Aram Hirajan
September 2, 2012
When a new technology changes how we understand the world and how we live in it, we are slow to adapt to this new way of life. Education is but a tool for humanity to continue to live on despite changing environment in which we find ourselves. In the information age, public education itself is slow to adapt to the fast changing rules in transmission of information from one generation to another, and this is the principal challenge public education faces today. In order for public education to survive and to continue to enrich our lives, we must again revise our ideas of what it means to teach our children and help them continue to live on in a world that is changing faster than any individual mind can keep up with.
Aram, who is from Korea, spoke about the history of education and the transfer of knowledge. His brother, Maim Kim, spoke briefly about the invention of the printing press by Johannes Gutenberg. Although the first metal, movable type printing press was built in Korea, it used Chinese characters which limited its usefulness since a book requires 10,000 to 40,000 different characters. Because Gutenberg used a Latin alphabet, his invention completely changed the rate at which knowledge can be transferred. Aram believes that today’s electronic communications are another breakthrough, and will also have a significant impact on society as more information is easily available to more people.
Humanist Community Forum (2012-09-02): Public Education, Its Rise and Fall (Aram Hirajan) from Humanist Community-SiliconValley on Vimeo.