Khan Academy Pilot Educators On Khan Academy

theodp writes "In what may surprise Khan Academy backers Google and Bill Gates, educators from the Los Altos School District where KA was initially piloted and implemented have responded to some recent KA critiques with a blog entry which notes, 'Teachers in our district have determined that the greatest value of the Khan Academy lies, not in the videos, but in the exercise modules and data generated as students work practice problems.' Not too surprisingly, when it comes to revolutionizing student learning, teachers are bullish on teachers. 'Key to this revolution are the Los Altos teachers,' the educators conclude. 'Teachers in our district are highly valued for their pedagogical perspective, content knowledge, experience, and creative abilities. When district administrators put tools in the hands of teachers and give them room to work, amazing things happen for students. Tools will come and go, but it's the teachers who create meaningful learning experiences that challenge students to grow.'"

You mean ...

[dywolf]

You mean we can't just point the technology at the kids and make them learn? It takes actual teachers actually teaching, and not being rigidly restricted to rote scripts?

Whoa....who'd a thunk it?

Did I Miss Something?

[eldavojohn]

Not too surprisingly, when it comes to revolutionizing student learning, teachers are bullish on teachers.

Is the purpose of this to revolutionize student learning or augment it? It's important because I think some people are thinking that students will not have to go to school anymore and instead just log into Khan Academy whereas I think the appropriate spot is as an aid or augmenting tool for educators everywhere -- parents, teachers, professors, you name it.

Also in that blog article:

While we don’t have official study results yet, great things are happening in our district for students and some of them are directly related to our use of Khan Academy. Teachers who have used Khan Academy as an instructional tool, have rethought their use of instructional time and are spending more time in math class on less traditional teaching methods effectively changing the student experience. Students are excited about the use of Khan Academy for several reasons: They get direct feedback when they are working a set of problems, they are able to visually see areas where they have excelled in math, and they are able to take some ownership of their own learning. Students are motivated in math and are excited to take on new challenges.

Which sounds pretty positive -- like the teachers are learning from the videos on how to more effectively teach math. They also say:

It is no secret that Khan Academy videos have come under fire in recent weeks. As educators in the Los Altos School District where Salman Khan’s free product was initially piloted and implemented, we would like to share our experiences utilizing Khan Academy as an instructional tool in a blended learning environment. By sharing our experiences, we hope to provide accurate information on how Khan Academy can be effectively used, clear up a few misconceptions, and share some of the lessons we have learned on our journey thus far.

The whole blog posting sounds like a departure from what the summary lead me to believe. I don't think anyone would be shocked or surprised to hear that teachers are using this as an augmenting tool and as for them being "bullish" I don't really see it. They are cautiously optimistic about this pilot program and say that it has resulted in good things inside the classroom.

Missing the point

[Hevel-Varik]

I am a middle aged, self-taught programmer/technologist who dropped out of math way, way too early. There's a ceiling to my ladder of growth in this, and that ceiling is math. I'm making my way through all the math videos on Khan--been at it for a half year or so-- and am starting to see cracks in the ceiling. He's an excellent teacher and there's a vast math playlist there. All this talk about KA's role in replacing/supplementing formal education obscures the concrete reality of there now being an unprecedented resource on-line for learning and self-empowerment. Also, little noted is just how good a teacher Khan really is. He's clear, humble, knowledgeable and very much into providing the intuition in addition to the mechanics. I thank G-d for Khan Academy everyday.

Re:Agreed

[hilltaker7]

I too am a fan of teachers. However, teachers != teacher's unions. Here in Colorado, as in many other places, the local teachers have to fight their own union (ran by politicians, not educators) constantly, especially if they are one of those truly awesome teachers value their student's education over their student's indoctrination. The unions feed directly off the government's teats taking their money before the teachers here even get it and cycle it back into the Democrat party. It should be illegal, and it is certainly immoral, and quite a few of our "heroes" feel the same way.