Curious George Plugs In

Last Tuesday, we attended a very informative "Digital Learning" session with George Couros, the Division Principal of Innovative Teaching and Learning for Parkland School Division in Alberta. A primary theme of the session was that learning can (and does) exist in a variety of contexts – classrooms are not necessarily the ultimate learning center. Given the expertise and “innate” abilities students bring to the use of technology, access to learning outside of the classroom is easier than ever. As educators we must embrace this notion and change our practice to include the use of as many Learning Experience access points as possible. If students don’t have the opportunity to access with us, they will inevitably access on their own.

It appears that the gauntlet has been thrown down for educators to start challenging the way we deliver education. If a student wants to learn how to do something, they can learn it on the Internet in a wide variety of formats, pressing stop and rewind many times over until it is learned.  Are teachers becoming obsolete? There seems to be an undercurrent of fear washing through the current wave of educational change. No one really says it; it’s just a feeling. Maybe it’s the fear of not knowing what will change, or maybe it’s the fear of change itself that is so threatening.

We need educators and we will always need educators! 

…There we’ve said it.  Ahhhh... now that feels better. 

Now can we just move on with it!

It has been the past hubris of our educational system to think that the only effective way to learn is with a teacher in a classroom. In previous blogs we have been discussing the shifting role of classroom learning. This discussion, for us, always seems to mire down in shades of grey. We’re having a difficult time pinning down what exactly it is that is going to change. Maybe it’s just simply the letting go of the notion that the teacher is the keeper of the knowledge. This can be quite a fundamental shift for some educators because it  translates into a loss of control or power in the classroom. This is a very scary proposition and a real fear for some educators. In order to overcome this fear, our perspective and view of learning must change.

At every ring of the school bell, we enter into a contract with our students: they occupy a designated location and we work to ensure there are appropriate learning opportunities. Former Deputy Superintendent of Surrey Schools Peter Drescher describes the teacher’s role as one of “Designing meaningful learning experiences”. The words here are key: they are “experiences” that are “meaningful” in the context of the individual, the class, the school, and the community. They are learning experiences, not teaching experiences.

For us, this begs the question, did Gutenberg transform society or did the application of Gutenberg’s invention allow society to be transformed? We’re arguing that it’s not the tool that really changes anything, it’s the application of the tool that allows change to take place. Some might say this is semantics, but we think it is deeper than that. The use of technology in schools will not change the way students learn. Students will just have greater access to learning experiences. In the end, the teacher is the one who, through their myriad on experiences, provides the contexts, connections and relevance. A student that learns to dance from a video on YouTube may learn how to dance, but they will be void of the greater historical context and implied meaning of dance. Yes, we value learning at your own pace and time, but for learning to have depth, it must have deeper, richer more connective understanding.  As Couros says, “If all you’re using the Internet for is to look stuff up, then you’re missing the point”. Ironically, learning follows the same suit: if learning is nothing but a downward process (teacher down to student) then we’re all missing the point.

If our obligation and objective is to meet the learning needs of the students, are we able to still justify mandated classroom time if students can access learning elsewhere?  As students are exposed to an ever-expanding volume of access points to learning, it becomes our work to include these avenues in the delivery of education. If we don’t provide enough variety of learning opportunities, our students will inevitably find it elsewhere.

Identify the stakeholders…       Trust the process…      Trust the people…