Category: Unit 09

Purpose, Feeling, Values, Beauty, Free

Lessig brings up an amazing point in his article Comparing Cultures. Remix: Making Art and Commerce Thrive in the Hybrid Economy that I can refer to first hand in a majority of the classes that I’ve taken here at U of O. Lessig states that, “most students come from an essentially RO education(fueled by professsionals). For four years, they’ve sat in large lecture halls, with a professor at the front essentially reading the same lecture she’s given year after year…the class is a forum within which that argument happens. Students don’t listen to lectures. They help make the lecture”(85-86). A majority of the classes that I’ve had here during my stint at the University of Oregon have been organized in this fashion. The teacher gets up there, reads off his slides, tells us what we need to know, then ends class. There were no discussions of any sorts simply him talking in front of the class. Naturally kids start tuning out, getting on their phones, and opening up laptops etc. This is simply just not an effective way to teach anymore. In order for students like me to learn the material we need to be engaged.  The classes that I’ve learned the most in have been structured with more of an RW style of teaching where the teacher starts the conversation then encourages students to chime in and state their opinion of the topic and what they think it means. This leads to one thing which leads to another and before you know it the entire class is getting involved and everyone is learning. I feel that more of an emphasis needs to be placed on this style of teaching as opposed to the old RO style because this is simply the way that our generation learns. Times are changing and in order for universities to continue to provide the best educational value for their students they must evolve teaching styles to meet the ever changing learning styles of its students.