The future of how we learn and what we learn may be closer than you think, or is it already here? Nowadays almost everyone has a laptop or tablet they use for some form of productivity, but it’s more than just the physical forms of technology that’s changing the way we learn. Paper is replaced with Word, textbooks are replaced with online pdfs, and even notecards are replaced by Quizlet. The abundance of new ways that we learn now is already propelling us into the future of schools and universities.
In Stephen King’s “UR”, the kindle is the new form of technology that’s being used to read and learn. The main character Wesley Smith had gotten a pink kindle, that he soon realized was a kindle from an alternate universe that had a function UR to search alternate timelines. Now, technology has not and may never get to this level of future technology, but it’s representative of how the future could turn out in that technology may “take over” life and change the way we learn and operate.
In Maria Cecire’s “Massively Open”, what we think could be our future is their present. Online universities is the norm, and I believe that is what we’re headed for. Now, I don’t believe that online schools will wipe out traditional universities, but they will steal students, teachers, and money from them. The benefits of online schools can outweigh the traditional style of how students learn now, such as lesser costs, less resources used, and more time.
The way that we learn is always changing, no matter what technological resources we have or what format we use. That’s not to say that physical forms of learning such as books and universities will go extinct, it just depends on whoever is learning and what works best for them.
Literature & the Internet 