A summary presentation of the book "A New Culture of Learning: Cultivating the Imagination for a World of Constant Change" by Douglas Thomas and John Seely Brown. I presented this for one of my masters classes on philosophies of education. I'll link up the lit review as well once I have it posted online.
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1. A New Culture of LearningCultivating theImagination for a
Worldof Constant ChangeDouglas ThomasJohn Seely Brown
2. Authors Douglas Thomas Associate professor of communication
at USC Focus on interactive media, gaming
3. Authors John Seely Brown Visiting scholar & advisor to
provost at USC Background in information & learning
research
4. The big idea
5. The big ideaUnderstand the profound changes brought about by
digital technologyNOT a book about school reformPeople are learning
by doing and asking fresh questions
6. Three key conceptsOur world is characterized by: Continual
change Ubiquitous connectivity Unlimited access to knowledge
resources
7. Arc-of-life learning The kind of learning that will define
the 21st century happens without books, teachers, classrooms;
however it requires bounded environments that provide complete
freedom of action within those boundaries. New culture of learning
also requires/has massive information network that provides
unlimited access & resources to learn about anything.
8. A tale of two culturesMechanistic vs. Environment
Mechanistic learning focuses on efficiency Learn as much as you can
as fast as you can Only valued for results at end
9. A tale of two culturesMechanistic vs. Environment Authors
believe learning should be viewed in terms of an environment
Requires vast digital information network Boundaries serve not only
as constraints but also as catalysts for innovation
10. A tale of two culturesMechanistic vs. Environment The new
culture of learning will augment rather than replace traditional
education venues New culture of learning focuses on learning
through engagement within the world
11. A tale of two culturesThe primary difference between
theteaching-based approach to educationand the learning-based
approach is thatin the first case the culture is theenvironment,
while in the second case, theculture emerges from the environment
and grows along with it.
12. Embracing change21st century is about embracing change, not
fighting itView the future as a set of new possibilities, not
something that forces us to change
13. Example: WikipediaLook at Wikipedia from a perspective of
either stability or embracing change and get two completely
different readings of the siteMaking knowledge stable in a changing
world is an unwinnable game
14. Example: WikipediaRequires a new kind of reading
practiceMust have ability to evaluate a contested piece of
information and decide for yourself how to interpret it
15. Learning in the collectiveNew culture of learning based on
three principles: Old ways of learning unable to keep up with
changing world New media forms make peer-to-peer learning easier
Peer-to-peer learning amplified by emerging technologies that shape
the collective nature of participation
16. Learning in the collectivePeople learn through their
interaction and participationIn the collective, everyone is on
equal ground no one is assigned traditional role of the
teacher
17. Learning in the collectiveA collective is a collection of
people, skills and talent that produces a result greater than the
sum of its partsDefined by active engagement in the learning
process
18. Concerns about the collectiveConcern about digital media is
that it is rendering our lives too transparentSharing and privacy,
and if youth can distinguish b/w what is appropriate for public
domain and what is not
19. Concerns about the collectiveConcept of public vs. private
goes back to Aristotle: Rhetoric was seen as speech for the masses
(public) Philosophy regarded as subject for the personal
(private)
20. Concerns about the collectiveAuthors argue that the private
vs. public is not the best way to frame this distinction.They
suggest a framework that has both elements, intertwining the
personal with the collective.
21. Collectives in educationThe dreaded group project Students
struggle to complete it Teachers struggle to grade it Why? Current
model of the classroom has no way of measuring or evaluating
collectives.
22. Example: BlogsBlogs were started w/ the intention of
helping people w/ common interests start conversations.The success
of a blog depends on two things: Reader comments Shared/external
links
23. Harnessing the collectiveNew media technologies provide a
means for truly harnessing the collective.The link between the
personal and collective is a key ingredient in lifelong
learning.
24. Tacit knowledgeTacit knowledge is understood or implied w/o
being stated.Traditional education focuses on explicit knowledge.
When information is stable, explicit knowledge is very
important.
25. Tacit knowledgeToday we learn by doing, watching, and
experiencing.It is not about taught knowledge, rather it is about
absorbing knowledge.
26. Tacit knowledgeThe new culture of learning focuses onthe
tension that develops when astudent has an interest they want
toexplore, but are faced with a set ofconstraints that allow them
to only actwithin given boundaries.
27. Tacit knowledgeWhich inspires you more? Finding answers and
memorizing facts or Asking questions and inventing techniques to
answer questions that matter to you
28. Tacit knowledgeThis style of learning inquiry creates
motivation to learn.Asking questions is an act of imagination.
29. Tacit knowledgeYou can sometimes learn morefrom taking the
wrong approachthan you can from taking theright one.
30. ConclusionWe need a new mode of learning, thinking, and
doing.Explore, discover, and challenge to achieve lifelong
learning.Questions are more important than answers.
31. Thomas, D., & Brown, J. S. (2011). A new culture of
learning: Cultivating the imagination for a world of constant
change. Lexington, Ky: CreateSpace. Questions?