Learning and Passion

Connected Learning: Tying Student Passions to School Subjects | MindShift

This article is truly worth some discussion.

Teaching Uncertainty

Knowing the unknown - MIT News Office

As someone interested in robotics, I found this article fascinating.

As an educator interested in developing self-directed students, I found this article very intriguing. I loved the assessment (self-assessment, really) of uncertainty as the trigger for more learning. It seemed an appropriate conceptual model for a learning environment.

Jörn Loviscach: The Story Of A German Math Teaching Sensation

Jörn Loviscach: The Story Of A German Math Teaching Sensation:

I was really, really intrigued by this article and this teacher.
At the very least, it is really, really nice to see a model to this type of learning (and the learning seems deep indeed), that goes beyond the Kahn Academy.

Making music wins over computer science majors | News Center | Wake Forest University

Making music wins over computer science majors | News Center | Wake Forest University:

I especially liked this quote:

“If you give the students a lot more ownership and allow them to pursue their ideas rather than direct them too closely, you get much better results because they are so creative and they have great ideas,” she said. “But it’s scary teaching. I’ve gotten over thinking I have to answer every single question they have. It’s so liberating.”

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New Pew Study - What does it mean?

By the Numbers: Teachers, Tech, and the Digital Divide | MindShift

This study seems to have provided fairly predictable results.

The bigger questions for me are:
1. How can we capture the richness of technology usage by teachers and learners?
2. How can these technologies be used to powerfully close a digital divide?
3. In a true community of learners, what does it matter who knows more or less?

I desperately want us to move beyond this level of discussion, into something more transformational.

Experiencing data

Tongue-tingling interface lets you taste data - New Scientist - New Scientist

This could be an amazing way to teach students to "experience" data, instead of just talking about them.

How to Fuel Students’ Learning Through Their Interests | MindShift

How to Fuel Students’ Learning Through Their Interests | MindShift:

I am not sure that I agree with this definition of "open source," but I find this article intriguing.

For David Preston, the term “open source learning” — a variation on inquiry learning or passion-based learning –  is about helping students choose their own learning path, an approach that already has some well-known champions among educators.

What do you think?
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