In the classrooms in which I work, students explore the twenty or so themes upon which our planet really depends, immerse themselves in the ideas and information their teachers, peers and whole communities can impart, find the problems they feel are worth solving, theorise which ones will work and then try them out in a prototype.
In their world, we don’t just write an essay or create yet another wiki or blog to describe what our idea is, but we actually build the solution to the problem with our own hands – in this case, these seven year olds built the world’s youngest TEDxKids event, and talked about their research and solutions to some of the world’s most pressing – or simply most interesting – problems. Do animals talk? Do babies have a secret language? Which cancer should we invest in curing first? Why do slugs needs slime?
Ewan McIntosh is a teacher, speaker and investor. He was Scotland’s first National Advisor on Learning and Technology Futures and a member of the Channel 4 New Media Education Advisory Board.
JayCollier: @epersonae Parents, relatives, & counselors will advise against buying a whole degree. Who recommends a whole CD now? Buy songs, make a mix! 4 days ago
JayCollier: @epersonae Agreed. The goal of helping people learn obfuscates the practice of giving loans to people who can't repay. Like mortgages. 4 days ago
JayCollier: @epersonae Higher education is being unbundled as were the recording industry, libraries, and newspapers before. A new model is emerging. 4 days ago
Jay Collier Yes, Daniel. I concur. It is interesting that, as I have benefitted from the increasing power of digital processing and the Internet over the years,... – Apr 01, 2:45 PM
Daniel hi jay i think we’ve become too dependent on the digital world (computers, the internet, digital gadgets, etc) to do things for us that we... – Apr 01, 1:53 PM
Laura Sebastianelli wow! can't wait to see the full version!!!!! And, Jay thank you for sharing this. I was moved to tears! – Apr 02, 10:52 AM
From problem solvers to problem finders
Ewan McIntosh is a teacher, speaker and investor. He was Scotland’s first National Advisor on Learning and Technology Futures and a member of the Channel 4 New Media Education Advisory Board.