Shifting The Pedagogical Focus

In a recent article published on The Guardian "In an age of robots, schools are teaching our children to be redundant" by George Monbiot, I was especially impacted by the statement, "At present we are stuck with the social engineering of an industrial workforce in a post-industrial era." The significant impact on me here is the accuracy with which this statement is characterized in our schools on a daily basis. As technology and innovation continues to grow at unprecedented rates, I am consistently experiencing students being taught through 19th century methods and structures. Students continue to sit in rows, working on paper worksheets (or digital worksheets), all completing the exact same assignments, and turning them in for a teacher to grade/give feedback to prepare for testing of rote memorization and recall skills.

Developing Thinkers

   

      I recently came across an article from the Harvard Ed Magazine titled Bored Out of Their Minds by Zachary Jason.  It's an interesting read and one I hope it's widely circulated in a quick manner.  In short, the article claims students are bored out of their minds in today's classrooms for four main reasons:

1. An escalating emphasis on standardized tests
2. The novelty of school itself fades with each grade
3. Lack of motivation
4. The transition from tactile and creative to cerebral and regimented

Fatherhood!

On February 29, 2016 I became a father for the first time.  It is such an amazing experience that it can be hard to find the right words to describe such a life-changing event.  I've had people ask me many questions about the experience, my new daughter, and how it has changed my life.  Every time someone asks me about it, I seem to find myself in the same position...struggling to find the words and wondering to myself exactly how it has or will change my life.  These are precisely the reasons I've chosen to write about it here.

Expectations for Student Device Use in Classrooms

I was recently engaged in a conversation with other educators of my PLN about a controversial topic that continues to surface in education. With the influx of devices for student learning, there is often controversy and differences of opinions around use, restrictions, and requirements for students. The conversation I engaged in was surprisingly rich and provided a variety of different view points. As a result, I seized the opportunity to reflect on my own philosophy and thoughts about the topic. The following are not suggestions nor my agenda in regards to student device usage but rather, the ways in which I've thought about and implemented practices with students for many years.

Supporting Teachers with Creating Magic

Education has faced recent criticisms from all angles and stakeholders and for good reason. Students in many schools speak of boredom, disengagement, and lack of learning.  Parents have also chimed in expressing dissatisfaction about student preparedness for college and the 21st century workplace.  Why is the typical education for most students, and specifically those in public education, not meeting the needs? Why do schools continue to operate in a traditional sense regardless of changes to the world and its societies?