History of teaching examined

By: Kyle Hansen

Posted: 4/18/07

The past, present and future of education and teaching was examined in a half-day symposium hosted yesterday by the College of Education and International and Extended Studies.

While not much has changed in the way teachers work during the last 150 years, the future looks much different, according to the day's speakers.

Historian Jim Walsh began the day with a 45-minute talk on the history of education at SJSU. The event then moved towards the present with a panel discussion of teaching methods according to two retired teachers and two student teachers. The concluding hour was a look at the future, with a discussion of how technology is changing teaching and learning.

"If we really look at our 150 years, for 140 of them, things didn't change and the students didn't change," said Stephen Kay, an assistant professor in the educational leadership department. "But now in the last decade, we've seen some major changes with the things that are going on with our students."

Those changes include the use of electronic devices and the Internet in the classroom, according to Kay and his co-presenter Corey Gin from eCampus, the university's Web site for online classes.

"There is a lot of technology involved," Gin said. "But when it comes down to it, it really is about teaching and learning, and focusing on teaching and learning."

Kay said that the future of education is not being changed as much by the way teachers function, but because students expect their teachers to know and use the latest information and technology.

However, most classrooms use the same format used 150 years ago, Kay said, with the teachers standing in front with a chalkboard and students sitting in rows.

"Rip Van Winkle, if he woke up today and he went out and surveyed the world, he would see some amazing things… ," Kay said, mentioning iPods, pacemakers and hand-held devices. "If he walked into my classroom, what would he say? 'Blackboard! Been there, done that, understand. I'll sit right here and be happy.'

"It is a new world though and it's changed so rapidly. So how does technology influence teaching and learning? It should make a great difference."

While the teaching and learning is rapidly changing, International and Extended Studies Dean Mark Novak said it is still important to look back and reflect on where the university came from.

"Plus there is an intrinsic enjoyment to it," Novak said. "I think that it is kind of fun, it is like opening a present."

Walsh, an emeritus history professor and author of two books on SJSU's history, said that the College of Education and the extended studies program are really the basis upon which the university has been built.

"There is a continuous history for the school, now the college, of education, from the beginning in 1857 to now," Walsh said. "In the early years that is all there was at San Jose State, the normal teachers college was a school of education."

College of Education Dean Susan Meyers said that the college has played a crucial role in the last 150 years.

"The college of education was the beginning," Meyers said. "To think about the fact that we were the very first institution of public education in the state of California and that it started because the state of California recognized that we had an obligation to the future of the state, and that obligation is to make sure that the future is prepared to lead the state.

"We continue to do that, and we continue to be one of the finest institutions of public education in the state of California - I think we have a lot to be proud of."

The symposium also included a panel discussion on teaching methods. Carolyn Nelson, the chair of elementary education and the new associate dean of academic affairs, moderated the panel, which was made up of two retired teachers and two student teachers.

Nelson said it is important to understand the history of the university and education in general.

"It gives you a clear path of where you are going and helps you see where you have come from," she said. "It gives you a glimpse of who you are and what you want to become as a teacher and how you can help your community."