tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4354832075755142157.post8857866277868637276..comments2013-09-24T09:11:44.386-07:00Comments on ACS Exploring MOOCs Relation to Liberal Arts: Automation of teachingMark Lewishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11308517561967709446noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4354832075755142157.post-75065128811529665092013-04-15T14:48:36.531-07:002013-04-15T14:48:36.531-07:00Chris, I find your question intriguing, and of cou...Chris, I find your question intriguing, and of course I'd like to thank you for the flattering example. With philosophy, as you say, the most one can hope for is to use technology to enable a "thoughtful interaction" with an otherwise inaccessible interlocutor. There is nothing that a MOOC can do to make those interactions "massive." A computer as such is not (and I believe cannot be) human enough to make the interaction meaningful or thoughtful; a computer cannot be the interlocutor.<br /><br />I believe that what you are describing here is the core of what we can do as educators in the liberal arts college setting. There could be some real added value to identifying those components explicitly, in every discipline, and structuring courses accordingly. <br /><br />Gabriel Ferrerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08014021536591191108noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4354832075755142157.post-27458908646086375962013-04-05T17:42:48.911-07:002013-04-05T17:42:48.911-07:00It makes me think about what sorts of automation c...It makes me think about what sorts of automation could be helpful in my own field, philosophy. So much of what we do happens in conversation between people articulating their thoughts with each other, the main promise is in some way of doing that across distance. Language learning involves, at least in part, picking up a set of discrete skills. I don't really see how philosophy can be similar--there are skills, like careful reading and writing and thinking, but they are fostered and nurtured through very thorough and thoughtful interaction with others. I still remember learning from Gabe about Pascal. I could read Pascal on my own, of course, but what could automate what I learned about his work *from* my conversations *with Gabe*?Chris Campolohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16060185238306698422noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4354832075755142157.post-55955287097048161182013-03-25T14:56:56.020-07:002013-03-25T14:56:56.020-07:00Sorry about the broken link; it should now be fixe...Sorry about the broken link; it should now be fixed.Gabriel Ferrerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08014021536591191108noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4354832075755142157.post-55875539653847225802013-03-18T08:05:14.167-07:002013-03-18T08:05:14.167-07:00I agree... there are various aspects of teaching t...I agree... there are various aspects of teaching that require greater intelligence than can (currently) be automated. There's also room for current A.I. techniques to automate more aspects of teaching than we currently are.<br /><br />The Duolingo project seems like something to keep an eye on -- most of the projects of Luis von Ahn (famed for CAPTCHAs/reCAPTCHA) are interesting. For the quick scoop, here's a Ted talk where he plugs Duolingo among other things: http://www.ted.com/talks/luis_von_ahn_massive_scale_online_collaboration.html<br /><br />By the way, I tried to follow the "independent researchers" link, but received a 404 not found. Can you update the link?Dr. Forrest Stonedahlhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00667016992539153810noreply@blogger.com