Sunday, November 27, 2011

Education in the Digital Age

By Will Deyamport, III, Ed.D. Candidate




















Let me be clear. I am not a K-12 teacher or administrator. I got into the ed game via out of school learning programs, so I have a different perspective. I was also trained as a Family Life Educator, which has had an undeniable impact on what I believe education is and what it should be.

For me education is about experience and how those experiences shape or inform how people see the world. And it is about exposing students to people, places, and ideals beyond what they see everyday. What this does is raise the expectations students place upon themselves.

In this digital age, that means understanding that learning is not insular and that ideas are bigger than the school, the neighborhood, the state, etc. Using Skype and various other emerging technologies, schools have a responsibility to students to provide them with opportunities to work in partnership with other students here in the U.S. and across the globe. It is with this type of engagement and interaction that students develop into critical and creative thinkers and global citizens, who have an appreciation for the commonality in the human experience.

It also means connecting with students and developing learning programs to address many of the issues students face in becoming free-thinking adults. This involves teaching students about dating, decision-making, identity, self-esteem, interpersonal relationships, as well as sexuality and sexual orientation. Openly and honestly addressing those issues is not only relevant to the experiences and educational needs of young adults, it “allows for [students to have the space] to develop their own beliefs and values” (Gutek, 2004, 284).

Education in the digital age is not about reading, writing, and arithmetic. It is about unleashing students creativity and creating spaces where students are free to be themselves, free to explore the subject-matter, and free to discover who they are and what they believe. This is no longer a world divided by distance or cultural segregation. And the way we educate our children should reflect that reality.

Reference

Gutek, G. L. (2004). Educational Philosophy and Changes. Boston: Pearson CustomPublishing.

Will Deyamport, III, is an Ed.D. Candidate, an education thought-leader and online content creator. His blog, PEOPLEGOGY, focuses on life and career developments. In addition to his 11 years of experience in education, he has interned with the likes of Ingrid Stabb and J. T. O’Donnell. Currently, Will is working on his dissertation, which focuses on using social media to individualize professional development for teachers.

Wednesday, November 23, 2011

The False Education Debate

By Will Deyamport, III, Ed.D. Candidate




















Innovation is all around us. From the cars we drive to phones we use to even how we watch movies. That is why the debate we educators are having about education reform should not be about traditional schools versus charter schools or cyber schools versus face-to-face instruction or public funding and control versus for-profit funding and control or unions versus non-unions. The real issue at hand is whether or not schools are going to remain factories or become talent incubators?

As of now, most of public education is built on a model that prepares students for a world that no longer exists. Instead, we need learning centers that prepare students for the ever-changing future. That means ditching rote memorization and a rigid curriculum designed around subject-areas. That also means designing schools that look and feel like communities centered on design-thinking and interdisciplinary project-based learning.

These kinds of schools, excuse me, learning centers, spur creativity, collaboration and allow students to take greater ownership of the learning process. They also allow for the free exchange of ideas and the making of meaning far beyond the learning of just facts and dates. Ultimately, what these learning centers will do is blur the lines between what is considered a classical education and the skills and knowledge-base needed to be competent in the digital age.

Will Deyamport, III, is an Ed.D. Candidate, an education thought-leader and online content creator. His blog, PEOPLEGOGY, focuses on life and career developments. In addition to his 11 years of experience in education, he has interned with the likes of Ingrid Stabb and J. T. O’Donnell. Currently, Will is working on his dissertation, which focuses on using social media to individualize professional development for teachers.

Sunday, November 13, 2011

Teachers and Life-long learning

By Anastasia Scott




















Just as it is a generalization to assume everyone can be sorted into digital natives and digital immigrants, it is impossible to say that all grass-root teachers shun technology. However, in my previous school, I could identify a handful of classroom teachers who embraced technology to the extent that I think society would expect of a 21st Century teacher. Some teachers at my school resisted technology completely: put their iPad in a cupboard; refused a digital camera to blog with; made phone calls instead of booking labs online. This year a deputy offered me a folder of school policies, all printed "because teachers can't find them on the server." I'm talking about experienced educators with a lot to offer any school environment.

I want to teach through technology. In fact give me a classroom without technology and I'll feel like a fish out of water. This isn't because I'm a 'digital native'. I don't think I'm a digital immigrant either. Whatever I am, I started my education degree without knowing how to use Microsoft Word. I was 24 years old and couldn't format a simple document. I've spent the last three years teaching ICT and helping those that want to learn, teach through technology. I taught myself and continue to seek out new ways to engage students in learning. Every teacher should be interested in the way education is changing and want to adapt. What good is a teacher who has forgotten how to learn or worse, refuses to?

South Korea is moving towards a fully digitized curriculum by 2015. This excites and intrigues me. Not just because it's a win for 21st Century learners but because it makes me wonder about teachers in Korea. Do they have better ICT skills than teachers in my school? Do they consider themselves 'life-long learners'? Do they have a choice? And it's the final question that puts a smile on my face. Evidently, they don't. Their digital curriculum is coming whether they like it or not. And that's what I wish teachers in my school had to face. A big announcement; a definitive moment in time when 21st Century classrooms become the norm. Because most grass-root teachers just don't believe it's here already. The future is now. We will always need good educators that use effective pedagogy - of course the learning comes first. But have they considered what a classroom will look like in 10 years? In 15 years? The changes we see in our classrooms: web 2.0; 1:1; flipped classrooms; the need for students to learn digital citizenship, are here to stay.

So how do we get resistant teachers on board? Ask them five questions:

• Are you a life-long learner? (Really?)
• How do you model the qualities of a life-long learner in your classroom/staff room?
• What do you think classrooms/learning will look like in ten years?
• What are you doing today, to transform your pedagogy to suit the future?
• Can I help/show/guide you?

And if they say no, ask them again. Are you a life-long learner?

Anastasia Scott is an Australian educator with an interest in ICT, robotics and 21st Century learning. Previously an ICT teacher and mentor, Anastasia is Senior Account Manager for Intrepica, an online English literacy resource, providing professional development, mentoring and pedagogical support for teachers. Follow on Twitter @AnastasiaScott