OLDaily

Welcome to Online Learning Daily, your best source for news and commentary about learning technology, new media, and related topics.

In 2025, let's make resistance more effective
Ingrid Robeyns, Crooked Timber, 2025/01/02

---

Most readers will know that I am of the left-wing socialist persuasion. So (I would think) is the author of this article, but let me highlight the key difference between my approach and that of most of the left. Responding to "the rise of autocracy and fascist policies" Ingrid Robeyns aks, "So what to do? There are at least three options: Fight, flee, or freeze" and argues "we should collectively redouble our efforts in fighting and resisting evil." I hear 'fight' rhetoric from the left all the time. Choosing to fight is exactly the wrong response to authoritarianism - it greets them on their own terms. There are many more things we could do: we could work, build, grow or develop. This is the path I have taken. Tommy Douglas didn't fight hospitals, he built health care. Paulo Friere didn't become a guerilla, he became an educator. Image: Wikipedia.

Web: [Direct Link] [This Post][Share]

Why there is more to Banksy than meets the eye
Kelly Grovier, BBC, 2025/01/02

---

Just for the record, I'm a huge Banksy fan, and so appreciate this look at his work in BBC News. What I appreciate about this article is that it makes clear the relation between Banksy's work and the masterpieces from which it is so often drawn (though I would note that Banksy draws from cultural images generally, and not just masterpieces). What he does, often, is to refocus our understanding of the original work - the best example is the placement of googly eyes on a Rembrandt self-portrait, drawing the viewer's attention to how the original draws the viewer's attention (and thus, to a general principle of design employed by marketers and advertisers in all media today). Image: my own photo from a Banksy pop-up exhibit.

Web: [Direct Link] [This Post][Share]

Educational Neuroscience: A New Frontier in Learning
EdCircuit Staff, edCircuit | Educational Neuroscience: A New Frontier in Learning, 2025/01/02

---

I was drawn to this article by the title but was disappointed to find it was a clumsy effort to disguise some questionable cognitive psychology as neuroscience. Now, yes, phenomena like neuroplasticity can inform pedagogy. But 'working memory' is not a part of neuroscience; it's part of cognitive load theory. And out the other end come approaches that more fictional than learning styles, like "training individuals to regulate their brain activity to improve cognitive performance." Hey, I'm for brain-computer interfaces as much as the next guy. But I have no illusion that learning systems "adapt to individual learners' needs and preferences based on real-time data on brain activity and learning patterns."

Web: [Direct Link] [This Post][Share]

What Do We Know About the Economics of AI?
Irving Wladawsky-Berger, 2025/01/02

---

According to this paper (46 page PDF) from Daron Acemoglu, the economic impact of AI is estimated to be "non-trivial but modest – no more than a 0.66% increase in total factor productivity (TFP) over 10 years." Why? Irving Wladawsky-Berger gives us the summary in this article. "Only about 20% of the tasks in US jobs might be exposed to AI." Also, when automation replaces workers, it won't increase productivity; the tools will be of the 'so-so' kind, which are only good enough to be able to do the same work. And we're not seeing the potential for big gains. Goldman Sachs's Jim Covello asks, "What $1tn problem will AI solve?" He argues, "truly life-changing inventions like the internet enabled low-cost solutions to disrupt high-cost solutions even in their infancy, unlike costly AI tech today." The problem with this discussion, in my view, is that it views the rest of the economy - that is, all of us - as passive recipients of AI. But the economic impact of AI will have a lot to do with what we do, not just what AI can do. 

Web: [Direct Link] [This Post][Share]

6-Year-Olds in England Get a Phonics Check. American Kids Should Get One, Too
Chad Aldeman, The 74, 2025/01/02

---

Without immersing myself into the whole phonics debate (life is too short) I am still not sure about the best way to read. Here's what I mean: the presumption in this article is that you look at words and by converting them into sounds in your mind (or by reading aloud) you come to understand what they mean. Now I was taught to read using phonics, so that's how I do it, at least when I'm in relaxed mode. And that's generally how I write as well, reversing the process. But what's interesting is that I don't do this with pictures, diagrams, or illustrations. I just comprehend them directly. That's proof to me that there's nothing special about converting text into sounds. And when I'm speed reading, I skip that step entirely. So I don't see 'encoding' as necessary for reading. But it does appear to be sufficient.

Web: [Direct Link] [This Post][Share]

Why I Love The Color Gray for Learning Design and You Should Too
Connie Malamed, The eLearning Coach, 2025/01/02

---

This is a great offbeat but totally relevant article on colour choice for e-learning design. And it speaks to me - I checked my current project, and yup, I have one highlight colour and all the rest is comprised of shades of white or gray. Connie Malamed offers a set of reasons why gray is a great colour to work with, and they're all based on design, and not some pseudo-psychology of learning. 

Web: [Direct Link] [This Post][Share]

We publish six to eight or so short posts every weekday linking to the best, most interesting and most important pieces of content in the field. Read more about what we cover. We also list papers and articles by Stephen Downes and his presentations from around the world.

There are many ways to read OLDaily; pick whatever works best for you:

• Read in your web browser on this web page, updated weekdays
• Receive a daily or weekly email newsletter by subscribing here
• Subscribe to the RSS feed using your favourite feed reader
• Follow @OLDaily@mastodon.social on Mastodon or elsewhere in the fediverse
• Follow @OLDaily on Twitter
• Integrate the open API using the JSON feed