"Housewives, policemen - everyone is suitable as a teacher," a contribution by the American computer scientist David Gelernter in the FAZ is of 8 February 2012, titled his plea for a cyber academy.Schools and universities would disappear and be replaced by net-based education systems and cyber courses. "Lectures are a relic from the Middle Ages, and the network-based online degrees at education5 is to sweep away." After the university as a leader would also secondary and primary schools eventually go that route. Although would incur high costs, but the benefits of just-establishing internet education predominate: Parents and students may choose from a variety of courses worldwide.
Even the image of the teacher is changing - metaphorically and practically: Children and teachers communicate via Internet video. "The child sends its work to the teacher, the teacher sends him back with his corrections, and the loop begins again. If it is necessary to address the child and teachers together, to set forth on the Internet a video link. "This" learning loops "are time-consuming and costly, but" fortunately, many adults have mastered the basic school curriculum successfully and can it operate as a teacher . "The criticism of teachers' associations and unions was self-righteous, after all, could also engineers, retired businessmen, housewives and police officers to read and write very well, and arithmetic. He continued: "Anyone who knows how to teach something that you can put together an Internet course."
For higher online degrees, interactive video lectures would be used. Students can pause at any time and ask questions that are answered by assistants. (One could also ask the professor a question, but that would last longer ..., Gelernter is a professor to know). The necessary software is already there. In addition, it still needed a handful of "apps" with which one can standardize the design of the courses. "Then anyone can produce an Internet course and offer it globally on the open market of cyberspace." There are also problems, such as the ever-growing range. But it beats Learned a leader as "Internet mentor" who is not only versed in the rapidly changing world of Internet courses, but also a vision of education and upbringing have. "Mentors are proposing to choose which courses to take, and keep an eye on the work of pupils and students." Although this could replace mentors pastors, ministers and rabbis, but "they are the children with the majestic tradition of Western art, science and combine erudition, moral, spiritual and religious thought "and would" replace to some extent "moral authority.
In addition, we would need probably more "objective entities" which certified that training programs are satisfactory and sufficient. This task would take initially universities, but even that would individually: "could the end be well-known personalities and organizations exhibiting at the basis of written and oral tests, separate completion certificate." Award in the final analysis, even individuals the statements: "By the time will then enter under the guidance of a prominent thinker completed an cyber-studies at the site of a Harvard or Oxford degree as a gold medal in higher education. "Today, let it be allowed that child to be" "," slaves of the Internet Internet addicts lost or are hopelessly bored without the devices. " Freed from this bondage the Internet Education System ". The average internet slave will find the network-based education as a natural and desirable" At least, David Gelernter describes his utopia or dystopia of school and education. Jürgen chewing commented in the newspaper as well as sober: "As a technologist thinks."
What Gelernter promoted here, is the caricature of (high) school or learning processes. Of course, learning is an individual process and can be technically supported, as the media, be it with text, pictures, books and audio-visual exhibits. So it is already at Comenius (see Huebner, Lit in the appendix). But learning is always and primarily a social process, a socialization process that can not be taught media and / or technical. Therefore also refers chewing on the sociologist Robert Dreeben, who observes in his book "What we learn in school", that is not the kind of knowledge was at the center, but role models, people watching, etc. The white of course, Gelernter, when he says: "The best learn if teachers and students are directly facing each other "in order, however, the personal contact to individual cases, to reduce certain subjects such as medicine or very young children -. and predict instead the video link between students and teachers via the Internet at primary school.Learning is of course also interact, but not primarily between man and man and machine or Medium) (both interactions not in the strict sense), but between people. Trained under the proposed reference to the existing technology, all social, psychological and physical aspects of learning. Children need teachers, other children, such as freedom and confidence. The younger people are, the more necessary. Anyone who thinks learning engineered, technically, not human, makes himself a propagandist of dehumanization.
When evaluating the empirical work on non-school adult and youth education policy of the last decade it became clear that although in practice results in relevant approaches are available, their depression and utilization is however limited due to various obstacles. The Beforschung of the field will only rarely carried out interdisciplinary, so that knowledge of individual sciences such as education or political science might be made mutually available.
In addition, the research priorities are dependent on the interests of most of the public sector funding bodies coming, financed most of the studies. This would be some questions that are particularly relevant to the everyday work of the institution of political education, rarely the subject of the investigation. Helle Becker therefore draws the conclusion that both resources and actors should be brought together more than before. A simultaneous integration of media, researchers and policy could lead to the research questions will be more oriented to the needs of practice and a coherent long-term effects research.
During the ensuing discussion, the attendees noted that a greater involvement of the individual carriers from Brandenburg is desirable, the limited human and financial resources that would allow but little. However, he added a stronger network for a continuous exchange of the support may be helpful to each other. Above all, the great carrier battle groups are more involved in research projects.After a hearty lunch Mrs. Becker went on to the second part of her presentation. The results of the study were very specific in focus now. She spoke about appropriate access and formats as well as the effects of political education. She also made arrangements for participation and obstacles one.