Teaching is about conveying a way of thinking by Jon Udell.
From the post:
As I build out the elmcity network, launching calendar hubs in towns and cities around the country, I’ve been gathering examples of excellent web thinking. In Ann Arbor’s public schools are thinking like the web I noted that the schools in that town — and most particularly the Slauson Middle School — are Doing It Right with respect to online calendars. How, I wondered, does that happen? How does a middle school figure out a solution that eludes most universities, theaters, city governments, nightclubs, museums, and other organizations with calendars of interest to the public?
[The Slauson Middle School principal, Chris Curtis, replied to Udell.]
I agree with the notion that the basic principles of computer science should be generalized more broadly across the curriculum. In many ways, teaching computer and technology skills courses absent a meaningful application of them is ineffective and silly. We wouldn’t teach driver’s education and not let students drive. We don’t teach a “pencil skills class” in which we learn the skills for using this technology tool without an immediate opportunity to apply the skills and then begin to consider and explore the many ways that the pencil and writing change how we organize, perceive, and interact with our world.
I really like the “pencils skills class” example, even though I can think of several readers who may say it applies to some of my writing. 😉 And they are probably right, at least in part. I have a definite preference for the theoretical side of things.
To usefully combine theory with praxis is the act of teaching.