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riefly discuss the following issues: 1. what did you find 1.1. interesting about the article? As the article articulated, the concept of "community of learners" is difficult to understand for anyone who's been brought up in an adult-run environment (like most of us have). However, as the article described the survey results from the OC, I began to see how this system could be effective and became quite interested in its possibilities. I would say that I'd need to see the system in person to truly express an informed opinion (I still have reservations about the seeming "lack of structure"), but the idea is definitely growing on me. 1.2. not interesting about the article? I felt the article became repetitive in trying to reiterate its claims. For example, the article kept repeating that "newcomers often have trouble understanding many OC practices that are based on the community of learners model." This is both obvious and redundant. I can understand the perceived need to overcome the "adult-run" ideology that most readers would have, but I think the repetitiveness became a distraction from the article. 2. what do you consider the main message of the article? To describe and show benefits of the "community of learners" model. As the article mentions, this is a very difficult issue to tackles since the "adult-run" model has been firmly ingrained in the US' educational systems for many decades. The concept of "community of learners" must overcome the comfort that comes from familiarity and the fear that comes from "'threatening' challenges to existing understanding." I think the goal of this article was to convince readers to at least be open to the possibilities that "community of learners" could create and I think the goal was accomplished. 3. analyze your own educational experience and 3.1. provide a rough estimate in percentage points for each category and adult-run: 90% child-run: 5% community of learners: 5% 3.2. one example for each category (in case you have encountered all three approaches) adult-run: pretty much every class I've ever had. Teachers design the syllabus, write the exams, and assign the homework. child-run: extracurricular activities, learning outside of school community of learners: My wireless sensor networks course with Rick Han last semester. Since the nature of WSNs is itself relatively new, it wasn't possibile to have a strict process to follow in order to learn the material. Our instructor was learning right along with us. The students of the course chose what we wanted to do for the course project and also what particular aspect of the project we wanted to focus on. The instructors (professor and TAs) facilitated our work. 4. which technologies are used / can be used /should be used to support 4.1. adult-run education 4.2. child-run education 4.3. community of learners education I don't think that the 3 concepts are limited in the technologies they can use. I feel that all 3 can use the same technologies to facilitate the learning process. For instance, computers can be used in all three. As the article stated, the 3 education techniques don't change WHAT students learn, but rather how they learn. Computers and other technologies are flexible enough to facilitate learning from multiples angles: assigned research (adult-run), self-directed research (child-run), and collaborative and exploritory learning (community of learners). 5. analyze our course from the three dimensions: 5.1. adult-run education The lectures in class and the assigned readings help us learn new information we probably would not stumble upon on our own as "community of learners" would imply. 5.2. child-run education The independent research group projects are going to be defined by the students themselves. How we chose to analyze/research/present the information on our topic is completely up to us. 5.3. community of learners education The EDC simulation was a situation where the system is still in development stages, so both the instructors and students are learning in a shared experience. 6. which possibilities do you see to effectively integrate adult- and child-run education? Obviously adult-run education has the benefit of structure. The free-spirited learning environment of the "community of learners" definitely needs to be guided in some practical direction, thus the structure aspect of adult-run education would be useful. With regards to child-run education, the benefits lie in encouraging untampered creativity. Some of the greatest breakthroughs in science and arts have come from natural creativity which often go against the usual thinking. The more open we are to new ideas, the more likely we will progress in our society.
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