www.pewinternet.org/pdfs/PIP_Teens_Report.pdf).  So when their identity is compromised in one location, it is compromised everywhere.  Increasingly, students are living a double life on the Internet, publishing during the school day completely anonymously or with a heavily guarded pseudonym, and then publishing extensively as themselves after the bell rings.

Are we doing more harm than good by having teachers go to great lengths to masquerade their students online during school hours?  What effect does publishing under a pseudonym have on the motivation level of students?  When, if ever, should a student be able to publish online under their own name or chosen alias?

Let’s open the Q&A . . .

Mini Session 8: The Social Networking Phenomena & the Impact on Education

Guest Speaker: TONNET

Originally, education has been a communal activity where the knowledge and experiences were transmitted from generation to generation. After the alphabet was invented the first hominids were able to start communicating with one another through symbols with a short range of meanings.  Once the print was developed and books spread all around, the formal education took another dimension that can be comparable with the system we all know nowadays.

In the last century with introduction of processors and the invention of superior math that knowledge has grown geometrically. It is actually very hard to catch up and keep updated as Burner Lee’s dreamed about.

The educational system has been broken since the Internet arrived. No person needs to go to school in order to learn, get a certificate or even a degree. You can find a wide range of careers available via online as a formal and structured school but with the breaking of boundaries and the socialization of knowledge today you can access different channels of disciplines and not only that but you can get to know people outside formal school and out of buildings created with this objective. This is what is called networking and if you are interacting with people of similar interests then you have created you very own social network. 

You need a computer or a smart phone and you’re ready to go in terms of knowledge.  Now, the purpose of social networking is not to learn precisely but simply have a familiar circle where you might be comfortable in.  Education is a more complicated process where at least two people interact and communicate both ways.  How this will impact our educational system is the question we have to answer.  The quick change of events and the necessity to solve problems and work so quickly is pushing towards a reform of the whole school system.

Because: Who needs a diploma? Or who really needs degrees? If you already know how to solve a problem without the intervention of any organization or status group, why do you have to get involved in school?

Let’s open the Q&A . . .

Mini Session 7: Zen of Studying

Guest Speaker: Joshua Hwang

Reflections on our approach to studying

As I prepare for another season of rich exam studying, I (and many others) begin to wonder
why we study so much. What do we hope to gain through studying?

There are many perspectives that students often take:

• Many people study solely to achieve the highest grade possible. If content will not be tested upon, it will not be learned. In this way of thinking, the content itself is not where one's focus lies.

• Some people study to absorb the content. For whatever reason, be it interest or a predicted future value, the content of the lessons are the focus of one's study.

• Others may study to develop their ability to learn. The process of learning is what interests them more than the content itself. Here the focus lies in the skills required.

The order I have put them in does not reflect my view on how good or bad any of these perspectives are. I firmly believe that all of these vantage points bring something to the table. Focusing on grades can allow one to study very efficiently, cutting out irrelevant or overly time-consuming content. To have a genuine interest in a subject is wonderful and can make studying quick and enjoyable. Foresight in studying makes learning that much easier in the future. Lastly, cultivating the ability to learn is one of the greatest and most profitable gifts one can give to themselves or others.

Of course all of these perspectives are not mutually exclusive, you may hold one or all of these views at the same time. In fact, that is what I often do. However, is there something more, or even something else, to be gained through the process of studying?

Bear with me here, things are about to get a little "out there".

Is possible that the process of learning, in and of itself, is enough of a gain to all of us. Maybe the studying itself is intrinsically satisfying, and it alone brings a type of fulfillment.

This is a very zen way of a approaching studying. Zen is a school of Buddhism that focuses on experiencing the present moment. What is the sound of one hand clapping? What is an exam with no grade?

So I ask you just as much as I ask myself:
Are learners limited to these perspectives?
Are there other perspectives?
Are all of these perspectives on studying good? Are they even useful?
Is it possible to appreciate studying intrinsically?
Do you even believe in this "zen" thing?

While you contemplate that, I'll be studying biochemistry and simultaneously clapping one hand.

Let’s open the Q&A . . .

Mini Session 6: Long Term Memory / Human Computer Storage Techniques

Guest Speaker: Michael Beck (digital nomad)

The human brain is a computer. There is short-term memory for processing and performing daily functions, and there is long-term memory for storage and retrieval of useful information.

Long-term memory involves a query of brain files by searching for unique information. If you organize information in a sequential and conscious way prior to clicking the mental "save" button, you will find that you have the ability to permanently recall any file.

Learning to create permanent files by linking unique "words" and "pictures" gives you the ability to embed these files into your long term memory.

This is easier and more powerful than pure rote memory. This technique is rarely explored in conventional education, and the analogy to a computer system is intriguing.

This discussion will include a demonstration of these techniques.

Let’s open the Q&A . . .

Mini Session 5: The Ergonomics of You

Guest Speaker: Liz Strauss

Is your workspace organized?
Is your computer desktop organized too?
Have you put the things you use most often closest to where you use them?
Have you placed the things people are likely to ask for in a place where you can find them quickly?
When you stand at your doorway, does your space look like the workspace of one who handles information well?

Get Your Ergonomics Right and Your Credibility Will Soar!

Why IS That?

Let’s open the Q&A . . .

Special Thankx to Liz for being the inspiration to this event!

You have to check out Liz´s SOBCon Event!!!

Mini Session 4: The Need for Self-Directed Learning

Guest Speaker: Peter Haslam

"In times of change learners inherit the earth, while the learned find themselves
beautifully equipped to deal with a world that no longer exists." - Eric Hoffer

In March 2001 Ray Kurzwell wrote about the Law of Accelerating Returns which speaks
about the exponential growth of computing power to come. The implication of the law of
accelerating returns is that there will be a corresponding growth in information (knowledge) that
is and will increasingly be available to anyone with Internet access.

The ability of our educational system as it now stands comes into question when there is a very real
possibility that a graduate of a 4 year program in 2012 will find the information learned in the first two
years of their program to be no longer valid and this problem will only get worse as time goes on.

In my lifetime I have seen the impact of changes brought about by the introduction of programmable
calculators, TV's, personal computers, VCR's, the Internet,cell phones, wireless, just to name a few.
Look at what the generation brought up with personal computers is creating today. What will the
generation growing up international access, mobile technology and $100 PC's do to the future?

We will have to process more information at a faster rate with an ever increasing ability to strip
information down to essentials, communicate our concepts and mashup dissimilar ideas (creativity) to
provide our direction. Then we need to be nimble enough to be to adjust and adapt at the speed of
change. Quite a challenge.

We will no longer be able to count on our educational systems to provide meaningful long term
direction. That means we will need to take on the responsibility of providing our own direction in
learning.

What do you envision for the future?

Technorati tags: self-learning, future, education, critical thinking

Let’s open the Q&A . . .

 

Mini Session 3: New technology and knowledge accessibility

Guest Speaker: Florence Meichel

How to develop a system with new technologies to make knowledge easier accessible on the web:

From my experience, there are 5 necessary things you need:

1 – Content : choose high quality content that fits the publics needs and tastes…I think that the level quality is important even if it's user generated content!

2 – Technical team : must be able to invent, to create and to change their own methods and solutions if it's necessary. An external coach could be helpful !

3 – Technological tools : what you choose must be progressive, reliable and very simple to use on the web

4 – Access areas for the knowledge : must be free access and a interactive area …so you have to build a adapted business model !

5 – Broadcasting networks : start with an existing broadcasting network ( with an association for example)

 

Now, tell me about your own experience, what do you think ?
What would you complete and/or comment ?

Thanks for your active participation !

Let’s open the Q&A . . .