Creating ungoogleable learning experiences: an experiment with a course in motor development

Abstract

As we progress towards the middle of the 21st century, we should ask ourselves: what kind of education is going to be worth our students’ commitment of time, energy, and money? At the same time, higher education institutions ought to reconceptualize how to prioritize their investment and use of their limited resources. More than ever, we are being forced to reimagine the way we teach and how education will meaningfully relate to the future professional success and civic engagement of our students. In this paper, I share a period of my instructional experience during which I continually innovated a course in the field of motor behavior. While the work reported in this article refers to insights and improvements made in an undergraduate course about the development of human motor behaviors, others might draw on ideas and, eventually, adapt them to different subject areas and/or co-related disciplines. This manuscript did not result from systematic educational research, nor are the strategies and outcomes included meant to be conclusive or generalized. This is a personal testimonial about part of my journey as an educator and, hopefully, an important reminder that science and education co-exist and must be equally valued in academe. Ultimately, our educational practices are the fundamental source of inspiration for the new generations and, probably, the key element in keeping our science alive.