DISQUS

Dave Schappell · 1 year ago

TeachStreet couldn't agree with you more -- I use the Jon Bischke "turn teachers into rock stars" quote several times a week, I think! Hope the eduFire team's doing great...

Dave

rainbowhill · 1 year ago

So true, the models upon which most big conversations schools were built on didn't ever take in to account the democratisation of learning that the Internet enables.

Almost a year ago now one of the most devastating corporate corporate collapses in Japan since World War 2 happened to my friends, my students and myself. You may have read about it. The company came crashing down around our ears, as the CEO ran off with all the money.

The company he ran was notorious for the way the relationships between students and instructors were controlled. Consequently there was not a lot of respect for the company or senior management or the company itself, and most teachers left within a year of joining.

We all saw it coming, and some of us had already begun to imagine a world of teaching beyond the four walls of the cubicle. I became militant, and rather than bemoan the impending loss of income I used the Internet to agitate and educate my fellow teachers and students about the rort that was going on.

I think the CEO (if you can call him that, most people called him much worse) thought he could get away with it. Personally, I'm glad it's over, there was no way a company like that (the largest language school in Japan) should have been allowed to continue.

The future is much brighter, and thanks to pioneers like the folks at eduFire we have a platform to continue doing the things we love, like sharing our passion for teaching and learning with others.

Here it comes, workplace democracy and self determination for teachers and students. I like it better this way!