Digital Youth Portraits

 

   “Give them the tools and get out of  the way"

 

 

 

Dylan,13, uses the internet chatsto collaborate with his like-minded friends all over the world and promote a more green planet.

  




 



 Digital Youth Portraits is a series of video stories of young kids educating themselves and exploring the world via technology.
   Watching the videos I was mostly struck by the obvious capacity of very young children to learn and explore all by themselves through technology. These portraits show that very young and teenage children, who are technology native from very early on, can and do use technology not only for fun but also for pursuing their passions and educating themselves. These children are problem solving, independent learners, who use their creativity and the opportunities created by the modern technology to explore their passions. 

  Literacy is not only text and knowledge. In modern times, more than ever before, it includes values such as creativity and problem solving skills. This has an obvious message for primary school teachers all over the world. The role of the teacher is no longer that of an information provider but more like a guider, a facilitator. As Sugata Mitra puts it: “Learning is a self-organized system and primary education can happen almost on its own”. (watch Sugata's Ted talk entirely here )

    As a TEFL professional in Armenia, I am well aware that the majority of teachers in my country are far from just giving the tools and getting out of the way. Teaching in my country is heavily teacher and textbook centered and is stubborn against changes. Teachers are still the all-knowers and the students are still treated as a passive audience. Drilling, habit formation and repetition are still the core of our mainstream education system. Having said this, it’s worth noting however that the youth is getting more and more technology native these days and is starting to make use of the advancements of technology for learning and exploring. Nevertheless, when will the technology also enter the classrooms and when will the teachers willfully give way to children’s ability of self-learning, is still not clear.