A breath of fresh air and hope for the future of learning! Ian Gilbert exposes the impossible paradox of meeting the learning needsforthe21stcenturywiththecontinuationofafactory-modelparadigm ofschoolingfromthe19thand20thcenturies.Thisdivergent-thinkingbook is a must read for all who want real, sustainable and effective reform for learning for this century; it should be embedded in the syllabi of colleges of education and education graduate studies worldwide. Dr Earle Warnica, Professor of Education at the American University of Ras Al Khaimah, United Arab Emirates This book is a stunner. Writing in an entertaining, page turning style, Ian Gilbert engages the reader with some powerful ideas about learning and teaching. He draws on a wealth of reading and research to support his arguments. From looking at the history of damaging notions of intelli- genceasnarrowandfixed,heinspiresustoconsidertheroleoftheteacher notasthefountofknowledgebutassomeonewhohelpschildrentolearn. We can’t do without inspirational teachers, even though we have Google. Sara Bubb, Senior Lecturer at the Institute of Education, London From economics, to climate change, to technology, [this book] explores thewaytheworldshiftsandquestionswhethertheschoolingworldmerely standsstill. Spicedwithexamplestomakeadultsthink…andtoquestion their own experience and practice, it is sweetened with suggestions and techniques to bring out the flavour of true learning. Aboveallthebookachievesthattrickofleavinganagging doubtabout thecurrentworld,whilstofferingenoughoptimismtomakeitworthdoing things differently. Mick Waters, Professor of Education and President of the Curriculum Foundation Thisbookdoeswhatitsaysonthetin:itwon’tmakeyouteachbetterbutit willhelp yoube a better teacher. Inhis inimitablestyle, laced withhumour andwisdom,IanGilbertmakesneurosciencereachable,digestibleand,above all,applicabletoclassroompractice.Byacleversynthesisofthepast,present andfuture,heproposesanewmoralpurposeforeducation–toplayacentral role in the creationof a society inwhich you would want your own grand- childrentolive.Itwillbecomecompulsoryreading.Icouldn’tputitdown. Sir John Jones, Presenter, Writer and Educational Consultant If there is one book recommended for all school staffs’ reading liststhis year, this has to be the one! Dr Lesley P. Stagg, Accreditation Officer for the Council of International Schools ’ Why Do I Need a Teacher When I ve Got Google? Why Do I Need A Teacher When I’ve Got Google? is just one of the challen- ging,controversialandthought-provokingquestionsIanGilbertposesinhis long-awaitedfollow-uptotheclassic EssentialMotivationintheClassroom. Questioning the unquestionable, this book will make you re-consider everything you thought you knew about teaching and learning, such as: (cid:2) Areyousimplypreparingthenextgenerationofunemployedaccountants? (cid:2) Whatdoyoudoforthe‘sweetcornkids’whocomeoutoftheeducation system in pretty much the same state as when they went in? (cid:2) What’s the real point of school? (cid:2) Exams – so whose bright idea was that? (cid:2) Why ‘EQ’ is fast becoming the new ‘IQ’ (cid:2) What will your school policy be on brain-enhancing technologies? Withhiscustomarycombinationofhard-hittingtruths,practicalclassroom ideas and irreverent sense of humour, Ian Gilbert takes the reader on a breathless rollercoaster ride through burning issues of the twenty-first century, considering everything from the threats facing the world and the challengeoftheBRICeconomiestothelinkbetweeneugenicsandthe11+. As wide-ranging and exhaustively-researched as it is entertaining and accessible, this book is designed to challenge teachers and inform them – as well as encourage them – as they strive to design a twenty-first century learningexperiencethatreallydoesbringthebestoutofallyoungpeople. After all, the future of the world may just depend on it. IanGilbertisaneducationalinnovator,award-winningwriter,entrepreneur andinspirationalspeaker, deliveringtraining toschoolsandcollegesin the UK and Europe for the ‘Independent Thinking’ organization, which he founded in 1994. Why Do I Need a Teacher ’ When I ve Got Google? The essential guide to the big issues for fi every twenty- rst century teacher Ian Gilbert Thiseditionpublished2011 byRoutledge 2ParkSquare,MiltonPark,Abingdon,OxonOX144RN SimultaneouslypublishedintheUSAandCanada byRoutledge 270MadisonAvenue,NewYork,NY10016 RoutledgeisanimprintoftheTaylor&FrancisGroup,aninformabusiness This edition published in the Taylor & Francis e-Library, 2010. To purchase your own copy of this or any of Taylor & Francis or Routledge’s collection of thousands of eBooks please go to www.eBookstore.tandf.co.uk. ©2011IanGilbert Allrightsreserved.Nopartofthisbookmaybereprintedor reproducedorutilizedinanyformorbyanyelectronic,mechanical, orothermeans,nowknownorhereafterinvented,including photocopyingandrecording,orinanyinformationstorageor retrievalsystem,withoutpermissioninwritingfromthepublishers. BritishLibraryCataloguinginPublicationData AcataloguerecordforthisbookisavailablefromtheBritishLibrary LibraryofCongressCataloginginPublicationData Gilbert,Ian,1965- WhydoIneedateacherwhenI'vegotGoogle?:theessentialguide tothebigissuesforevery21stcenturyteacher/IanGilbert. p.cm. 1.Teaching.2.Education–Aimsandobjectives.3.Currentevents.I. Title. LB1025.3.G4432011 371.102–dc22 2010005917 ISBN 0-203-49199-8 Master e-book ISBN ISBN978-0-415-46831-2(hbk) ISBN978-0-415-46833-6(pbk) ISBN978-0-203-84608-7(ebk) To my parents – for being there through it all. Thank you. Contents Acknowledgements ix Independent Thinking Ltd x Preface xi Introduction 1 1 Save the world 3 2 The future’s coming 9 3 The great educational lie 16 4 So,goonthen,whydoIneedateacherwhenI’vegotGoogle? 21 5 AQA v AQA 25 6 Your EQ will take you further than your IQ 31 7 Nothing is more dangerous than an idea when it’s the only idea you’ve got 42 8 It’s the brain, stupid 46 9 Neuromyths debunked! 50 10 Your hands in their brains 57 11 Talk to the hand coz the nucleus accumbens ain’t listening 63 12 Is that an iron bar through your frontal lobes or are you just pleased to see me? 70
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