As a technology integration specialist, and a recent masters graduate student, I have heard just about every buzz word that education has to offer. The Flipped Classroom, Response to Intervention (RtI), No Child Left Behind (NCLB), Common Core standards, project-based learning, 21st Century Skills, embedded technology, integrated themes and units, Universal Design for Learning, teaching to all of the modalities, online learning platforms, Professional Learning Communities (PLCs), Professional Learning Networks (PLNs), and service learning to just name a few.
(Photo courtesy of the Green Market)
It’s no wonder educators are feeling overwhelmed! All of these terms, pedagogies, and mandates feel like extra portions on a teacher’s already filled lunch tray. On top of that, teachers still need to make learning fun and engaging for students and get through a rigorous curriculum. No problem! Teachers are over payed anyhow. Ya right!
So how does one manage all of these things in a given school year with restrictions like bells, start and end times, physical spaces to congregate and organize students by their age or “born on dates”? The simple answer for the doubters, the disbelievers and the ones still stuck on how they learned in school years long ago, is you cannot. Change seems to be a slow going process for many, and in the world of education at times if feels like we are on a treadmill not going anywhere. I mean we are still tossing around the term 21st Century Skills like it’s something new, and yet here we are 13 years into the 21st century.
These aren’t new skills, and neither are any of the ones listed above. The theories for all of these terms and teaching styles were theorized, developed and even implemented years ago by change agents in the field. These were the pioneers, the outside of the box thinkers, and the people that inspired early adopters to make the leap with them. Many were case studies, thesis papers and grant funded research based projects. In theory, they all work and there is data to prove it, however, nobody says that they can all work at the same time all the time.
(Photo courtesy of the Russell Revue)
Flexibility, adaptation, multi-tasking, and willingness to support change. These are the skills of the future. They aren’t any different then what they mean today, but in our ever changing world, these are the skills that are becoming more and more necessary to be successful in your career and in life. People that excel in communication, collaboration and creativity and are critical thinkers and problem solvers will find that they can find success in just about any field they choose. A well rounded student will still be a successful citizen in our future.
As educators, we need to provide students with many different forms of learning, and allow them to observe their own strengths and weaknesses. We need to push them as learners and drop them into situations and scenarios that are unfamiliar to them. Give them open ended projects, allow students to make decisions about their learning in the classroom, and break down the walls of the traditional teaching model and school.
(Photo courtesy of Educational Development Centre Blog)
Students these days are learning off of school clock hours. Whether it be from friends that they see face-to-face or in another part of the world via social networks and the Internet. Why should we as educators limit our teaching to the traditional restrictions of education? It’s time we adapt as teachers, and allow students to help transform education to meet their needs for all of our futures. We all can make a difference by taking small steps towards change and realizing that nothing transforms over night.
