A knowledge society is “based on the acquisition, dissemination, and use of information, especially by exploiting technological advances; a society with a knowledge economy”, what I knew of as “the information superhighway” when I was growing up. A knowledge economy grows by depending on the ubiquity and quality of the information available instead of producing physical goods.

I’m hard pressed to find a better example of this than what’s presented in the video, which is Wikipedia. Personally, I find that this shift is absolutely beautiful. With this new focus moving away from long-term memory, some routines, steps, and knowledge will still become embedded in my memory. That which doesn’t can be looked up, where maybe they will become long term memory when a learner needs them to.

Because I’m shifting my focus to creating an artifact, which combines, filters, and curates this information, the long-term memory is no longer as relevant to my acquisition of knowledge because the search for and demonstration of understanding it holds more value: I can show you where that data came from. If I need that information again, I can find it. As an added benefit, so can others. I love the example of the student’s work showing up in a science journal.

When I was in high school, I remember being confounded by not being able to use calculators on math exams. I’m glad my teacher was proven wrong about the possibility of not always having access to one in the future. There’s a calculator on nearly every single technical device I use today. I find that the calculator on my computer, iPhone, and even my Nintendo 3DS are examples of one tool of the knowledge society.

Calculators are now a ubiquitous tool of the Knowledge Society. Long gone are the days of the abacus.

Another exciting factor in shifting to a knowledge society is the removal of barriers to knowledge. By making knowledge ubiquitous, we’re afforded the opportunity of increased perspectives. As a straight white agnostic adult male, my reaction, understanding, and reception of knowledge is shaped by my (privileged) experiences in society. A young black bisexual Christian woman or elderly gay Muslim man in the same society will undoubtedly share some of the same experiences and perspectives, but will also absolutely have a completely different lens through their different experiences. This of course will lead them to have different and highly valuable perspectives and insights that I don’t possess.

By eliminating barriers and allowing access to all of this information and thus the interpretations and reactions by different types of people, the foundations that our knowledge stands on and the knowledge that grows from it becomes much stronger. As with the discussion on volcanoes, there’s a commonality in all views, but a better understanding of the ways they differ in disparate geographic regions and climates. The interpretation of this data and information helps our society to gain new perspectives, understandings, and become increasingly more solid, sustainable, and better prepared to react to new challenges.