I have just started to read Too Big To Know. Although I am only 20 pages into the book, it has already had a profound impact on me. The book discusses how people and society make sense of all of the data that we have in the world. Humans have spent our entire existence making sense of data and attempting to turn that data into useful and practical information. For thousands of years data came to us through experience and the environment. Writing (either on cave walls or using the printing press) changed the dynamic of data gathering somewhat. When data is written down, there is a filter placed between the person getting the data and people receiving the data. A good question for the person receiving the information is "what am I not getting?" because they are only exposed to the written word. Think about our recent history. Newspapers, publishing houses and other media drove the data that we use to create information. The author contends that the use of the internet and social media makes data more accessible and creates more information available to more people. With so much information and data humans must now rely on each other more than ever to gather the data and turn that data into useful information. Thus the author's comment that the room is the smartest "person". The collective knowledge and intelligence of everyone in the room allows connections to be made across disciplines and expertise that cannot occur with just one person trying to make sense of the data.
I believe this has incredible implications for education. I am very happy the Board intuitively recognized the power of human networks and connectivity by stressing the importance of virtual learning in their non-negotiable goals. Schools must prepare students to collaborate with colleagues, friends and adversaries so they can gather as much data about an issue as possible, but more importantly, help each other in "sense making" for that data. The days of textbook driven curriculum's (where the textbook companies are the final arbiter of what needs to be known by our students) are gone. Moving forward, schools will help students construct knowledge with the help of each other and with the assistance of the teachers in the school.
After 20 pages, you're able to recommend this book because it has had a profound influence? Have you finished the book? I found it to be a bit scattered, and I don't agree with the author's assertion that people are getting smarter because of the mass of data we have available to us. Quite the opposite, I find people are getting dumber -- they don't need to LEARN anything because they can look up an answer instantly, whether or not it is correct. I also disagree with you; the purpose of a school is not to "...prepare students to...gather as much data about an issue as possible...[and] help each other in 'sense making' for that data." Gather as much data as possible? Students would be overwhelmed at that prospect; they need to learn how to limit their data to reputable, proven sources. The purpose of a school is to provide students the skills and abilities to read, organize, comprehend, evaluate, analyze, compare, contrast, solve, predict, critique, classify, etc. Those are skills taught in a traditional classroom with real textbooks and trade books, not computer-accessed data.
ReplyDeleteHumans sharing information is not a bad thing, and does not restrict learning. The learning we do in school is not to teach us "how to use the Pauli Exclusion Principle in Chemistry," or "how to find the derivative in Calculus." You seem to agree with me on this point.
DeleteHowever, why would one need to analyze data if you are given a scenario in a textbook which the answer is given to you in the book? The real world today features information on the internet, where you need to sort out the information. By the high-school level, you should be able to sort through this data, and it is important to be able to learn with modern sources.
You are suggesting that the school provides such a plain and organized source. That is not teaching the student how to limit her or himself, but just encouraging that what is given is correct.
(And seriously about the book? He got inspiration from the first few pages to write this post, not writing a book review.)
I agree with Tom. In today's fast paced world, employers are less concerned with what you know (depending on the job) and more concerned with how efficiently you can gather and analyze information and how well you work collaboratively with others. I'm in college right now and all of my classes are focused on working together in groups to expand what we learn. Also, it's proven that the absolute worst way to learn is through a traditional lecture class. The best way to learn is through collaborative work.
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