Building Schools in the Clouds

Are students learning from an obsolete curriculum?

As technology advances, are schools and teachers teaching materials to students that are becoming obsolete? In this Edtalk video, Sugata Mitra talks about how schools were developed many years ago in a universal way in order for people to learn the same material and in the same manner.  For example learning writing, reading, math are a universal components that all students will learn in schools. Individual who have learned in this manner can be moved from one location to a different location and will be knowledgable and functional in any location. As technology becomes more significant in our every day lives, do we need to learn about other subjects that the internet can do the searching for us? Math for example is a subject that a computer can do the work for us. Sugata Mitra talks about how students will learn on their own based on their curiosity. He has created a method called SOLE. This method shows how teachers give students an objective and tools in order to finish a goal. The teacher then asks them to come up with an answer. Many students interacted with each other, discussed and concluded to their own solution. Mitra gave an example that discussed how Galileo has contributed to astronomy based on simple observations and curiosity of stars. This curiosity is what needs to be implemented into curriculums at schools. What do you think?

VOCABULARY

Advances- to move forward 

Obsolete- no longer used

universal- done by all people

developed- to make larger or more advanced

component- a part of a larger part

individual- single or separate

Knowledgeable- well informed, intelligent

functional - having a special activity or purpose

significant- an importance

curiosity- wanting to know something

method- a way of doing something

objective- a goal 

interacted - to talk or do things with other people

discussed- talked about

concluded - when a person comes to a result

contributed- to help to cause something to happen

astronomy- the scientific study of stars, planets and other objects in outer space

observations- a statement about something you have noticed

implemented- something used to do work

curriculum- courses taught in schools