tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34592362.post2062105415890066202..comments2024-01-13T07:04:29.167-05:00Comments on Kapp Notes: BIll Gates Puts his 2 Cents in the Pot (ok, a little more than 2 cents)Karl Kapphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10586071112339563727noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34592362.post-3748288339765260892009-11-01T20:35:57.191-05:002009-11-01T20:35:57.191-05:00Karl-
Thanks for this blog. Not quite sure how I ...Karl-<br />Thanks for this blog. Not quite sure how I found it as i was blissfully clicking. So glad I did. I am concerned about 2 things when we talk about reform. One is - lets keep it moving... talk is cheap, but it can also be static. We need action. Even if we make the absolute wrong move- it may be easier to correct it than it will be to talk about this for another 10 years while tenured teachers continue to burn out, education continues to carry dead wood and our society suffers.<br />Secondly, I am also a university teacher and education consultant and I can not echo your idea enough to revamp or step up the teacher training programs...especially in regards to technology. Our students are now more versed than our faculty on technology...and more obsessed as well. We really need to channel that enthusiasm about the electronic devices and CMC and plug our methods into them so knowledge can be gained 20 fold. This is not a project that can wait another 10 years to discuss. As we decide to reflect on ALL the options, pop culture is using technology to fill our kids heads with the default.colleenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04185588871655117162noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34592362.post-53152738605294028172009-10-29T13:23:49.957-05:002009-10-29T13:23:49.957-05:00Clark,
You make excellent points, this is not edu...Clark,<br /><br />You make excellent points, this is not educational reform based on the facts but based on dollars. And that doesn't work as indicated in the article you provided in the link (great article by the way.)<br /><br />Again, I agree that reform efforts must work hand in glove with each other and that is a long difficult process. However, when we are overrun by technology, innovations and from other countries, perhaps that will be the wake up call.<br /><br />Thanks for the comment.Karl Kapphttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10586071112339563727noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34592362.post-1470323764779394512009-10-29T11:54:13.575-05:002009-10-29T11:54:13.575-05:00Karl, this article backs up the point about the pr...Karl, this <a href="http://www.gsb.stanford.edu/news/research/pfeffer_commisions.html" rel="nofollow">article</a> backs up the point about the problems of a one-dimensional focus for incentives.<br /><br />I'd suggest, that, worse, test scores aren't measuring the important skills (cf Jonassen on relation between school problems and real world needs, Downs and others on competencies vs knowledge, etc). <br /><br />I've argued that our 'man on the moon' project should be an entire K12 curriculum online (which *would* be a set of common academic standards), but overall, I worry a bit when someone can wield this much influence based upon his wallet. Just because he knows how to flog software (triumph of marketing over matter), doesn't qualify him as an educational expert, and here it may be politics trumps policy. <br /><br />I agree with reform in Teacher Ed programs, but if it's not coupled with other reforms, it still won't work.<br /><br />It's complex, and like so many situations there are solutions that are simple, obvious, compelling, but wrong. We need to go to the mat with this, not toss off homilies. Thanks for the pointers!Clarkhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07822235162664957878noreply@blogger.com