Typically, in an education environment, the teachers (aka professors, educators, etc) are in control of the situation. Would this be different in a learning environment on the web?

Students in high school

First, let’s look at the average student in high school these days. A high schooler probably spends a good amount of time using technology. They text, instant message, go on social networks, conduct research, play games, and more. In general, the students of today are better with technology than the teachers. I doubt that this will change in the future. It’s a lot easier to use a form of technology, such as a computer, when you grow up using it, rather than it being invented when you are in past a certain point. For this reason, the students will always exceed the teachers in understanding and usage of technology. There will always be a few exceptions, where a teacher is especially talented when it comes to technology, or when a student barely has access to technology, but in most cases, this is true.

Education on the web

So, let’s talk about education on the web. Who probably knows more about using the web in different ways: a student, who often goes on Facebook, instant messenging, and overall spends a great amount of time interacting with people on the Internet, or a teacher, who just learned how to check their email (and just learned what email was). Obviously, the student knows more. So why would we put the teachers in charge in education on the web?

I think that the students should have more control than the teachers. Obviously the teacher will need access to moderation features, in case students take actions that are inappropriate. The whole point of a high school (or elementary school for that matter) owning (and paying for) a website (like Edline) is to promote student and parent interaction out of school. Parents should be able to view the grades of their children in school, students should be able to view (and talk about) assignments out of school, etc. It should be a place for collaborative learning outside of the school itself.

Students know more about technology than teachers, so they are more likely to make the website better. A teacher will generally go on a website, do what they have to do, and leave. A student will explore the website, looking for new things to do. This is important when setting up certain sections of a website, especially sections that allow user interaction.