How the Internet can empower teachers
Back in the late '70s there was a wonderful PBS television show called "Connections" narrated by James Burke, a science historian who originated the program for the BBC. The show illustrated how various discoveries, scientific achievements, and even historical world events built off one another in an interconnected way.
If James Burke were still doing his TV show, I am convinced he would be talking about how the Internet, in particular broadband technology, has the potential to change the teaching profession. I'm not just talking about the obvious things such as computers in the classroom or cool software.
What excites me is the new, more-powerful role that broadband can play in empowering teachers. How can it do this?
The economics of the Internet can transform the way teaching is delivered. It used to be that the cost of delivering a great lesson used to be about $2. That's what it costs to burn a DVD. With the advent of broadband and the Internet revolution, the cost to send that same lecture now is about 1 cent. One penny!
The low cost of transmitting knowledge leads me to believe that we are at the very beginning of an explosion of knowledge. It's also going to change what it means to be a great teacher.
A case and point is Dolly Samson, a computer science professor at Hawaii Pacific University. A former Hawaii resident, she now lives in Thailand but continues to teach her highly rated courses online to students locally, in North America and in Europe.
We're already seeing the beginnings of this broadband revolution in Hawaii. Film maker and entrepreneur Edgy Lee is working on a new Hawaiian Internet TV network that will have an educational channel (among others) to provide great content and a venue for Hawaii teachers.
What's more, enterprising universities and even high school with centers of excellence can now fill up virtual classrooms of global scholars. This could also create new revenue streams for cash-strapped institutions of higher learning.
The upshot: Nowadays, instead of going into teaching thinking, "I'm going to influence 30 people a year, a teacher with real ambition and passion can go into this profession and be in a position to really change the world.
Instead of just a classroom, the entire globe can be your oyster. A great teacher can be the equivalent of an educational rock star and motivate the multitudes.
Here's a recent lecture from Roy Gould and Curtis Wong discussing the new WorldWide Telescope project that is sure to inspire kids of every age: www.ted.com/index.php/talks/view/id/224. It will provide you with an idea of the kinds of motivational lectures that can be delivered over the Internet.
Cliff Miyake is general manager in Honolulu for Time Warner Telecom. He can be reached at Cliff.Miyake@twtelecom.com