The Opposite of Compulsion is Not Freedom but Communion

In the article "The Old Revolution," Michael Wesch makes a strong claim that the new pedagogical push for 21st century technological skills is not a fad.  He is directly answering the arguments made by Jay Mathews in a piece he wrote for The Washington Post: "The Latest Doomed Pedagogical Fad: 21st-Century Skills."

I tend to agree with Wesch not only based on my own experiences in teaching for the past four years.  His argument is simply stronger than Mathews'.

Mathews has his heart in the right place.  He makes it clear in the article that he cares about teaching and has some great points about the importance of relationships in the classroom.  From what I've heard from veteran teachers, there's a new fad in teaching every few years.  He has a point there.  However, his article exemplifies exactly what Wesch is trying to avoid.

Mathews is writing for the Washingtonpost.com, yet doesn't link to any other articles to back up his reasoning.  There aren't any photos or graphics.  It's not eye-catching and very dull.  It's almost like he's still writing for the print version of The Washington Post, and we all know where the newspaper industry is headed.  My students would look at the article and simply click out of the tab.

The last real issue I have with Mathews is his lack of alternatives.  What else should we be doing?

Why is Wesch more on point, then?  He simply seems more in tune to the changing of times.

He points out that 'scientists overwhelmingly noted that it was not the content that mattered.  What mattered was that students learn how to think.'  This seems to be, from my direct experiences, the most important aspect of teaching.  I see more of a change in students when they start thinking differently and more critically.  Teaching the novel Night this past year, for example, changed the way several of my students looked at life.

Wesch continues to point out that 'Our economy is stagnating, making it difficult to implement broad-scale changes.  And there is a solid and entrenched "back to basics" movement to counter our own, of which the article by Jay Mathews is just one example.  The idea of a 'back to basic' movement sends shivers down my spine.  I was a freshman in high school ten years ago.  The amount that has changed over those years in youth society is staggering.  There was no Facebook, students didn't have cell phones, and my parents still had dial-up internet!  To deny that there needs to be more of a focus on 21st century skills is just baffling.  Step foot into a classroom for the time in between classes and, guaranteed, 2 out of 3 students will be checking or playing on their phones.  It's incredible to watch how important the digital world is to students nowadays.

My favorite quote from the Wesch piece was from Mauriece Freedman when explaining Martin Buber's educational philosophy.  He stated that, when we change things around, it's not going to cause chaos.  Rather, "The opposite of compulsion is not freedom but communion..." (1955).  [Martin Buber: The Life of Dialogue, by Martin Freedman, 1955]

Clearly, we need to work together more to reach a better place in education, rather than lament the good ol' days and slow the process of change.