The Future Of Education: Leave Them To Their Own Devices

Previously published on "This Is The Awful Truth".

Leave Them To Their Own Devices

The idea is to be able to provide a full and effective education to everyone, while bringing the costs toward zero. We can do that right now, with things that exist right now. This is just a crude outline, and I'm certain that more intelligent parties than myself can do better, but give it a glance and decide for yourself. If you're feeling particularly froggy, try it out.

The first building block would be our government's Universal Service Fund, which is a direct product of the Telecommunications Act of 1996. The act was a means of deregulation so that media cross-ownership could become a thing. The fund itself was intended as a means for access to better telecommunications at reasonable costs in areas of public interest, such as classrooms and libraries and hospitals. The monies collected from consumers of telecommunications services are not technically a tax, except that the cost is being passed on to us by most, if not all, services in order to cover their costs of compliance, so even if you recognize the benefit to the greater good, if you think of it as a tax still, no one should blame you. The most notable of the benefits of this fund would probably be the 'Obamaphone', which is a benefit of the Lifeline program, which actually started under Reagan, funnily enough. In conjunction, something similar is being done with broadband service called the National Broadband Plan, which when it goes into effect fully by 2020, will not only get the devices in the hands of people who lack and need them most, but will also get them connected to a reliable internet, at least tentatively. The cost for our services will no doubt go up again, but if utilized properly, can eliminate other drastic costs.

The second building block could either be a simple E-reader, such as a Nook or a Kindle, or perhaps a mini-tablet or Net-book. In reality, you could do everything I'm about to talk about on virtually all smartphones manufactured today. All inexpensive via the USF if they're dedicated to the 'greater good', and all about to be connected to some broadband, affordable ethernet, or whispernet, or cloudnet, or whatever, via the NBP. Not only can you store or obtain every textbook you'll ever need in this one device or account, but these devices, generally speaking, whichever way you go, are cheaper than most textbooks. You're also not stuck with just text either; adding audio or visual media is easy, as are hyperlinks that can take you to other points of interest on the internet. Further, with the appropriate app or program you could highlight a section of text and teleconference with someone else to assist with the material, which is simply the digital form of tutoring, not hindered by geographical location or distance. Add in a notepad feature and highlighting and you do away with the need for paper and physical notebooks as well. Consider also, the elimination of the manufacture, storage and transport costs of all those physical books as compared to one device with infinitely more utility.

The third building block, though not a necessity for even this layout if an individual has or can use existing technology, would be the One Laptop Per Child program. Inexpensive laptops, and tablets, created solely for the purpose of education, and distributed thus far in two ways; sold directly, and not for profit, to governments for distribution, and as part of a charity campaign that Amazon assisted, where the buyer would buy one, some other recipient got one at no cost and the entire thing was tax deductible.

The fourth building block would be the actual education, regardless of teacher involvement, age, geographic location or socioeconomic status. This means not only the material but how it is used. The first place we want to look is Khan Academy, a not for profit, which is not only a website, but has apps for Droid and iphones already as well as a complete standalone system where a coach can monitor an entire classroom's data at a glance. The basic setup is that a lesson is taught via a video, where the person can watch once or a hundred times if they need to, which is followed by practice sessions and the ability to self test; meaning if, per se, you get ten in a row correct, you must know the material, and if you can't, go back and either rewatch the lesson or practice some more until you're consistent. Several very useful elements present themselves here. 

First, in the spirit of self determination, the individual can go at their own pace. If someone is a natural at a subject or just quick to learn, they won't be held back by others who are not so gifted. Inversely, if someone is having trouble with some lesson or skill, they won't be forced to move forward and keep up so that they might reach that same understanding in their own time. The latter is where we get the notion of 'Swiss cheese learning', where for instance, a student fails to grasp an early lesson in a subject which most likely will negatively impact their understanding of at least some future lessons, but they're moved along with the rest of their classroom platoon anyway. 

Second, a teacher, a tutor, a mentor or a parent can monitor the student's progress unobtrusively, until, using their best judgment, they see clearly that it's time to step in and assist. Having someone hover over you, ready to pounce on every mistake as they judge you relentlessly might be great preparation for the military, but it doesn't allow a person to be creative, it more than likely crushes self esteem and the will to excel, simply for the sake of excellence, as well as defeating the natural impulses to be a problem solver in the first place.

Third, this works almost completely on auto-pilot. Education no longer has to be hindered by the schedules of bureaucracies or the calendars of those not involved in any personal way with the individual receiving the education.

If we add the idea of MOOCs (Massive Open Online Courses) to what Khan Academy is doing, the potential for what education an individual can receive is becoming truly limitless. While there will certainly be premium elements at substantial prices available because of the names attached to them, you have to consider what is available, even now, at absolutely no cost or very low costs and consider what an individual can really do with resources at their fingertips. Here's a list of MOOCs to get you started; see what you can piece together for yourself.

The fifth building block would be the immersion in the desired field, whether through tour or educational videos, webinars, or simulations such as can be created with engines and applications like Second Life. This is how the individual knows what they're working towards, as well as the reminder of why to persevere when things seem the hardest. All it takes is one more building block for the individual to make the most informed and best choices for themself.

The sixth building block would be the integration to that previous system of immersion by the constantly updating employment projections and occupational outlook provided by our Bureau of Labor Statistics. This is where you prepare for the unknown, by constantly updated information pertinent to the interests of the individual. There is also where you look to see where else your skills could be used besides a single main interest.

There you have it. A virtually unlimited education, tailor made to the individual, for virtually any academic pursuit, with a cost close to zero.

The challenge for you right now is to try this for yourself, imagining what it would be like if it were actually coordinated, and then try to argue that our present public system is better.

I look forward to hearing your results.