Info is cheap, Knowledge is priceless…
I think it must just be the standardized assessment blues (our big state assessments are right around the corner), but I’m really feeling like we are squandering students’ time in the classroom. We spend so much time trying to “meet or exceed standards” by drilling information into students heads, that we are blind to more important issue of why are we learning? Information without context makes for a great “Trivial Pursuit” player but a poor worker/employee.
I cannot shake the suspicion K-12 educators, parents, and legislatures are blind to the fact that information is accessible and cheap to anybody with an Internet connection. It seems to me that many educational leaders and politicians still operate under the assumption that they are the solitary, or at least only worthy, conduit for academic learning. The problem with this assumption is that students today have access to fact checking sources outside the public schools. In fact, because of the Internet, students may actually be more informed than the instructor. This is making schools and teachers more irrelevant to students.
Of course, there are certain basics that need to learned by all students, but learning the basics shouldn’t be the goal of public education. Instead, it should be the first step. As educators we need to change ourselves from brokers of information to conveyors of knowledge. Now, we’ve heard this all before and for the most part this post is just a bit of ranting but I think there are a couple of key ideas that all educators should try to introduce into their classroom.
Here’s my top 3 ideas for developing knowledge, instead of regurgitating facts:
1. Student Portfolios:
The idea of a student portfolio has been around for a very long time. However, with advances in web technologies it is easier than ever for students to have a structured and/or unstructured portfolio that goes along with other forms of assessment. In particular, blogs seem like a natural fit for student eportfolios. Portfolios expect that students will reflect upon their learning and demonstrates changes in a student over time.
2. Project-Based Learning:
With the succession of standards based learning, we have moved to far from building knowledge from actual experiences. Doing project-based learning activities expose students to authentic tasks which require the practical use of information. This is the very essence of gaining knowledge.
3. Extended Learning Platforms:
Students operate in a 24/7 world. The classroom needs to be available in the same way. This can be achieved by providing a place that can be accessed anytime/anywhere. In particular, this is a great use for a Moodle Course, course blog, or course wiki. For those of you who are really brave, a school sponsored chat server would also be great! Extended learning platforms allow students to collaborate and contribute in ways that a teacher may not have thought of during their lesson planning.
Again, this is mostly rant but it is my first step forward in identifying how we can start changing the way we do business in education.