I agree with Marcus Chan, the tech editor at the San Francisco Chronicle! His view of lifelong learning as a discovery that does not end seems very apt. I was drawn to the position of webmaster in 1995 by the tantalizing prospect of having an ever-expanding menu of new things to learn as time progressed. I sure have not been disappointed! The read/write web is so much more than we ever expected in the beginning – and it gets better all the time.
Marcus’ blog is about his experience teaching online journalism at San Francisco State University.
The Chronicle of Higher Education has a good article on how enrollment is up in J schools despite the continuing turmoil in the media industry.Of course, we’ve heard some of this before. But one point in the article that really resonated with me:
“Any technological skill you teach them in 2009 will be obsolete by 2012, but we want them to understand that this is the beginning of a lifelong process they need to be open to.”
(A quote from Bill Grueskin, dean of academic affairs at Columbia’s Graduate School of Journalism)
Couldn’t agree more.
Or, as American social writer and philosopher Eric Hoffer once wrote/said:
“In times of change, learners inherit the Earth, while the learned find themselves beautifully equipped to deal with a world that no longer exists.”
Sound familiar? And to be fair, this doesn’t apply just to the journalism world — many industries have had a tough time adjusting to technology (Record labels? Meet Napster. Blockbuster? Meet Netflix. Brick-and-mortar retail? Meet EBay, Amazon, etc.).
This lifelong learning process … I suppose you could view it as a never-ending burden. I prefer to think of it as a discovery that doesn’t end.
Live & Learn! 