The Historical Roots (& Future Role) of Informal Learning In Education [Quote]

“Despite appearances, the humble pizza-and-study group isn’t some minor activity, it’s the kernel of the university. When knowledge was scarce, universities grew as communities of scholars clustered around the latest information technology: rare, expensive, handwritten books. The first Western university, the University of Bologna, was found in 1099 by people who wanted to study Byzantine-era Justinina legal code. The very word ‘universitas’ doesn’t mean campus, or class, or a particular body of knowledge; it refers originally to the guild, the group of people united in scholarship. The word “college” too comes from the Latin ‘collegium,’ related to “colleague.” meaning “community,” “society, “guild”.” Now that knowledge is a free, abundant commodity, the communities that form around it are just as important to education as they ever were.“

“We took the role of a teacher and tried to fragment it so students would play teachers to each other. The best person to teach you something is someone who’s just mastered it.” – George Siemens, teacher of “Connectivism and Connective Knowledge” which opened its classroom to 24 registered University of Manitoba students and 2,200 unregistered students from around the world.

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