澳门跑狗论坛

Will Richardson was a high school English and journalism teacher in New Jersey for nearly 20 years. During the early part of this decade, he began experimenting with the use of interactive Web tools in the classroom and was soon transfixed by their potential for increasing students鈥� engagement and exposing them to new resources and outlets for expression. His experiences led him to write (Corwin). Now in its third edition, the book has sold more than 60,000 copies and become one of the most influential books available on integrating Web 2.0 technology in the K-12 classroom.

Richardson is now an educational-technology consultant and co-founder of , a professional development provider devoted to fostering online community for teachers. Both in his speaking engagements and on his blog, , Richardson argues that schools need to transform their models of teaching and learning to reflect broad changes in information technology and new intellectual demands and opportunities presented by global online networks.

You鈥檝e written that too many teachers are 鈥渦n-Googleable.鈥� What do you mean by that and why does it matter?

What I mean is that too few teachers have a visible presence on the Web. The primary reason this matters is that the kids in our classrooms are going to be Googled鈥攖hey鈥檙e going to be searched for on the Web鈥攐ver and over again. That鈥檚 just the reality of their lives, right? So they need models. They need to have adults who know what it means to have a strong and appropriate search portfolio鈥擨 call it the 鈥淕-portfolio.鈥� But right now鈥攁nd this is my ongoing refrain鈥攖here鈥檚 no one teaching them how to learn and share with these technologies. There鈥檚 no one teaching them about the nuances involved in creating a positive online footprint. It鈥檚 all about what not to do instead of what they should be doing.

The second thing is that, if you want to be part of an extended learning network or community, you have to be findable. And you have to participate in some way. The people I learn from on a day-to-day basis are Googleable. They鈥檙e findable, they have a presence, they鈥檙e participating, they鈥檙e transparent. That鈥檚 what makes them a part of my learning network. If you鈥檙e not out there鈥攊f you鈥檙e not transparent or findable in that way鈥擨 can鈥檛 learn with you.

Why do you think many teachers are not out there on the Web?

I think it鈥檚 a huge culture shift. Education by and large has been a very closed type of profession. 鈥淛ust let me close my doors and teach鈥濃�攜ou hear that refrain all the time. I鈥檝e had people come up to me after presentations and say, 鈥淲ell, I鈥檓 not putting my stuff up on the Web because I don鈥檛 want anyone to take it and use it.鈥� And I say, 鈥淏ut that鈥檚 the whole point.鈥� I love what , an instructional technology professor at Brigham Young University, says: 鈥淲ithout sharing, there is no education.鈥� And it鈥檚 true. We really have to be鈥攐r at least should be鈥攕haring our stuff freely, and in doing so making new connections and working in these communities and networks that can really enhance our own learning. That鈥檚 just what the world looks like right now. But it鈥檚 just a very different kind of culture and approach to learning than has traditionally prevailed鈥攁nd still prevails鈥攊n schools. A lot of educators just don鈥檛 see the opportunities.

What could a school administrator do to help teachers make that shift? Say you were a principal? What would you do?

Well, first of all, I would be absolutely the best model that I could be. I would definitely share my own thoughts, my own experiences, and my own reflections on how the environment of learning is changing. I would be very transparent in my online learning activity and try to show people in the school that it鈥檚 OK, that it has value. I think it鈥檚 very hard to be a leader around these types of changes without modeling them.

Secondly, I would try to build a school culture where sharing is just a normal part of what we do and where we understand the relevance of this global exchange of ideas and information to what we do in the classroom. It鈥檚 not like coming in and saying, 鈥淥K, everybody has to start a blog tomorrow.鈥� We have to understand how being a part of these every day interactions that go beyond school walls have value in terms of how we help kids understand the world as it鈥檚 currently constructed.

You鈥檝e written about 鈥渘etwork literacy鈥� as one of the key 21st-century skills. What does that entail?

The way I define it is that students should be able to create, navigate, and grow their own personal learning networks in safe, effective, and ethical ways. It鈥檚 really about the ability to engage with people around the world in these online networks, to take advantage of learning opportunities that are not restricted to a particular place and time, and to be conversant with the techniques and methodologies involved in doing this. It鈥檚 really something that looks profoundly different from what currently happens in classrooms.

So how do schools teach this? Are there some that are doing it effectively?

I think there are some, but there aren鈥檛 many. And again, it comes back to teachers being able to model it and understand it鈥攁nd ultimately to infuse it into the curriculum effectively.

The schools that are beginning to kind of get it often make the mistake of then making it a unit somewhere. You know, they put together this 鈥渋nformation literacy鈥� unit, and they think that they can kind of check that box. But this is not a unit we鈥檙e talking about. It鈥檚 a cultural shift in the way we do things. It鈥檚 a different way of teaching and learning. I think that even our 1st, 2nd, and 3rd grade curricula should be looked at again, and we should be asking where we can begin to instill these kinds of skills and literacies, in ways that are age appropriate obviously. Of course, we have to be balanced about this. We don鈥檛 want students spending the entire day online. But ultimately, kids are going to have to have these skills when they leave us, and right now, by and large, we鈥檙e just kind of crossing our fingers and saying, 鈥淕ood luck with that. Hope you got it, because we can鈥檛 deal with it right now.鈥�

What do you say to the argument that kids are already pretty technologically savvy? I mean, they鈥檙e already out there on and . So why should schools be focusing on this instead of areas where they鈥檙e lacking鈥攍ike content knowledge?

Well, I think when people talk about kids being 鈥渄igital natives,鈥� it鈥檚 a real disservice鈥攂ecause it suggests that kids are just somehow born with these abilities to use these technologies well. And that鈥檚 not the case. You鈥檙e right, kids today have much less fear around technology鈥攁nd they can pick up the basics right away. But they still don鈥檛 know how to learn with these technologies, or how to connect with others from a learning standpoint as opposed to a social standpoint.

There was a MacArthur Foundation report a couple of years ago called 鈥�,鈥� and it distinguished between two different ways that kids are using these online tools. The one way is the social side鈥擣acebook, texting, that type of stuff. And then there鈥檚 this other way that they called interest-based. An example of that would be, if you鈥檙e really into a 1972 Camaro, say, you can find other people online who are into that as well, and you can learn with them how to restore yours. It鈥檚 those types of interactions that are a little more nuanced鈥攂ecause you don鈥檛 know who these people are and you鈥檙e trying to get complex information. So you鈥檙e trying to edit your contacts, you鈥檙e trying to get context for who they are, you鈥檙e trying to figure out what you can get from the learning interaction, or if there are better options, or if you need to supplement it in some way. Then you need to synthesize the information. That鈥檚 where kids need help. That鈥檚 the part where they鈥檙e not as good as we are or at least should be鈥攚hen it comes to discerning what information is good and what information isn鈥檛 and who they should be interacting with. They鈥檙e not as good at assessing those critical pieces. That鈥檚 where they really need us.

OK, but how do you respond to the more traditional perspective that says, 鈥淗ey, that鈥檚 great, but kids can fix up Camaros after school. In school, they need academic knowledge.鈥�

I just think that we have for so long looked at education as this linear, everybody-does-the-same-thing-in-the-same-way process that it鈥檚 really difficult for us to think about education in other, more personalized ways鈥攊n ways that let kids learn math or engineering in the context of fixing a Camaro. Or that let kids learn English and writing in the context of what they鈥檙e passionate about. I realize it鈥檚 somewhat of a stretch鈥攊t鈥檚 a hard thing to envision. To be totally honest, it鈥檚 a hard thing for me to wrap my brain around, in terms of how we get there. But I think we鈥檙e at a point where we really need to think about not just reforming education but transforming it. That鈥檚 not to say that we shouldn鈥檛 have teachers and classrooms and schools, but the interactions that happen just need to be really, really different鈥攂ecause the world is just such a different place right now, with everything we have access to. You know, when I think about my own kids, I have no doubt that the best teachers they鈥檙e going to have in their lives are the ones that they find, not the ones their schools give to them. And that to me is a huge shift in the way we think about the role of educators in kids鈥� lives. And I think that kind of captures a piece of how differently we have to think about this.

There鈥檚 a great book called by Allan Collins and Richard Halverson. For me, these guys absolutely peg it. They talk about how we went from a kind of apprenticeship model of education in the early 19th century to a more industrialized, everybody-does-the-same-thing model in the 20th century. And now we鈥檙e moving into what they call a 鈥渓ifelong learning鈥� model鈥攚hich is to say that learning is much more fluid and much more independent, self-directed, and informal. That concept鈥攖hat we can learn in profound new ways outside the classroom setting鈥攑oses huge challenges to traditional structures of schools, because that鈥檚 not what they were built for.

You鈥檝e said that schools need to emphasize learning over knowledge? What did you mean by that?

Well, let me be clear: I鈥檓 not saying that we don鈥檛 need knowledge in order to learn well. But right now, that鈥檚 the total emphasis. It鈥檚 all about what we know鈥攖hat鈥檚 basically what we assess, right? I look at my kids鈥� tests all the time鈥攊t鈥檚 just factual stuff. You know, 鈥淲hat was the third ship that Columbus sailed?鈥� I can鈥檛 stand it, because it doesn鈥檛 have any relevance or any bearing on anything that they鈥檙e going to do in their lives. But they have to spend a lot of time on it, because if they don鈥檛 get that test answer right, then the school looks bad on the state assessment. It鈥檚 just so screwed up. I get how it made sense 50 years ago. Maybe 30 years ago. But I don鈥檛 get it now, when my daughter could pull out her phone to find the answer in two seconds. It鈥檚 just silly.

So, I think we need to focus more on developing the learning process鈥攍ooking at how kids collaborate with others on a problem, how they exercise their critical thinking skills, how they handle failure, and how they create. We have to be willing to put kids鈥攁nd assess kids鈥攊n situations and contexts where they鈥檙e really solving problems and we鈥檙e looking not so much at the answer but the process by which they try to solve those problems. Because those are the types of skills they鈥檙e going to need when they leave us, when they go to college or wherever else. At least I think so. And I don鈥檛 think I鈥檓 alone in that.

What鈥檚 your reaction to recent arguments, such as in recent Nicholas Carr鈥檚 book , to the effect that the Web and other digital technologies are diminishing our attention spans and our capacity for deep, focused thinking? Are you concerned about a potentially negative effect of digital immersion on kids鈥� intellectual development? I mean, you鈥檙e a former English teacher. Are you concerned about kids鈥� ability to read deeply?

A little bit. But I don鈥檛 worry about the impact of technology so much as I worry about us not giving kids relevant stuff to read in schools so they can develop those deep reading skills. It goes back to the whole core content thing. Look, I understand the value of the classics. And I get the reason a lot people are married to teaching them. But you know, let鈥檚 be real. If we want kids to be readers, we have to be willing at some point to give them stuff that they want to read. And we just don鈥檛 do that right now鈥攁gain, because it鈥檚 too difficult to individualize instruction in that way. We want everybody reading the same thing at the same time, because it鈥檚 much easier to organize and assess. You know, we all want kids to understand irony, and theme, and characterization, there鈥檚 no question about that. But the way we do that is what鈥檚 coming under some challenge right now.

I certainly want my own kids to read deeply鈥攁nd we do limit their time online. Not to set myself up as a paragon of good parenting, but a lot of this is a parenting issue, you know. We really encourage our kids to have down time where they鈥檙e reading books, or magazines, because I do think their brains need to be exercised in that way, and I think mine does, too. But the problem with what Nicholas Carr is saying is it鈥檚 just too much of a broad brush. As others have said in response to Carr, this is a real period of transition, and it鈥檚 natural for us to do some hand-wringing when we go through periods of transition, but it doesn鈥檛 necessarily mean that 50 years from now we鈥檙e going to be stupid because of the Internet. In many ways, I think the Internet has made us immensely smarter. But there鈥檚 no doubt that the ways we process and gather information is going through a big change. That can be scary, but we can鈥檛 just put the genie back in the bottle.

And from an English teacher鈥檚 standpoint, one of the big questions I have is, why is it that no one is teaching kids to read and write in hypertext in schools? I almost defy you to find me anyone who consciously teaches kids reading and writing in linked environments. Yet we know kids are in those environments and sometimes doing some wonderfully creative things. And we know they鈥檒l need to read and write online. You know what I鈥檓 saying? But educators would read Nicholas Carr鈥檚 book, and their response would be to ban hypertext. It just doesn鈥檛 make sense.

I guess the counter-argument would be, 鈥淲ell, shouldn鈥檛 they learn to write first before they鈥檙e writing in hypertext?鈥�

Oh, absolutely. I鈥檓 not suggesting you put 3rd graders into totally linked environments. Absolutely, kids should learn to read and write in traditional ways. But as they develop, they also should be helped to learn how to read and write in these new ways. But they鈥檙e not. Nobody teaches this stuff. No one in schools is saying, 鈥淲e need to understand this for our kids. We need to help them understand how to process information in digital formats and digital environments.鈥� And I just don鈥檛 understand that. Why isn鈥檛 it happening?

If you were a principal, in order to foster network literacy as you envision it, what kind of professional development would you provide to teachers?

I think that teachers need to have a very fundamental understanding of what these digital interactions look like, and the only way that you can do that is to pretty much immerse them in these types of learning environments over the long term. You can鈥檛 workshop it. That鈥檚 really been the basis of our work with Powerful Learning Practice: Traditional PD just isn鈥檛 going to work. It鈥檚 got to be long-term, job-embedded. So, if I鈥檓 a principal, I would definitely be thinking about how I could get my teachers into online learning communities, into these online networks. And again, from a leadership standpoint, I鈥檇 better be there first鈥攐r, if not first, at least be able to model it and talk about it.

But the other thing is, if you want to have workshops, well, that鈥檚 fine, go ahead and schedule a blogging workshop, but then the prerequisite for the workshop should be to learn how to blog. Then, when you come to the workshop, we鈥檒l talk about what blogging means rather than just how to do it. Seriously, there鈥檚 not one of these Web 2.0 tools or technologies that a teacher couldn鈥檛 learn on his or her own in under a half an hour with an online tutorial. There鈥檚 not one. That鈥檚 why Web 2.0 is as huge as it is鈥攂ecause there鈥檚 a very low barrier to entry. It鈥檚 not rocket science. So, imagine if we took all the time we use in workshops doing how-to and instead used that time to really go deep and to talk about what changes.

I think we鈥檝e become enablers for our teachers. We鈥檝e kind of built this whole professional development thing around the idea that 鈥淲e鈥檒l provide you with the workshops, and the curriculum, you just show up. We鈥檒l give you the computer, and teach you all the stuff you need to know, etc.鈥� I don鈥檛 want to sound too patronizing about it, but it鈥檚 just silly. What we have to do is build a professional culture that says, 鈥淟ook, you guys are learners, and we鈥檙e going to help you learn. We鈥檙e going to help you figure out your own learning path and practice.鈥� It鈥檚 like the old 鈥済ive a man a fish鈥� saying. You know, we鈥檙e giving away a lot of fish right now, but we鈥檙e not teaching anybody how to fish.

If you were starting a school right now that you hoped embodied these qualities, what traits would you look for in teachers?

Well, certainly I would make sure they were Googleable. I would want to see that they have a presence online, that they are participating in these spaces, and, obviously, that they are doing so appropriately. Also, I鈥檇 want to know that they have some understanding of how technology is changing teaching and learning and the possibilities that are out there.

I would also look for people who aren鈥檛 asking how, but instead are asking why. I don鈥檛 want people who say, 鈥淗ow do you blog?鈥� I want people who are ready to explore the question of, 鈥淲hy do you blog?鈥� That鈥檚 what we need. We need people who are willing to really think critically about what they鈥檙e doing. I鈥檓 not an advocate of using tools just for the sake of using tools. I think all too often you see teachers using a blog, but nothing really changes in terms of their instruction, because they don鈥檛 really understand what a blog is, what possibilities it presents. They know the how-to, but they don鈥檛 know the why-to. I鈥檇 look for teachers who are constantly asking why. Why are we doing this? What鈥檚 the real value of this? How are our kids growing in connection with this? How are our kids learning better? And I definitely would want learners. I would look for learners more than I would look for teachers per se.

In what ways do you expect schools鈥攐r the way education is delivered鈥攖o change over the next 20 years, and what should teachers be prepared for?

I don鈥檛 know that schools will change a whole heck of a lot in the short term, to be honest with you. I鈥檝e been out here screaming this stuff for the last seven years鈥攁nd a lot of folks have been at it for even longer鈥攁nd I feel like the change has been glacial. I mean, really glacial. You look at all the state budgets, and the whole Race to the Top thing, and the choices that people are making in terms of school policy and programs are totally regressive when it comes to technology and these global, on-demand learning environments. And the choices that they鈥檙e making about curriculum are totally counter to self-directed, self-organized, independent learning. We鈥檙e just tinkering.

So in the near term, as long as people are almost totally focused on test scores, I don鈥檛 think schools are going to change very much at all. But if they are, they鈥檙e going to have to understand that learning is mobile. They鈥檙e going to have to find ways to leverage the one-to-one technology environments they already have in most high schools right now, using the technology that kids have in their backpacks and pockets. And I think we have to move to a more inquiry-based, problem-solving curriculum, because it鈥檚 not about content as much anymore. It鈥檚 not about knowing this particular fact as much as it is about what you can do with it. What can you do with what you understand about chemistry? What can you do with what you鈥檝e learned about writing? What does it look like? Kids need to be working on solving real problems that mean something to them. The goal should be preparing kids to be entrepreneurs, problem-solvers who think critically and who鈥檝e worked with people from around the world. Their assessments should be all about the products they produced, the movements they鈥檝e created, the participatory nature of their education rather than this sort of spit-back-the-right-answer model we currently have. I mean, that just doesn鈥檛 make sense anymore.