We Must Accept The Reality of the Future! Part 4
Posted By Clod on December 6, 2011
5. Online Networking Skills
The early educational pioneers of the Internet recognized that one of its major benefits was to be found in the opportunity to link the classroom to an expert.
Studying a course that involves the space sciences? Take part in NASA’s ‘ask-an-expert’ program. Examining political science? Encourage the students to correspond with one of the many Members of Parliament who actively use the Internet. Studying geology? Access geographic experts worldwide.
The Internet provides the ability for people to network electronically. It is a powerful method of gathering knowledge and information.
Think about this in the context of future economic systems. The business world is already well on its way to adopting Internet related technology that permits electronic project teams, and the economy is expected to migrate from one that provides mostly full-time jobs to one of part time knowledge workers – many of whom will interact with the companies that hire them on an electronic basis.
The student of today will have to learn to work in a world that is based on electronic collaboration using technologies such as the Internet. This means that the educators of today must provide the student with the knowledge and understanding of how to cope in a world that involves an increasing amount of on-line electronic communication.
6. Judgment Skills
The Internet is, of course, not all pretty. Students today are going to grow up in a world that offers remarkable Internet based capabilities — and awesome risks.
Already, the Internet is being used for the distribution of misinformation or lies, whether having to do with investment, medical, scientific or other information. It is being used for the distribution of hate literature, pornography, and other information of an illegal, distasteful or questionable origin.
The student of today living in the information age of tomorrow will have to come to live in a world in which their judgment — their ability to perceive what is right and what is wrong — will come under increasing pressure. The educator responsible for preparing them for the future must provide them the necessary skills to make such judgment — which can only be done by providing them the best of adult guidance today.
The simple fact of the matter is that the Internet of today is not going to go away — and we must teach our youth to deal with it from many different perspectives, warts and all.
What Must We Do?
These are the fundamental skills that we must provide the youth of today to adequately equip them for tomorrow.
The sad reality is that most educational institutions are ill-equipped to deal with the fundamentals of the Internet and what it is set to become. They are, therefore, not cognizant of the need to provide the youth of today with these various fundamental and critical “electronic skills.”
This leads to the fact that we run the risk of graduating students who lack the basic capabilities to survive in the economic and business systems of tomorrow — thus dramatically increasing the skills gap in Canada.
Shifting Our Focus
It is the basic skills described above — analysis, judgment, questioning and the others describe above — that are fundamental to the future success of the youth of today.
As educators philosophize over the issue of computers and the Internet in the classroom, the world of business sets about to hire those who have mastered the computer, and reject those who have not.
This should lead us to a simple and obvious conclusion — if we fail to make mastery of the technology world in which our youth will live a fundamental and basic part of their education, then I dare say that we are failing as educators. I cannot be more blunt than that.
What mystifies me about the ongoing debate about the Internet in the classroom, is that all too often the debate focuses on the wrong thing! One side of the debate pleads that we must teach the Internet in the classroom, while the other suggests that this is a bad thing. The problem with both sides is that they are viewing the Internet as an end — not a means. What do I mean? As an outside, I’ve seen an education system that, in the past, set out to teach students the ins and outs of how to use a computer. Slowly, the education world came to realize that we shouldn’t be concentrating on teaching students how to use computers as much as we should be teaching them how to learn by using a computer as a tool.
The same mistake is being made today with respect to the Internet. Educators are debating or are setting about to teach students how to use the Internet instead of teaching them how to use the Internet as tool to learn. The Internet is simply a means to an end – a tool, rather than a thing.
To deal with the Internet, we need to change our focus. We should teach them how to use the Internet to gain knowledge by concentrating on the skills outlined above — rather than teaching them simply how to use the Internet.
Let’s Get On With It!
The fact that the debate as to whether the Internet is good or bad still rages, and the fact that some in the education community still express concern about computers in the classroom, is indicative of my attitude that the educational system lacks the fortitude to deal with the future.
The Internet is here today — and it will be here tomorrow in an even more dramatic fashion. There is no time for argument — there is precious little time for debate. Each month and year that we discuss the benefits and drawbacks of the Internet, we graduate our students into an economic and business world that is soon to become Internet dependent.
The debate must end! We must have total and unequivocal support from school, university and college administrations to teach the fundamental critical skills as outlined above. We must fully accept the role that the Internet will come to play in the future — and recognize that much of this is already happening today. All levels of government must urgently commit to ensuring that the Internet is introduced as a core curriculum course, and that the technical infrastructure in the classroom is up to the task.
All of those involved in the education of our youth— administrators, teachers, parents and planners — must accept the inevitability of the Internet world.
To do anything less will mean that we are failing to provide our youth with the fundamental survival skills of the future — and by doing so, we are guilty of negligence in the performance of our duties. We cannot afford, as a nation, to let this happen.
After all, the first wired generation in the history of mankind expects better of us.
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