21st Century Learning

Another Brick in the Wall

Watching my kids play Guitar Hero and was reminded of the the Pink Floyd song  ‘Another Brick in the Wall’. The   lyrics of this song contain the words “We   don’t need no education”, sung in a dirge-like tone.  Then shouting the lyrics... “Teachers,   leave those kids alone.”   This song is a product of the late twentieth century and seems to be a comment   on education in the post-industrial age. It pushes me to ask...
Can   a mass education system, designed during an industrial age, closely modelled   on a factory system, be appropriate for this post-industrial age?

While at NSDC an IT director from Virginia shared this clip with my friend John Norton. It was made by a teacher in her district. It is a great representation of this whole idea of being the first generation of teachers who are preparing kids for jobs that havent even been invented yet.
I think the clip would serve as a great way to get a discussion going at a staff meeting.

http://www.abpc21.org/res/new_skills.mov

Knowing that we are preparing our children for jobs that haven’t even been invented yet--Will they be better prepared by taking a test at the end of high school, or by playing video games that they invent themselves?

We simply have to redesign/reframe education if we want to remain relevant.

WHAT SUGGESTIONS DO YOU HAVE FOR MEETING THE NEEDS OF A CURRICULUM FOR THE 21ST CENTURY?

IN WHAT WAYS MIGHT INDIVIDUAL TEACHERS ADDRESS THE PROBLEMS OF MAKING PRINCIPLED CHANGES IN WHAT AND HOW WE TEACH?

IN WHAT WAYS MIGHT WEB 2.0 HELP YOU ADDRESS THE REFRAMING OF OUR CURRICULA FOR THE 21ST CENTURY?

WHAT SKILLS DO STUDENTS NEED TO MASTER and IN WHAT WAYS MIGHT THEY BE LEARNED THROUGH REFRAMED CURRICULA FOR THE 21ST CENTURY?

If we do not redesign ourselves as educators and redesign our curricula to meet the needs of an information driven society then education will soon be so outdated that "school" will be just another 'brick in the wall.'

Check out this cartoon... it is just a matter of time before kids really are outsourcing their homework to India.

Uh OH! Scratch that they already are-- Kids are already outsourcing homework-- it will be a matter of time with Web 2.0 before we will be outsourcing a child's education!

http://www.thestalwart.com/the_stalwart/2006/01/outsourcing_hom.html

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/09/10/weekinreview/10mcgrath.html?ex=1315540800&en=8f78cd4bdf316df3&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss

I Generation- Hey You're Part of IT!

This is who we teach. This is the medium they use. We need to speak in their native tongue.

If Not Us, Then Who?

I was over at  Around the Corner where Miguel Guhlin posts, reading his latest Girls and their Gadgets

I was moved. I so identified with the ideas and feelings he expressed.

I'm sorry, I see the benefits, but it appears that giving kids access to  the Read/Write web is like putting a loaded pistol in their hands without education. And, how many kids have to be bullied online before everyone wakes up (no, not you edubloggers...the other people who haven't read your blogs) and realizes that digital citizenship, that       education is the only way?

I remember I watched a documentary on automobile safety once. It emphasized the problems this innovation had in the beginning before they had figured out the rules and regulations of driving. Lots of people died and were hurt. Because this was a new technology (cars) they had to figure out what to do to keep folks safe as things happened. Mistakes were made. Rules were rethought. Lives were saved.

I have four kids. The youngest is 18. I have taught them all to drive. As they showed responsibility, I let them have their own car. I also let schools help educate them about driving and to practice driving with them. But I never relinquished my primary responsibility in determine when they were ready. For one of my children that was at 16 and for another it wasn’t until 18. And now, I still ride with them occasionally and gently coach from the side. Because like the Web, cars can be dangerous places.

The point being, as a society we didn’t just say-- look this car thing, yeah it has great potential, but at what cost? Folks who championed the cause saw it through and did what they could to protect and educate along the way until they got it worked out.

My Space. What a mess. I have one daughter there who is 24 and we have an ongoing conversation about what is appropriate and why online. She is an adult, but I still coach her through this Wild West Web.  I have a My Space account. So should you. I model responsible use. And those  who I am trying to influence think I am cool to be there.  It  serves as a cultural identifier that let's me have a place at their table and enter into their conversations.

My second daughter and son have bailed from My Space and they are using Facebook, this in some ways is much better. At least many of the pictures of past students I am finding are less sensual and the conversations are usually about their studies in college. There are abuses there too, but it seems to be less.

My youngest daughter, 18 who still lives at home, has chosen to avoid both. She blogs on Live Journal and not as often. However, she can text message and uses her Ipod like there is no tomorrow.  It was her choice not mine, and her friends rag her for it all the time. I am so proud of her for taking a stand.

Miguel thoughts continued to resonate...

As an ed-tech admin, I can sympathize...I want to turn off the Web at school and home. I have to fight that urge. It's too simplistic a response...it's too late to do that. We have to move forward, painful as the journey is and will become.

I also wish at times we could just turn it all off. Just as I wished they never had to drive. As parents and educators it is natural and right to want to protect our children and students. But rather, our job is to teach them to use the tools they need to survive in society in the safety net of our homes and schools, so that when they step out to use these tools unsupervised they will be discerning.

It is mentally overwhelming. I remember when they placed that first child in my arms thinking, “How will I ever do this all right?” I had a similar reaction my first day in the classroom. But if not us, as their parents and mentors, then who? We cannot simply give up. We have to go where they are and model and coach. We have to be consistent. We have to care deeply and remember that for some of the students we teach, we are the only significant adult with which they will ever have meaningful conversations around this topic.

We teach students to not run with scissors, to not talk to strangers, and to travel safely in a 5000lb lethal weapon. We can teach them to be safe and healthy on the Web.

Thank you fellow educators for all you are doing to help make this realty. Working together we can each make a huge difference for the students on our watch. And who knows? We just might hit the "Tipping Point" in our lifetime. In the meantime, we are helping to champion the rules of the road, much like they did at the onset of the automobile.

Comes so Easy

Creativity has always come easy for me. I love problem solving, brainstorming, and idea sharing. I remember watching Bewitched as a kid and wanting to grow up and do her husband Darrin Stephen's job. He was a rising young advertising executive who worked at the New York firm of McMahon and Tate. The shows where he had to come up with a clever idea for a product were my favorite.

When I started teaching I put as much of my creativity into my delivery and assignments as possible. I would take whole walls and turn them into creative displays that tied to what we were studying to capture my student's interest.   
The kids in my classes thrived. I thrived. By attaching standards-based curriculum to highly creative tasks of the student's own choosing--retention was improved.

Netgenrs learn best this way. It really is all they have ever known in terms of the way they process information. My favorite example of this is the new hp personal computer ad campaign.

Check this...Shaun White  This is who they are. I know. I have lived with four of them.

All my kids blog. I didnt teach them to blog. They never called it blogging. They called it "my live journal account" -- they didnt think about it as a "have to" task. Rather it was like breathing. It came natural and in rhythmic patterns.

Most of what they post is amazing to me. Of course it would be--I am their biggest fan. However, I dont agree with everything they post and I use those posts as teachable moments. We sit and talk about why and what they posted. Sometimes I explain that the Web is forever-- and future employers will check them out via a Google search and those posts will be there. I explain that as they grow, they will change. Sometimes drastically-- political views will change, values will mature and that they need to think about what they write. Sometimes it is paradigm views  we discuss from their posts-- why something is ethically wrong or harmful to others. Sometimes I use their posts to parent -- I discover something they have done, thought, or said that maybe needs some "mom" coaching from the sidelines. And sometimes they have posted something that has personal information showing up on a search. (I search them regularly)

A real advantage of the Web 2.0-- My Space included-- is that parents can really get to know their kids. Know what they think and feel and how they are wanting to be preceived. If used constructively, this is a huge plus for parents. My generation didnt talk to our parents. My mom had no idea who I really was. This generation-- they not only talk, they post it online. It is a powerful relationship building tool. And they love the fact that I am reading. I cant count the number of times my daughters were indignant that I didnt know something they had watched or felt --as they had posted it...why hadnt I read it?

As educators we need to teach our parents how to use the Read Write Web to become truly engaged with their children on their turf. To speak in a love language that they understand. If we can get parents involved on that level we will have bridged the generation gap. There is so much to learn from our kids. They are activists by nature. They care deeply. I am a better person from having been a regular reader of my children's postings. They in return have given more thought to what they post.
It is a win-win.

Want to check out my kid's blogs? Please do. But be forewarned-- they are kids and while there are moments of brilliance-- there are just as many that are a bit typical of kids their age.

Amber is 24 and a graphic designer

Heidi is 22 and works in an oncology unit at the hospital. She is working on her Physican Assistant's degree and has just begun this blog.

Noah is 20 (in less than a month) and has taken a temporary rest from posting as his online time is spent gaming.

Grace is 18 and pursuing a degree in theatre.

Digital Students @ Analog Schools

Click Here  to see a movie made by digital learners about how they are trapped in schools who still teach using analog strategies. I came across the clip in a comment left on Will Richardson's site where he was blogging about the Building Learning Communities conference he and everyone else but me were attending. I so hate being left out!

He was descring the keynote by Marco Torres here is  (his Web site)  The more clicks I make on this guy the more I am discovering my next hero! His motto on his Web site says..."stay curious, stay hungry, be creative!" Man- I love that! His student's work made me reevaluate everything. I think that is the answer for all that ills education-- we havent stayed curious, hungry, or creative!

Steve Dembo blogged about his keynote as well. I love this quote...
Teachers have three options, you can quit, complain or innovate.

I have no idea how this brilliant man stayed off my radar screen for so long. Trust me-- you will be hearing more about Marco Torres

Net Generation Learners

Link to: Techfoot Speaking with Understanding About Net Gen Learners

When it comes to understanding the use of media in education and development, take a tip from the professor.

Christopher Dede, Timothy E. Wirth Professor in Learning Technologies at Harvard Graduate School of Education says, “Don’t start with the technology, when you start with technology, it’s a solution looking for a problem.” He starts, instead, with learning styles. “No matter what age you are, your learning style can be shaped by the kind of media you use.” See article

With all the Net Gen Learner hype I think it is important to note that exposure plays an important role in shaping the processing styles of the individual. I relate to most of the traits listed for Net Gen Learners and I was born in 1957.

Over the next ten years, Dede predicts three major interfaces will shape how people learn.

1. The Desktop Interface. Already familiar to computer users, this tool offers access to distant experts and archives, and enables collaboration.

2. Avatars. This learning tool might be more familiar to kids today than to adults. Dede calls this “the Alice-In-Wonderland environment,” in which a self-created digital character interacts with other digital characters. Multi-user virtual environments, or MUVEs, are growing in popularity, and allow learners to transcend their physical selves and help design their own virtual environments.

3. Ubiquitous Computing. A growing number of mobile wireless devices (like cell phones and Palm Pilots) incorporate virtual resources into everyday life. “Smart objects,” says Dede, “make intelligent contexts.” Someday soon, cell phones might use their embedded GPS technology to provide a physical location to others with common interests.

John Norton of the Teacher Leaders Network has a great resource page for ideas such as these. It can be found at: http://www.teacherleaders.org/Resources/technology.html