Logan LaPlante is an exceptional and articulate teenager that is an advocate of non-traditional schooling. He starts his presentation by posing the following questions; If the the most desirable outcome for a student is to be happy and healthy, why is learning how to achieve this not a priority in schools? What if we base education on the study of being happy and healthy? He then goes on to explain his vision of how this could be accomplished. He terms his approach to education “hackschooling”. He expands on the common interpretation of a hacker to include, not just those who hack technology, but anyone in any arena who is an innovator and challenges and changes systems to make them work differently - better; they are flexible and opportunistic. LaPlante’s hackschooling approach to learning takes advantage of opportunities in his community and a network of friends and family. He looks for opportunities to experience what he is learning and shortcuts or “hacks” to get more knowledge faster. LaPlante views hackshooling as a mindset not a system.
One of the major components in LaPlante’s definition of the “hacker mindset” is the use of technology and online resources. This is a legitimate expectation in today’s society. Allowing access to, and the use of, already amassed information and tools to expedite tasks, frees up time for students to explore more information and accumulate more knowledge.
LaPlante brings up a point made by Dr. Robert Walsh; Education is oriented toward making a living not making a life. By the end of the video LaPlante has drawn a distinction between what a kid might want to “be” (happy and healthy) when they grow up and what they might want to “do” (job/career) when they grow up. I am impressed that someone his age can make the distinction that who we are and what we do does not have to be the same thing. Many adults define themselves by what they do, which is not only unbalanced but sad.
Hackschooling makes me happy | Logan LaPlante | TEDxUniversityofNevada. (n.d.). Retrieved October 8, 2015.
https://youtu.be/h11u3vtcpaY?list=PLbRLdW37G3oMquOaC-HeUIt6CWk-FzaGp
One of the major components in LaPlante’s definition of the “hacker mindset” is the use of technology and online resources. This is a legitimate expectation in today’s society. Allowing access to, and the use of, already amassed information and tools to expedite tasks, frees up time for students to explore more information and accumulate more knowledge.
LaPlante brings up a point made by Dr. Robert Walsh; Education is oriented toward making a living not making a life. By the end of the video LaPlante has drawn a distinction between what a kid might want to “be” (happy and healthy) when they grow up and what they might want to “do” (job/career) when they grow up. I am impressed that someone his age can make the distinction that who we are and what we do does not have to be the same thing. Many adults define themselves by what they do, which is not only unbalanced but sad.
Hackschooling makes me happy | Logan LaPlante | TEDxUniversityofNevada. (n.d.). Retrieved October 8, 2015.
https://youtu.be/h11u3vtcpaY?list=PLbRLdW37G3oMquOaC-HeUIt6CWk-FzaGp