open-source education
Steve Wilmarth's Page
Profile Information
- Hometown:
- Westbrook, Connecticut USA
- About Me:
- I'm co-founder and senior program specialist at the Center for 21st Century Skills. I'm interested in curriculum design and teaching practice in the classroom of the future.
- Website:
- http://digitalnativesct.blogspot.com
About
"If I had the influence with the good fairy who is supposed to preside over
the christening of all children, I should ask that her gift to each child in
the world be a sense of wonder so indestructible that it would last
throughout life, an unfailing antidote against the boredom and
disenchantment of later years, sterile preoccupations with things that are
artificial, the alienation from the sources of our strength."
- Rachel Carson
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As for your book, I'm sure you are familiar with the constructionist theory refined by Papert which emphasizes experiential learning--he takes it off in the math and technology direction while I'm taking it (in my current book) off in the self-directed learner direction. It's encouraging to see the progress as the One Laptop Per Child brings access to technology closer for children around the world. I recently read about the MIT Center for Bits and Atoms which is involved in fabrication labs---centers in the developing world which enable local innovators to make the necessary electronics themselves.
One issue I've encountered as I work on this book is difficulty finding people who are willing to share their experiences and insights. Do you have any suggestions for ways I might find ordinary folks who would be willing to be interviewed about the ways they and their children learn best? This current book is aimed more at homeschoolers so I've been sending requests through forums and newsletters, so far an insufficient response.
I'm interested in hearing more about your planned book. I'm also engaged in a contract to write a book about the impact of rapidly converging technologies on the future "shape of knowledge" and curriculum design.
Cheers,
Steve
Thanks for joining. We look forward to your comments on the forum or topics you wish to start related to free range learning.
I think that education will be changing rapidly to meet children's true needs and the demands of a globally connected world. Hopefully alternative methods now in use by progressive teachers, interest-based homeschoolers and democratic schools can provide a template for the children of tomorrow.
My book is focused on ways to engage children in learning that takes them beyond the walls of school and home, out into the community.
Laura