Because of my firm belief in technology’s ability to level the playing field and open doors for all children, regardless of race, socio-economic background, or exceptionalism, I am driven to making sure that teachers (and parents) have the technology, vision and skills they need to unleash the unlimited potential in their children.
We can’t educate students who have been raised in a world of instant, interactive information by simply thinking up clever ways to use computers in the typical row-and-column classroom activities. What Roland Barth calls the “cemetery method”… neat rows and very still.
We have to ask ourselves what principled changes should we make in our classroom to ensure that we are developing the skill set these students will need as they face the challenges of the future? Are we preparing kids for yesterday, today, or tomorrow? Do our schools currently focus upon the skills of the past—or the skills of the future? Are current classroom techniques helping those we teach become future scientists, technologists, and imagineers who will pioneer jobs of the future?
Are we developing skills such as:
- Personal and social responsibility
- Planning, critical thinking, reasoning, and creativity
- Strong communication skills with a global emphasis
- Cross-cultural understanding
- Visualizing and decision-making
For best results we need to use open-ended, performance based lessons that use technology as a tool. We need to use collaborative and problem-based learning to help students create and construct knowledge. Computers should be used as a vehicle for student directed learning.
Please feel free to weigh in and share. I look forward to learning from you.
Latest posts by Sheryl Nussbaum-Beach (see all)
- “We have done this before, we can do it again.” - October 15, 2020
- Are you Remote Learning or Connected Learning? - October 6, 2020
- Passion Based Learning: Personalize Your Blended Curriculum - September 4, 2020
