Comparing and contrasting how much more effectively CNN harnesses the efforts of citizen journalists than educators do, Alan Levine asks: “Is there an equivalent of Citizen Teaching?”
Just how novel that question seems is almost shocking to me.
Along those lines, Will Richardson outlined a simple approach to tapping information flows with respect to Katrina. He posted it last week, back when we could still cling to hope.
For all you probably ever want on citizen teachers, see Ivan Illich’s classic Deschooling Society
Illich. He and that book came up in the discussion / Q&A part of the Markoff two-parter in IT Conversations. I found one of his essays on the web and couldn’t believe I hadn’t run into him before. Gotta get this book.
Citizen teaching. There is one Katrina wiki calling itself a “rally point.” At the risk of “appropriation” (as if there’s an alternative), this seems to me a great metaphor for citizen teaching, in that we are trying to stay in contact, up to date, and responsible in our agency. A smart mob indeed. A metaphor that works in times of tragedy, emergency, times when civilization seems to crumble, times also (and paradoxically) when we’re bursting with wonder and love and trying to find the unmet friend.
Donne: “all Divinity / Is love or wonder.”
Jon, thanks for the pointer to Illich — given the number of recommendations I’ve gotten, I’m embarrassed to say I’ve never read him. I see my next-door neighbors at the Koerner Library have a copy of DS, I’ll snag it and add it to my pile.
Gardner — wonder indeed to follow up your comment by listening to you read and talk through Donne’s “Valediction: of the Booke.”
http://www.gardnercampbell.net/blog1/?p=236
unrelated, but for a second there, i thought you meant ‘citizenship education’ which is a curriculum stream in the UK.
http://www.dfes.gov.uk/citizenship/
it’s a bit like the US “social studies” but a focus on your role in society, as a citizen.