Subject:
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Group to discuss Teaching Lego Robotics?? lugnet.robotics.teaching ???
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Newsgroups:
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lugnet.robotics.rcx.nqc
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Date:
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Wed, 27 Oct 1999 02:02:42 GMT
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Reply-To:
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TKING@TOGETHER.nospamNET
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Viewed:
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1971 times
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I will be teaching several 5th to 8th grade students how to build Lego-based
Robots and how to program them in RcxCODE and NQC. We're located in Rural
Vermont (!tm) in the NorthEast U.S.
I was privileged to get to MindFest on Sunday at MIT, and although I'm sure I
missed great stuff on Saturday, I was greatly encouraged and motivated by the
energy and inventiveness all around me, and the dedication of people like Dave
Baum and Michael Gasperi who went way out of their way to share their ideas
and tools with others. And Seymour Papert motivated me, as he has over the
years, to Do Something with young people and technology, with or without the
welcome of the Educational System.
Here in Vermont, I have had a pretty good welcome from the local Educational
System, even if I am an old Longhaired Engineer recently escaped from IBM.
Actually, some of my best friends are (insert vilified minority), Educators
and Principals, and so are some of my closest relatives. I've learned
something about it over the years, and Yes, there is Something To Be Learned
about teaching.
At the Town Meeting concluding MindFest, it was mentioned, ruefully by some,
that there had been no specific get-to-gether or discussion for 'Educators'.
I feel that there are some unique interests, relevant information, and skills
to be shared among adults who are working primarily with young people, and
trying to enable youngsters to learn about technology and put it in a viable
perspective.
MindFest probably just reflected Dr. Papert's disenchantment with the
Educational System. I share much of his dislike of Education As It Is. I
want to be part of Education As It Will Become. I know there are many people
who share an enthusiasm for working with young people. MindFest had the
strongest focus on what young people could do, and on enabling them to do it.
But we NEED the collaboration and synergy and encouragement and comradeship of
many people if we are to make more than a local one-school-at-a-time
difference.
I'm not an "Educator". I have too much of a mongrel "Educational" background,
too many careers, too many credits in disparate areas, to qualify for that
Title. But every job I've had since the day after I was 16 has had the word
"Engineer" in it (Transmitter Engineer at WELI in New Haven, in the first
case), so I'll stick with that. But I'd like to share with, steal from, and
collaborate with other people who are working with, or want to work with,
young people and technology.
So, where should this discussion continue?? I do not find the group I have in
mind on any current forum I know about. It's not really bit.listserv.edtech
OR k12.ed.tech OR k12.ed.comp which are very Education oriented. It's not the
broadbased comp.robotics.misc (although there is an occasional education
question there). And there is no LUGNET group I see with "educat*" or
"teach*" or "school" in it. So, how about:
lugnet.robotics.teaching
??
I'd like to see a fusion of Educators, Engineers, OldTime Hackers, Hobbiests,
Kids and everyone who wants to learn stuff and then pass it along to others.
PLEASE give me feedback!!!! :
ISTHERE an existing Newsgroup or other facility that is close to doing this??
ISTHERE a good reason to have this NOT on the LUGNET server, but elsewhere??
ISTHERE a focus or perspective I'm missing??
ISTHIS .. , um, a Stupid Idea?? Why??
Take a look at the website my partner Mary Alice Osborne and I have at:
http://homepages.together.net/~tking
to get an idea of what we've BEEN doing..
I am heading in the MindStorms direction because it's the only way I can see
to get a LOT of kids going on the same platform and share lots of ideas. I
want to continue to promote reuse of Old Technology, and want kids to progress
to making their OWN robots from MATERIALS they learn about, with TOOLS they
learn about, with KNOWLEDGE they acquire. But this is a good place to start.
Thanks for listening, and I REALLY want feedback!
Regards,
Terry King ...In The Woods In Vermont
http://homepages.together.net/~tking
--
Terry King ...In The Woods In Vermont
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