By Patrick Mitchell, Daily Gamecock Univ. of South Carolina
USC recently announced a plan to move courses, especially freshman-level classes, to the online sphere. Approximately 165 classes were offered online at the start of Spring 2012, and this number is expected to increase in coming years. I applaud this initiative, and I think this move provides a unique opportunity to reevaluate the way education is conducted, employing what we actually know about how people learn — instead of attempting to bludgeon students with an outdated system. Educational psychologists have long understood the complex nature of discourse and discussion in shaping our views of reality. Jean Piaget’s view of learners gaining knowledge through their peers, with stages keenly placed by the teacher, paved the way for the current models of developmental psychology, which place immense value on the peer as a source of learning. One possible effect of this push toward online classes could be the increased use of social media in education.
http://www.dailygamecock.com/viewpoints/item/3667-online-courses-favor-todays-resources
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