

The Lecture System in Teaching Science, and My Discovery of the "Gutenberg Method" (1986) - niels_olson
http://www.entropysite.com/morrison.html

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gabriel
On the surface I think many will just read that this method is about reading
assigned material before you enter a classroom. But I think the real gist of
this method is creating a different, better, relationship between student and
teacher to create genuine excitement in imagination.

After 2 years in college I stopped taking notes and just started listening. My
GPA went from Deans list to "average," but my learning increased exponentially
(ever notice how science types like an excuse to use that work?). I did
horrible in classes that were only about memorizing facts, like sociology,
even though, I have learned now, that that was a horrible way to approach such
an awesome topic.

However, I did excel in classes where I had an "endeavor to conquer the
subject matter." Most notably, I ended up working way ahead of my CS degree
without realizing it. I was just following a path of reading material with
just a few conversations with good professors.

In the end, I learned how to learn. I don't really remember much of anything
from any of my coursework (4 years out now). But I know how to learn it again
if I need to, and more importantly, there is no topic that I fear approaching
for the first time or repeatedly.

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chris11
This can go somewhat badly. I had a professor who did something like this. He
would assign reading and spent a lot of time answering questions, sometimes
around a half hour or so. The bad part is that he would not require homework
to be turned in until the evening, so the questions have ended up being over
homework. This means that if you have done the homework correctly, there is a
fair amount of wasted time in class. So it seems to benefit more the people
who didn't actually finish the homework before class.

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seregine
Some people just learn better from hearing, so the lectures are better for
them, even if they seem redundant. But reading the book aloud isn't enough.
Effective lectures sound different from books: shorter, simpler, more
repetitive.

Really, the right thing for a student to do is to read the relevant material
_before_ the lecture, then listen for nuances and ask questions in class. Of
course, I only occasionally attained this ideal when I was in college.

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nihilocrat
I feel like a good lecture is like a passage in a textbook where someone has
highlighted all the good parts for you, and then written a single sentence at
the end in thick, dark marker that sums it all up.

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shader
How does this compare to the oxbridge tutorial method? I haven't actually
experienced it; others are probably more knowledgeable in this regard.

Basically, the way I understand it is that while the students do attend
lectures, the focus of their education is in "tutorials". In these tutorials,
the students are assigned reading, which they then write a paper on, and
debate about with their tutor and maybe one other student. Now I never thought
this would scale that well, but that seems to be what the article is about.
Obviously the large class discussions are less personal, but more doable in a
university without the bottomless endowments of Oxford and Cambridge.

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kqr2
I wonder if there will ever be a "Youtube" method. Students watch the
previously recorded lecture on video and bring questions based on that.

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ramchip
I can't stand watching a whole lecture in video. I tried for SICP, for various
screencasts... I'd rather have a book, really, so I can decide on my own if I
need to spend more time understanding a certain section and skim the other.

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old-gregg
Agreed. I can't stand watching/listening people talk online in general:
interviews, podcasts, lectures whatever. It always feels like enormous waste
of time: I'd rather quickly scan the text of what they're saying, slowing down
on important things and "fast-forwarding" water.

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niels_olson
In general, I agree, but if it's a really great video, I would like to watch
it. And in an academic world that is growing to embrace free culture, you will
only need one great lectures on each chunk of material. In fact, it is best in
some cases for everyone to have enjoyed the same bit of greatness, because
they can all draw similar references and allusions later. Not always, or even
most of the time, mind you, but there are some lectures that are definitely
worth watching.

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peregrine
Huge Block of text written as though someone was speaking it.

Can anyone who's stronger then I, paraphrase it? Thanks!

~~~
niels_olson
This is for lecturers. And, for students who want to advocate for better use
of class time.

Morrison, the author of the first essay, is a famous organic chemist who wrote
the foundational book of organic chemistry used in many programs. He
apparently wrote it to avoid lecturing. Class time was for answering
questions. His essay extols the virtues of the Gutenberg system he got from
Frank Lambert, another organic chemistry professor, and the author of the
second essay.

If you want to see the meat of the central idea, the elements of the Gutenberg
method, the first section of the second essay is what you want to read: The
Beginning, From Failure.

