Education vs. School

"In times of profound change, the learners inherit the earth, while the learned find themselves beautifully equipped to deal with a world that no longer exists." —Al Rogers, pioneer in long-distance learning 

What exactly is the educational role of schools these days? Are schools flexible enough to meet the challenges of 21st century learning, or are they dinosaurs on the brink of extinction? Are stakeholders—teachers, administrators, students, parents, politicians, and bureaucrats alike—prepared for the looming academic cliff?

Are we brave enough, heroic enough, humble enough to discard the failed systems of thinking and finally embrace authentic, intrinsic, hyperconnected learning... or will we continue our desperate cling to a technophobic past that is doomed to collapse under the crushing, extrinsically-motivated weight of grades, test scores, heartless competition, and race to the top?

(And how complicit am I in perpetuating this anachronistic march toward obscurity?)

Of these questions and more I ponder...

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Thanks to for the love of learning, et al., for sharing this video

Ouch

The 2012 state of science standards: Colorado = D

"American science performance is lagging as the economy becomes increasingly high tech, but our current science standards are doing little to solve the problem. Reviewers [at the Thomas B. Fordham Institute] evaluated science standards for every state for this report and their findings were deeply troubling: The majority of states earned Ds or Fs for their standards in this crucial subject, with only six jurisdictions receiving As. Explore all the state report cards and see how your state performed."

I'm looking forward to the Next Generation Science Standards...

Value: Captured or Created?

"Create more value than you capture." —Tim O'Reilly, technical book publisher and entrepreneur

A recent article written by Tim O'Reilly mused about value creation vs. value capture, which got me thinking about educational value: Are we creating value or capturing value?

Image courtesy of morgueFile

With relentless emphasis on grades and test scores, I feel that today's schools and students are more focused on "value capture" than "value creation." The result is a motivation gap that is both widening and deepening within our education system—extrinsically motivated schools and students intent on grades and test scores engage more in value capture than those who seek intrinsic motivation and value creation. Of these two approaches, value capture is short-sighted and unsustainable, relying more on instant gratification and temporary "feel goods" than lifelong learning.

A continued diet of value capture (devoid of enduring understanding and lacking longterm transfer of skills and knowledge) will ultimately drive us toward intellectual starvation...

Writing in Science Class

A question posted recently on the National Science Teachers Association blog caught my attention:

We’re having a discussion in our secondary school science department. Some of us think our lessons should incorporate more opportunities for students to learn how to write, while others maintain there’s little time for writing and that’s the job of the English teachers. Who is correct?

I felt compelled to respond:

Communication in all forms is fundamental to science; therefore, writing should be a regular part of the science classroom. Teaching the writing process should not be the exclusive domain of just one teacher or department, but should be shared as part of school, grade level, and/or department goals and curricular expectations. Arbitrarily injecting writing exercises into the science classroom is neither the most efficient nor most effective approach to the task—common language among teachers and students as well as common writing strategies are needed to help maximize student progress in writing. 

Image courtesy of morgueFile

Including the process of writing into the science curriculum takes time, effort, resources, and collaboration—it’s tough to go it alone. It takes a shared vision and commitment to help students become better writers in all disciplines. 

While it may be (and is) daunting to add “one more thing” to the science classroom, better writers ultimately enhance all learning. Start small—incorporate one simple, manageable, and authentic strategy into your existing science repertoire, such as writing descriptive titles or writing scientific questions—then slowly build from there. The key to success is modeling and practicing the process until it becomes routine and comfortable to you and your students. 

As a science teacher, I shared the exact same questions and concerns as you when we first started emphasizing writing at our school many years ago. Now, writing (as well as reading, math, and other shared practices) is a regular and natural part of our everyday science experience, which is a source of pride and achievement for our students, our teachers, and our school.

What Is a Research Question?

During a recent professional development session among middle level science teachers, we pondered the criteria for an excellent research question. Powerful ideas emerged from our collective thinking.

Investigating Heating and Cooling Rates

An excellent research question:

• clearly identifies variables that will be tested
• helps visualize/identify equipment and materials needed to perform tests
• provides information about data that can be collected during the test
• is related to background information and observations
• reveals thinking about causes and effects
• is realistic, real world, and testable
• uses specific content vocabulary

There was a palpable feeling of accomplishment and pride at the end of our collaborative session, as we celebrated our continued progress in developing a common vision for authentic and meaningful science learning in our school district.

I know that professional development days can often cause inconvenience for parents, but providing quality collaboration time for teachers is a worthy investment in our children's education. Thank you for indulging us in these rich and rewarding professional experiences.

Delusion of Grades

"The purpose of school is to get good grades," declared one of my students recently. The delusion of grades strikes again.

National Academies:
21st Century Domains of Competence

Online gradebooks prominently display A's, B's, C's immediately upon student/parent login. Digital D&F reports are emailed to school staff weekly. Paper D&F reports are mailed to parents at the middle of each trimester. Athletic eligibility is dependent on grades. Honor rolls, 504 plans, parent conferences—all are grade-focused. At every turn, grades dictate the academic measure of our children.

In the face of never-ending grades, my quest to be a progressive educator who values and prioritizes learning over grades often feels like a losing battle. Grades are confounding—they distract students, parents, and teachers from creating authentic learning spaces and from having meaningful conversations about learning. We are deluding ourselves with grades...

How can we counterbalance grade delusion in the classroom? While I am still required to keep a traditional gradebook, there are a number of things I've done to de-emphasize grades while facilitating better conversations about learning:

• I write only concise and useful feedback on student papers, but no grades—grades are entered into the electronic gradebook,
• I create holistic Help Guides and Standards of Excellence that outline what high quality learning looks like in the classroom—students use these to edit and check their work,
• I let my students see that I am a lifelong learner, and most importantly,
• I strive to have one-on-one conversations about learning with my students every day… while they are actually learning.

Despite these practices, much work remains to overcome grade delusion.

If we continue to prioritize grades over learning, we delude ourselves into thinking we can create environments of intrinsic motivation and lifelong learning in our schools. Grades reinforce a system of external rewards and extrinsic motivation; they frequently disenfranchise and ultimately disempower students.

The National Academies has developed a set of guidelines that emphasize deeper learning and transferable knowledge as part of a student's 21st century skill set. These skills have been preliminarily organized into three domains of competence—cognitive, intrapersonal, and interpersonal—as a way to help define education in lifelong terms. Our conversations within schools, among students, between teachers and parents, and across the wider community need more focus on these competencies and deeper learning.

To teach for deeper learning, the National Academies guidelines recommends that instruction follow these research-based teaching methods:

• Use multiple and varied representations of concepts and tasks
• Encourage elaboration, questioning, and explanation
• Engage learners in challenging tasks
• Teach with examples and cases
• Prime student motivation
• Use “formative” assessments

Happily, I don't see any mention of grades in that list…

To break the cycle of grade delusion, perhaps we adults can teach ourselves to ask students, "What did you learn today?" and have it stimulate rich and compelling conversations.

Our Misplaced Fears about Technology

School teachers and administrators have a moral and ethical obligation to help students learn how to be conscientious 21st century citizens. When it comes to technology, though, we are failing in our obligation. Twice in this brand new school year I've heard well-meaning, but badly misplaced, messages from adults about the perils of technology. It seems that technology is the scapegoat for any less-than-desirable behavior among adults and children. Borne out of fear and ignorance, our biased view of technology reveals our technological illiteracy and ultimately perpetuates negative stereotypes and misconceptions.

Image courtesy of morgueFile

Technology itself is neither bad nor evil. The Facebooks, Twitters, and other social media environments of the digital universe all have the potential for both harm and good. In my opinion, the good far outweighs the bad. These technologies allow us to make global connections with a diverse range of peoples, cultures, and organizations, greatly enhancing our ability to share, learn, and grow. Our hyperconnectivity stimulates our social evolution and brings us closer together.

Sadly, school systems still seem ill-equipped to address the challenges and potentials of technology. It is easier to ban, censor, and filter than commit ourselves to promoting and encouraging positive digital citizenship. Is it any wonder that we find kids turned off by school when we ask them to turn off the very devices and networks that are most important in their lives? We can, and should, do better…

The International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) publishes some of the most comprehensive and forward-thinking guidelines for technology. ISTE's family of National Educational Technology Standards (NETS)—for students, teachers, and administrators—provides guidance about 21st century digital skills and best practices. I believe they should be required study for all educators and administrators.

While children certainly must be protected from harm and exploitation, they also must be empowered to make responsible decisions about technology. Because technology has forever changed the landscape of our children's lives, it is incumbent upon adult educators to stop hiding and start embracing the power and potential of technology. On the arc of digital history, censoring and prohibiting technology in schools places us on the wrong pathway.