Davidson Reading Assignment

This passage from Davidson succinctly summarizes the theme of the essay: That "crowdsourcing", the act of individuals coming together to solve a problem and learn from each other, trumps "credentialing", relying upon an expert with limited scope.  Crowdsourcing enables the collaborators to offer their own unique perspectives and viewpoints, thus creating the "shared horizon" of ideas discussed in the previous reading. The essence of crowdsourcing is that "difference and diversity-not expertise and uniformity-solves problems" (Davidson 51). The difference between credentialing and crowdsourcing seems to call to mind the analogy of the fall of feudalism:  During the Middle Ages when Kings had absolute authority, in this case being the "expert", there was little advancement in science or culture. Years later, as the power of the Monarchy began to falter and people began to move to cities to work together during the Renaissance and even later the Industrial Revolution, the arts and science began to flourish at unprecedented rates.

The case study of the iPods at Duke in Davidson's essay provide further evidence that crowdsourced education is the way of the future.  The educational methods of the past are represented by Ichabod Crane of The Legend of The Sleepy Hollow (Davidson 56). He is the "expert" in the credentialing system, and his pupils rely on him for knowledge. However, should Ichabod Crane have any gaps or flaws in his methods or curriculum, the students will suffer drastically.  The education system he presides over is meant to churn out capable laborers for factories. Contrast this with the iPod experiment, in which students can design apps and share information , enabling them to morph their skills seamlessly and create something great. One student's gaps or shortcomings can easily be covered by another student, who in turn has their own gaps and shortcomings covered. In the end, the product is greater than the sum of its parts.