The hole in the wall experiments are exactly the kind of thing I love to lean about. I wrote about them in 2006, what kids can learn.
Research finding from the Hole in the Wall foundation:
Over the 4 year research phase (2000-2004), HiWEL has extensively studied the impact of Learning Stations on children. Hole-in-the-Wall Learning Stations were installed in diverse settings, the impact of interventions was monitored and data was continually gathered, analyzed and interpreted. Rigorous assessments were conducted to measure academic achievement, behaviour, personality profile, computer literacy and correlations with socio-economic indicators.
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The sociometric survey found:
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The sociometric survey found:
- Self-organizing groups of children who organize themselves into Leaders (experts), Connectors and Novice groups.
- Leaders and Connectors identified seem to display an ability to connect with and teach other users.
- Key leaders on receiving targeted intervention, play a key role in bringing about a “multiplier effect in learning” within the community.
- Often girls are seen to take on the role of Connector, who initiates younger children and siblings (usually novices with little or no exposure to computers) and connects them to the leaders in the group
I believe traditional education is helpful. I believe people are “wired” to learn. They want to learn. We need to create environments that let them learn. We need to avoid crushing the desire to learn (stop de-motivating people).
If you want to get right to talking about the hole in the wall experiments, skip to the 8 minute mark.
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What a great idea. I agree that people are “wired” to learn.
I’d be more apt to say that children are wired to learn. Some adults i know seem ot have had that wiring torn out of their heads along the way.
Great video there, and it was very informative.
The finds of this research should be a boost to the much marginalized girl child, particularly in developing countries like Kenya.
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People learn because they are curious to know things. But sticking to usual system is something I find monotonous. We need some changes in the system for the good obviously.
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