The future of education

[Kai]

Listening to a lecture without being able to ask questions....might as well be reading a book.

This.

Theres a reason I don't take classes over the internet. The reason is that learning is more than just rote information. Learning details takes interaction and connection with people who know all the little details, and learning what questions to ask to find out the details. Also, learning SKILLS (probably far more important) takes one on one interaction with people who have skills, and then loads of practice under their supervision. You really need direct interaction for the full impact.

Nothing is ever ever going to become more important in education than the direct interaction between teacher and student. NOTHING.

[whatc]

I enjoy video lectures quite a lot. The ones I've watched had nothing to do with my education though. Just stuff i downloaded out of curiosity for my own amusement. What i noticed was that i could concentrate better compared to real classroom. Was it mostly, because i was interested in the subject or just the lack of giggling,sneezing, paper scrunching and what ever noises normally cause distraction, i dont know. Best part is that you get to watch them on your own schedule, when you feel most capable to absorb information.

[HRD Frederick T Fowyer]

Nothing is ever ever going to become more important in education than the direct interaction between teacher and student. NOTHING.

Except maybe for the student's personal investment and interest in the subject matter-- although, to be fair, a good teacher can do a lot to stimulate this.

[Cain]

You know, if people are just going to keep reading into the article that EVERY SINGLE ASPECT OF EDUCATION IS GOING TO GET REPLACED BY ONE WAY VIDEOS, I'm pretty sure I've already lost interest in the thread.

Cain,
doesn't remember the part where there was no feedback or group sessions, only the suggestion you need not be physically present for them.  In fact, Cain doesn't even remember anyone ruling out video conference style lectures.

[Cain]

OK, that was a little harsh.  I apologize, I'm like, really, really wired right now, because its the only way I can keep my eyes opened.

[OPTIMUS PINECONE]

     Ha, CAIN   

     If people only read the quote you provided and not the article, it's easy to see where the reactions came from.

     Regarding the quote content, it seems like a scary perspective. Indeed, faulty as people are, teachers are what make or break a class, I feel. Also, systematizing everyone's input through selected videos is a way 1984 mind control nightmare thing.

    What MIT is doing sounds totally cool. Smaller groups requires more accountability from the student and with the teachers/ assistants readily present, the material everyone is dealing with becomes much more workable.

     

[AFK]

It's going to be like anyting else, supply and demand.

As I eluded to earlier, the ability to take classes online is going to be a big win for people who are beset with significant barriers to higher education.  If your nearest University is 200 miles away and you can't afford to relocate, having an option to take similar classes online is going to be a good thing.  Obviously, compare to a live class, not the same.  But compared to no class, it's a no-brainer. 

Also, live classes can find ways to incorporate these technologies as well.  It will be way cheaper to have a guest lecturer appear via video streaming from the internet as opposed to flying the guy/gal in, putting them up in a hotel, feeding them, etc., etc., 

[Requia ☣]

Listening to a lecture without being able to ask questions....might as well be reading a book.

Unless of course you happen to have horrible visual attentiveness <_<

Of course, some video lectures where looking at the screen is necessary put me to sleep, so it goes both ways.

[Requia ☣]

While video lectures have the possibility of giving the best lectures, my experience with educational videos says this may not happen.

You know, if people are just going to keep reading into the article that EVERY SINGLE ASPECT OF EDUCATION IS GOING TO GET REPLACED BY ONE WAY VIDEOS, I'm pretty sure I've already lost interest in the thread.

Most online courses aren't very good at those.  Again, that may be an exception rather than a rule as this unfolds.

[Jenne]

"There was a long tradition that what it meant to teach was to give a really well-prepared lecture," said Peter Dourmashkin, a senior lecturer in physics at M.I.T. and a strong proponent of the new method. "It was the students' job to figure it out."

The problem, say Dr. Dourmashkin and others in the department, is that a lot of students had trouble doing that. The failure rate for those lecture courses, even those taught by the most mesmerizing teachers, was typically 10 percent to 12 percent. Now, it has dropped to 4 percent.

This has also been my experience.  The large lecture hall classes, with hundreds of students, do not lend themselves to the ultimate in academic performance.  And actually, I think you see more disrespect for the speaker, more casual treatment of the subject matter, and a total disconnect between student and teacher.

So when you say you might as well be reading a book, I think the large lecture halls were like that as well.  There were very few who had the balls to stand up and ask a question, and that was usually a grad student who was under the employ of the prof anyway.  I've taught in those lecture halls, and it's hard to read anyone's expressions, catch questions in general, and for a subject that's as complex as physics, I think a smaller-lecture setting much more ideal.

Which, it seems, is what MIT is attempting to do, and with amazing results.  I'm rather impressed with it, actually, and it seems they're not throwing personal interaction out with the bathwater but rather making it more accessible to all and a more useful tool in general.

[Vene]

I just want to add, one of the things I really like about my college is that the class sizes are relatively small (the largest I've had are ~100 students, ~30 is the norm).  Unlike some universities my profs actually know who I am.  Come to think about it, that may not be such a good thing.

[Triple Zero]

No it's a good thing, really. I understand what you're saying, if you wanted to fuck with something, you'd rather be anonymous in the masses, but even if they know you, you can be smart enough to get away with a lot. And IMO the advantages of getting acquainted with the cooler profs definitely weighs up to that.

[Vene]

Sarcasm on the internet=fail
I do like it that I actually know them, I can't help but think that a large lecture hall might as well be a replaced with an hour-long video.