Blog Assignment 10

An open letter to educations by Morgan Bayda

I think in her blog post, which includes a video by Dan Brown, Morgan Bayda expresses a concern that a lot of students have, including myself. She explains an experience she had in her classes in which she struggles to stay awake listening to a professor try and stuff his student’s brain with all of his thoughts. The students aren’t encouraged to be creative and aren’t allowed, much less even encouraged, to express their own beliefs or thoughts. This is very similar to a lot of lectures I have been required to sit though. While I cannot make a generalization because I have had a number of exceptional professors, many of my professors were like the ones that Morgan described.

This got me really thinking when Dan Brown was describing how our education was changing. Institutionalized schooling used to be valuable because the ones who “held the knowledge” really had something to give their students. However, in the age that we are in now, where information is readily available, professors like this are virtually useless. In this new age, professors and educators have to teach their students how to use the readily available information to build their own opinions and information. Educators must encourage their students to be creative and collaborate, something that most of Morgan’s and my professors have failed to do.

Don’t Let Them Take Pencils Home by Tom Johnson

I really like the message that is in this blog post by Tom Johnson. The lady in this post complains about students using pencils and bans them instead of simply allowing students to use their pencils in creative ways. She complains about students playing the game of Hang Man instead of doing their assignments. Who is to say that most students won’t do their traditional assignments after they are creative with their pencils and let their minds “warm up” anyway? I think a lot of times it is easier for educators to simply get rid of the problem rather than come up with a solution to allow students to learn and develop their creative sides. It isn’t ALL about the test scores.

It may seem like a stretch, but I think the issue of technology can be applied to this, even though it probably wasn’t Tom Johnson’s original intent. By this, I mean that just because it may be recognized that there is a need for a revolution in traditional education, it’s not enough to just slap a solution on it and be done. It may look good on paper and seem like the answer, but it’s simply not enough to install SMART boards in every classroom and require students to blog once in a while. That’s just removing the problem which is the need for more technology in the classroom. Educators must focus on the cause and become creative with the solutions.

Another part of the post that I really liked was at the very end. Tom Johnson comments on the use of “your” when the lady tells him to not blame her when “your test scores are lower”. While the teacher is indirectly evaluated with the results of standardized test scores, it is ultimately students who earn and receive the scores.