Seymour Papert passed away yesterday. I have written about him in the past. I am not a scholar of Papert, so I do not have anything profound to say. Audrey Watters, however, posted a great series of tweets last night. Here is what she had to say about Papert, his influence on her and education, and what we can do to help his legacy live on.
A few thoughts about Seymour:
â Audrey Watters (@audreywatters) August 2, 2016
1st time I ever read anything by Seymour Papert was in a Womenâs Studies class (âEpistemological Pluralism,â co-written with @STurkle)
â Audrey Watters (@audreywatters) August 2, 2016
Epistemological Pluralism and the Revaluation of the Concrete by Sherry Turkle and Seymour Papert https://t.co/ZvLABuqCHF
â Audrey Watters (@audreywatters) August 2, 2016
I'd be quite proud to say that that was my first exposure to Papert -- thru feminist epistemology â and not thru âed-techâ or âtechâ
â Audrey Watters (@audreywatters) August 2, 2016
if I didn't realize later that I'd been exposed to LOGO as a kid in the 80s pic.twitter.com/rMrlKzveZF
â Audrey Watters (@audreywatters) August 2, 2016
For those who care about the history of ed-tech, here are a few of the stories I've written that touch in his influence:
â Audrey Watters (@audreywatters) August 2, 2016
(25 Years Ago) The First School One-to-One Laptop Program https://t.co/Xz0SXRo3as
â Audrey Watters (@audreywatters) August 2, 2016
From Lunchboxes to Laptops: How Maine Went One-to-One https://t.co/k1vecO0Niq
â Audrey Watters (@audreywatters) August 2, 2016
Lego Mindstorms: A History of Educational Robots https://t.co/JKaI7AbFGg
â Audrey Watters (@audreywatters) August 2, 2016
That barely scratches the surface â> https://t.co/1jSlm8irpb
â Audrey Watters (@audreywatters) August 2, 2016
Me, I'm thankful that I got to spend time with Seymour, even though it was after his accident pic.twitter.com/OlmCBFrfW1
â Audrey Watters (@audreywatters) August 2, 2016
1st time I met him, we talked about Skinner and self-driving cars https://t.co/11xkwA4jcZ
â Audrey Watters (@audreywatters) August 2, 2016
Last time I saw him, I told him was prepping for my first trip to South Africa. He said heâd take me to Joâburg <3 <3
â Audrey Watters (@audreywatters) August 2, 2016
I am so grateful for everything Seymour gave us. A vision in which students are the subjects not the objects of learning, of tech
â Audrey Watters (@audreywatters) August 2, 2016
Technologists: please read Mindstorms. Teachers: please read The Childrenâs Machine. Then swap copies
â Audrey Watters (@audreywatters) August 2, 2016
Many things hurt tonight. My heart canât take much more of 2016. But know this:
â Audrey Watters (@audreywatters) August 2, 2016
I'm watching those who want to grab on to Seymourâs legacy - control, re-tell, reframe - as we fight forward, associate their BS w his name
â Audrey Watters (@audreywatters) August 2, 2016
I am watching. I am fighting. I am questioning. As Seymour would want of all of us
â Audrey Watters (@audreywatters) August 2, 2016
â Audrey Watters (@audreywatters) August 2, 2016