這期的標(biāo)題是 - Together, technology and teachers can revamp schools
How the science of learning can get the best out of edtech
如若教師與科技牽手吃谣，學(xué)校將因此而改變
學(xué)習(xí)該如何運(yùn)用最好的教育技術(shù)
IN 1953 B.F. Skinner visited his daughter’s maths class. The Harvard psychologist found every pupil learning the same topic in the same way at the same speed. A few days later he built his first “teaching machine”, which let children tackle questions at their own pace. By the mid-1960s similar gizmos were being flogged by door-to-door salesmen. Within a few years, though, enthusiasm for them had fizzled out.
1953年，B.F. Skinner去參觀了他女兒的數(shù)學(xué)課酥诽。這位哈佛的心理學(xué)家發(fā)現(xiàn)淮逻，每個(gè)學(xué)生都在以相同的方式琼懊，相同的速度學(xué)習(xí)著相同的內(nèi)容。幾天之后爬早，他就打造了他的第一個(gè)“教學(xué)機(jī)器”哼丈，它可以讓孩子按照自己的步調(diào)來處理問題。到了60年代中期筛严，這種類似的小發(fā)明很是受那種上門推銷的銷售人員追捧醉旦。但幾年之后，這種熱情就漸漸地消失了
Since then education technology (edtech) has repeated the cycle of hype and flop, even as computers have reshaped almost every other part of life. One reason is the conservatism of teachers and their unions. But another is that the brain-stretching potential of edtech has remained unproven.
在那之后桨啃，即便是計(jì)算機(jī)幾乎改變了我們生活里除教育之外所有的東西车胡，教育科技也總是火一陣兒冷一陣兒。其中一個(gè)原因自然是教師以及教師公會(huì)的保守优幸，但另一方面吨拍，教育科技對(duì)于大腦潛能開發(fā)至今也沒有強(qiáng)力的證據(jù)褪猛。
Today, however, Skinner’s heirs are forcing the sceptics to think again (see article). Backed by billionaire techies such as Mark Zuckerberg and Bill Gates, schools around the world are using new software to “personalise” learning. This could help hundreds of millions of children stuck in dismal classes—but only if edtech boosters can resist the temptation to revive harmful ideas about how children learn. To succeed, edtech must be at the service of teaching, not the other way around.
然而今天网杆，Skinner的繼承者們正在讓那些持懷疑態(tài)度的人重新看待這個(gè)問題。 受到科技界億萬富豪比如馬克扎克伯格和比爾蓋茨等人的影響伊滋，全球有很多學(xué)校正在用軟件來個(gè)性化學(xué)習(xí)碳却。這可以幫助億萬處于困境的學(xué)生。只要教育科技的推動(dòng)者們可以抵住那些對(duì)孩子學(xué)習(xí)不利想法的誘惑笑旺。要獲得成功昼浦，教育科技必須服務(wù)于教學(xué)本身，而不是反過來筒主。
Pencils down
The conventional model of schooling emerged in Prussia in the 18th century. Alternatives have so far failed to teach as many children as efficiently. Classrooms, hierarchical year-groups, standardised curriculums and fixed timetables are still the norm for most of the world’s nearly 1.5bn schoolchildren.
放下鉛筆
傳統(tǒng)的教育模式始于18世紀(jì)的普魯士关噪，迄今為止在大批量教學(xué)效率方面被證明是最好的鸟蟹。教室，分年級(jí)使兔，標(biāo)準(zhǔn)化的課程建钥，固定的課程表仍舊是當(dāng)今世界15億學(xué)生的標(biāo)準(zhǔn)模式
Too many do not reach their potential. In poor countries only a quarter of secondary schoolchildren acquire at least a basic knowledge of maths, reading and science. Even in the mostly rich countries of the OECD about 30% of teenagers fail to reach proficiency in at least one of these subjects.
有太多的學(xué)生潛能沒有被開發(fā)。在貧窮國(guó)家虐沥， 只有四分之一的中學(xué)生能學(xué)到基本的數(shù)學(xué)熊经，閱讀和科學(xué)知識(shí)。即便是在經(jīng)合組織最發(fā)達(dá)的國(guó)家欲险，也有30%的年輕人在剛才這幾個(gè)項(xiàng)目中至少有一個(gè)是弱項(xiàng)
That share has remained almost unchanged over the past 15 years, during which billions have been spent on IT in schools. By 2012 there was one computer for every two pupils in several rich countries. Australia had more computers than pupils. Handled poorly, devices can distract. A Portuguese study from 2010 found that schools with slow broadband and a ban on sites such as YouTube had better results than high-tech ones.
在過去十五年里镐依，這種情況一直沒有得到改變，哪怕是學(xué)校在IT上數(shù)十億的投資也無濟(jì)于事天试。在2012年以前槐壳，富裕國(guó)家的學(xué)生可以做到兩個(gè)人用一臺(tái)電腦。澳大利亞的電腦比學(xué)生都多喜每。但使用不當(dāng)?shù)脑捄暝粒@些設(shè)備反而會(huì)讓人分心。一項(xiàng)從2010年開始的葡萄牙的研究顯示灼卢，網(wǎng)速慢或者是禁用類似youtube這種網(wǎng)站的學(xué)校绍哎，比那些條件更好的學(xué)校的教學(xué)效果反而要好
What matters is how edtech is used. One way it can help is through bespoke instruction. Ever since Philip II of Macedon hired Aristotle to prepare his son Alexander for Greatness, rich parents have paid for tutors. Reformers from S?o Paulo to Stockholm think that edtech can put individual attention within reach of all pupils. American schools are embracing the model most readily. A third of pupils are in a school district that has pledged to introduce “personalised, digital learning”. The methods of groups like Summit Public Schools, whose software was written for nothing by Facebook engineers, are being copied by hundreds of schools.
真正重要的是教育科技如何被使用。他可以幫助定制教學(xué)鞋真。自從馬其頓王國(guó)的菲利普二世雇傭了亞里士多德給他兒子當(dāng)老師后崇堰，富人都開始雇傭家庭教師。圣保羅到斯德哥爾摩的維新派認(rèn)為涩咖，教育科技可以有辦法使每一個(gè)學(xué)生都被照顧到海诲。美國(guó)是最快開始使用這個(gè)模式的。有三分之一的學(xué)生在學(xué)校里開始使用“個(gè)性的數(shù)字化學(xué)習(xí)”檩互。使用這個(gè)項(xiàng)目有Summit公校等特幔，這些軟件由Facebook的工程師義務(wù)提供，并被分發(fā)到上百個(gè)學(xué)校闸昨。
In India, where about half of children leave primary school unable to read a simple text, the curriculum goes over many pupils’ heads. “Adaptive” software such as Mindspark can work out what a child knows and pose questions accordingly. A recent paper found that Indian children using Mindspark after school made some of the largest gains in maths and reading of any education study in poor countries.
在印度蚯斯，這個(gè)一半的孩子小學(xué)畢業(yè)之后做不到閱讀簡(jiǎn)單課文的國(guó)家，這種課程正在開始被廣泛使用饵较。自適應(yīng)軟件比如Mindspark能夠識(shí)別出一個(gè)孩子知道多少拍嵌，從而提出相應(yīng)的問題。一篇最近的論文指出循诉，在所有貧窮國(guó)家的教育研究中横辆，課后使用Mindspark軟件的印度學(xué)生在數(shù)學(xué)和閱讀方面取得了最大的進(jìn)步。
The other way edtech can aid learning is by making schools more productive. In California schools are using software to overhaul the conventional model. Instead of textbooks, pupils have “playlists”, which they use to access online lessons and take tests. The software assesses children’s progress, lightening teachers’ marking load and giving them insight on their pupils. Saved teachers’ time is allocated to other tasks, such as fostering pupils’ social skills or one-on-one tuition. A study in 2015 suggested that children in early adopters of this model score better in tests than their peers at other schools.
教育科技帶來的另一個(gè)好處是可以讓學(xué)校更有效率茄猫。加利福尼亞的學(xué)校正在使用軟件來打破傳統(tǒng)模式狈蚤。學(xué)生們不再用課本困肩，而是用播放列表來代替。他們可以訪問在線課程并且參加測(cè)驗(yàn)脆侮。軟件會(huì)評(píng)估孩子的進(jìn)度僻弹，減輕教師批改作業(yè)的負(fù)擔(dān)，讓他們更全面的了解學(xué)生他嚷。教師節(jié)省下來的時(shí)間可以去做其他的工作蹋绽，例如培養(yǎng)學(xué)生的社交技能或者對(duì)他們進(jìn)行一對(duì)一輔導(dǎo)。2015年的一項(xiàng)研究顯示筋蓖，很早開始用這種模式學(xué)習(xí)的學(xué)生比其他學(xué)校的同齡人測(cè)試成績(jī)要好
Pay attention at the back
Such innovation is welcome. But making the best of edtech means getting several things right. First, “personalised learning” must follow the evidence on how children learn. It must not be an excuse to revive pseudoscientific ideas such as “l(fā)earning styles”: the theory that each child has a particular way of taking in information. Such nonsense leads to schemes like Brain Gym, an “educational kinesiology” programme once backed by the British government, which claimed that some pupils should stretch, bend and emit an “energy yawn” while doing their sums.
小心身后
這種創(chuàng)新當(dāng)然是好的卸耘。但是最大化教育科技的優(yōu)勢(shì)意味著要做對(duì)很多事情。首先粘咖，個(gè)性化的學(xué)習(xí)必須符合學(xué)生學(xué)習(xí)的實(shí)際情況蚣抗。他不能變成為了復(fù)興類似“學(xué)習(xí)風(fēng)格”這種偽科學(xué)的借口。這種理論認(rèn)為每個(gè)孩子都有他們獨(dú)特的接受訊息的方式瓮下。這種毫無意義的說法導(dǎo)致類似“健腦操"之類的誕生翰铡，這個(gè)運(yùn)動(dòng)技能學(xué)的項(xiàng)目居然還得到了英國(guó)政府的支持。認(rèn)為有些學(xué)生做算術(shù)的應(yīng)該做做拉伸讽坏，彎曲锭魔，打個(gè)哈欠之類會(huì)有幫助
A less consequential falsehood is that technology means children do not need to learn facts or learn from a teacher—instead they can just use Google. Some educationalists go further, arguing that facts get in the way of skills such as creativity and critical thinking. The opposite is true. A memory crammed with knowledge enables these talents. William Shakespeare was drilled in Latin phrases and grammatical rules and yet he penned a few decent plays. In 2015 a vast study of 1,200 education meta-analyses found that, of the 20 most effective ways of boosting learning, nearly all relied on the craft of a teacher.
有個(gè)不太重要的瞎話是說，孩子們根本不需要從事實(shí)或是老師那兒學(xué)習(xí)路呜，他們只需要google就可以了迷捧。一些教育學(xué)家甚至宣稱，事實(shí)對(duì)于類似創(chuàng)造性或批判性思維這樣的技能反而是起到妨礙作用的胀葱。但事情恰恰相反漠秋。記憶與知識(shí)的結(jié)合才能夠激發(fā)那些天賦。莎士比亞受過拉丁語和文法的訓(xùn)練抵屿，才寫出了那樣的戲劇庆锦。2015年，一項(xiàng)廣泛的針對(duì)1200例教育數(shù)據(jù)的分析發(fā)現(xiàn)轧葛，20個(gè)對(duì)推動(dòng)教育最有效的方式搂抒，都離不開老師在其中的精彩發(fā)揮
The second imperative is to make sure that edtech narrows, rather than widens, inequalities in education. Here there are grounds for optimism. Some of the pioneering schools are private ones in Silicon Valley. But many more are run by charter-school groups teaching mostly poor pupils, such as Rocketship and Achievement First—or Summit, where 99% of graduating pupils go on to university and laggards make the most progress relative to their peers in normal classes. A similar pattern can be observed outside America. In studies of edtech in India by J-PAL, a research group, the biggest beneficiaries are children using software to receive remedial education.
還有一件事勢(shì)在必行，那就是確保教育科技會(huì)縮小朝群，而不是放大教育的不平等現(xiàn)象燕耿。對(duì)此有些人持樂觀態(tài)度。硅谷一些私校在這方面走在了前面姜胖。但更多的是一些教授貧困學(xué)生的特許學(xué)校，比如Rocketship and Achievement First或是 Summit淀散。這些學(xué)校99%的畢業(yè)生都會(huì)去讀大學(xué)右莱。取得最大進(jìn)步反而是那些平常落后的學(xué)生蚜锨。我們可以在美國(guó)之外的地方也發(fā)現(xiàn)類似的事。J-PAL在印度的一項(xiàng)關(guān)于教育科技的研究發(fā)現(xiàn)慢蜓，最大的受益者其實(shí)是那些用軟件來進(jìn)行矯正教育的孩子們
Third, the potential for edtech will be realised only if teachers embrace it. They are right to ask for evidence that products work. But scepticism should not turn into Luddism. A good model is S?o Paulo, where teachers have welcomed Geekie, an adaptive-software company, into public schools.
最后亚再，只有當(dāng)老師們真正開始使用教育科技時(shí)，這項(xiàng)技術(shù)的潛能才會(huì)被發(fā)揮出來晨抡。他們完全有理由懷疑這東西是不是真的有用氛悬。但懷疑不應(yīng)該演化成對(duì)抗。一個(gè)很好的范例就是在圣保羅州耘柱，老師們都非常歡迎一家叫做Geekie的自適應(yīng)軟件公司在公校推廣如捅。
In 1984 Skinner called opposition to technology the “shame” of education. Given what edtech promises today, closed-mindedness has no place in the classroom.
1984年，Skinner把那些反對(duì)科技的人稱作是教育的恥辱调煎【登玻考慮到教育科技今天的成就，固化的思想在教室這種地方士袄，是沒有立足之地的
