In a recent TED Talk, Educational researcher Dr. Sugata Mitra shared the idea behind his "Hole in the Wall" experiments which have shown that, in the absence of supervision or formal teaching, children can teach themselves and each other.
The investigation began simply enough, by installing a computer in a wall, three feet off the ground, in a slum in India. With nothing but a computer screen and mouse to assist them, and with no prior experience, a handful of local children—whose native language was not English, the only language available for use on the PC—learned to use the computer on their own, all within a few months. Based on this initial trial, Dr. Mitra hypothesized that:
The acquisition of basic computing skills by any set of children can be achieved through incidental learning provided the learners are given access to a suitable computing facility, with entertaining and motivating content and some minimal (human) guidance.
Mitra’s website touts an old adage, but one which is eternally true: Nothing is more powerful than an idea whose time has come. The research and work that ensued won Mitra’s organization the first-ever $1M TED Prize at TED2013, giving them the resources to develop their dream: to build a school in the cloud. More importantly, the organization hopes to break the traditional confines of a school, by making learning more like play, employing a unique collaborative learning approach and encouraging children to explore, learn and simply enjoy themselves.
Similarly, at Kinetik I.T., we’ve developed a system of collaboration, using creativity and fun to reach excellence in all that we do. We make great things happen, and we know how to help you when your idea’s time has come. Whether it’s custom website design, web application development, custom software development, or mobile app development you’re looking for, we can help make your dream a reality.
To learn more about our Kinetik I.T.’s Digital Superheroes, visit www.Kinetik-IT.com or follow Kinetik I.T. on Facebook, LinkedIn or Twitter.