Hole in the Wall, Thoughts on a TED talk

Today's education system, while effective in previous generations, no longer prepares students for the future. This is the topic of a powerful TED talk by Sugata Mitra.

Sugata Mitra began his discussion with the advent of the modern educational system.  Today's educational system relies on outdated methods of teaching, which focuses on teaching everyone the same thing in essentially the same way.  Mitra makes clear that the way the educational system is designed was effective when it was created and for the generations following.  He clarifies that that the system is not broken, it is outdated.

 This distinction is quite remarkable as everyone likes to focus on
how the education system is broken. As Mitra points out, it did and does work; however, it is not what is needed NOW and for the FUTURE.

 Mitra's "Hole in the Wall" experiment illuminates for educators how children can learn when left to their own devices. Give them technology and encouragement, and they can learn anything.

Watch Mitra's TED Talk.  Listen to how he discusses the experiment and its results.

 

I found the key to this to be the encouragement. I liked Mitra's idea of the "grannies in the cloud," seasoned grandmothers who simply tell children, "what a good job you are doing." In my own experience as an educator, I have found that a little encouragement often goes a very long way.

Mitra's idea makes a lot of sense. Children learn by exploring the world around them and through play. They go about things in their own way, and learn so much more than with rigid, strict environments. When everything is on a timetable, and structured to death, the sense of wonder and exploration is lost making learning a chore.

It is vital that we begin to apply some of these concepts today to prepare children for their roles tomorrow. In our increasingly global environments, the old, outdated ways are no longer effective. It is time to shake things up and get back to that natural sense of wonder in learning. 

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