Image Source: EdX
bubbles or crises that nearly collapsed the world's economy, like the one that took place in 2008, there is a real crisis of innovation.
In terms of Education, perhaps, we should consider examples from people like Steve Jobs, Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg, and many others who have not finished their university education. They most likely abandoned their studies because it clearly did not fit their interests and vision of the future. Some of them might have thought it was a waist of their time dealing with a system that did not reward actual learning, but rather simply honored obtaining a particular grade. Or they might have just decided that it was time to face the real world ahead of time.
Experts agree that nowadays most people who need to look up a word or the definition of something significant to their everyday lives commonly use Wikipedia substantially more than other sources. That is why this online encyclopedia is the largest and most popular in the world. Based on a recent announcement about security within Wikimedia, the idea that encrytped https browsing for all their projects will be a default option only if users are logged in, seems especially relevant to them when they realize it comes with a persistent feeling that someone seems to be particularly
interested in finding out what they are focused on learning, weather that knowledge later might be used appropriately or not. It remains to be confirmed, and it is no surprise that users could remain skeptical about, whether the encryption is actually going to take place when they log in.
Wikipedia behaves in a different fashion from other online reference platforms like Merriam-Webster because the free internet service supported by Wikimedia Foundation includes all relevant definitions and words that anybody might need. Merriam-Webster, on the other hand, has a different idea. According to Peter Sokolowsky, editor at large of Ask the Editor at the dictionary company's dot.com site, "We don't want to add a word that will quickly drop from use." That alone is a big difference to consider, plus Wikipedia is completely free of charge.
When applying Innovation concepts to Education, the same principle taught in the book can be used, and academic programs at Universities can be modified to suit students' needs, the same way personalized medicine does for patients. The book talks about eradicating the idea that Innovation is a linear process, or a "straight-line affair that proceeds roughly as follows: discovery ---> invention ---> development ---> product ---> market ---> profit". Although widely believed, this linear picture does not convey how successful innovation occurs." Instead, the book affirms that "the work tends to be that of many individuals with complex information exchanges over a period of time." And that is precisely what can be achieved by the many collaborators giving and taking those online courses, but mainly sharing information and personal experiences that everyone could benefit from.
For the purpose of this discussion, in previous posts I have talked about MOOCs, or Massive Online Open Courses, and have given enthusiastic kudos to initiatives like Edx and others currently run by institutions having a global impact on distance learning. This seems to be a good start in the right direction towards the goal of real educational innovation. Some schools, in fact, are actually accepting new students who have completed those courses into regular classes, or have given them credit towards a degree for having taken them. By doing so, just about anybody with an internet connection is now able to take courses at a time that fits their own schedules and lifestyles, without having to sacrifice family or social life in the process, and at least for now the courses are free of charge, even though this could change at some point.
In any case, Edx courses are all securely encrypted, but the organizers make one thing clear within the context of their rules, and you must agree to them by pressing the confirmation button. If you have any original ideas or projects for which you might want to seek a patent or claim a copyright later, it is not a good idea to share them as required assignments. In other words, if you turn them in as homework to the course administrators, or share them with anybody having anything to do with the course or not, you might not be able to get such patent for those ideas or projects in the future because the university will have the right to claim them.
As a case study in terms of innovation, I have come to the conclusion that out of the possible areas suitable of being radically modified, Education could be the first one to get the green light. Following that line of thinking, I propose a concept that some people in Academia will not agree with, especially those at elitist institutions, and that is to go one step forward from the MOOCs and create something called the Self-managed or Customized academic program towards obtaining Bachelors, Masters or even PhD degrees. This program would use academic materials and information from many different sources, including other universities'. In short, students could take only, but not limited to, the courses that really interest them at universities willing to offer those options, and they could complete a program and get credit for the required work load to get a diploma.
As a case study in terms of innovation, I have come to the conclusion that out of the possible areas suitable of being radically modified, Education could be the first one to get the green light. Following that line of thinking, I propose a concept that some people in Academia will not agree with, especially those at elitist institutions, and that is to go one step forward from the MOOCs and create something called the Self-managed or Customized academic program towards obtaining Bachelors, Masters or even PhD degrees. This program would use academic materials and information from many different sources, including other universities'. In short, students could take only, but not limited to, the courses that really interest them at universities willing to offer those options, and they could complete a program and get credit for the required work load to get a diploma.
An example would be to take the most interesting courses and to get those credits recognized towards a particular degree, such as Design. Some students are so good at designing that they only need to get some specific training in complementary areas because, for the most part, they already have the skills, or have taken the important subjects on their own somewhere else. Some of the technical courses that are required at traditional academic programs end up becoming obsolete after a while anyway, so why invest the time in a subject that you are not going to enjoy? Although some institutions will be more in favor of doing this than others, such a move would affect the entire educational system in a way that could advance closer to the extent of innovation necessary to empower students so they could really improve their lives by spending personal time doing something enjoyable as part of their curricular activities.
Although I consider Wikiversity a great idea, I am not talking about this Wikimedia project or anything similar because it supports learning communities by offering them a series of tutorials or courses outside the structure of formal content. The idea of my particular initiative is to create personalized educational content and programs within a considerably formal content. However, this content should be constantly modified to fit people's real needs.
Copyright Esteban Dobronsky 2013 © All Rights Reserved
