Looking at traditional education, the system is focused on ‘teaching’ rather than ‘learning’. This is what Philipp Schmidt, director of learning innovation at the MIT Media Lab says.
Currently, as learners, students do not make their own decisions in terms of where, what and how they choose what to learn and work on.
In this video Schmidt discusses active learning and how to get around some of the challenges in our current educational systems to push students into more creative directions.
Schmidt also talks about artificial intelligence and the role it will play in affecting education systems, in the near future.
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE ASSISTANTS CAN HELP DISRUPT EDUCATION IN THE NEAR FUTURE
“A lot of people are interested in how can humans use artificial intelligence to learn better, learn faster, to have an assistant on the side where you actually would be maybe going to university together with your artificial intelligence assistance and you would learn about each other while you’re going to university. It’s really interesting research now that shows for example a doctor who is trying to diagnose a medical condition. If you have an artificial intelligence listening to the process, the artificial intelligence is able to more accurately diagnose the medical condition. But only if we get to listen to the doctor talk to the patient..”
WHY EDUCATION SYSTEMS SHOULD BE CHALLENGED
“One of the things that really holding back a lot of the very innovative new solutions are this is not specific meaning but I think it also applies here is an education system that was designed for a time that look very different from the world today. If so I think we should challenge a lot of those assumptions and maybe relax the rules a little bit..”
EMPLOYERS AND PARENTS WILL PLAY A BIG ROLE IN CHANGING EDUCATION RULES
“Companies all over the world are reporting that they can’t find the right talent and skills that they’re looking for actually creativity. You know, people who are not work continues lifelong learners people who can collaborate with others and for a number of reasons our education system isn’t really emphasising those things. A lot of people at good universities develop those skills but not it’s almost like by accident it’s through experiences like this. Sitting around the table with other people, being in a new context, becoming curious about a new problem but the education system should support these kinds of experiences much more. So I think employers are starting to demand it. I think parents are starting to realise that their kids are happier and the kids are better learners if they’re in an environment where they have more freedom and their curiosities support those kind of these.”
HOW TO GO AROUND OLD EDUCATION SYSTEMS
“There are some really great technologies that kids can use to be creator with Technology. There’s a project out of the media lab actually called scratch where young children can use a block-based computer programming language to make stories and games. There are over 12 million kids have signed up from all over the world and they’re making projects. It’s really incredible to see them share stories with each other and help each other so there are lots of opportunities like that. There’s another project out of the media lab where parents started a new school.”
FOLLOW YOUR OWN RULES
“It’s okay to not follow the rules. Follow your passion and as Joey says no one is ever won the Nobel prize for following the rules and it’s true and he’s right so we’re hoping to create environments for people who want to follow their own world.”