Image from Cyfernet.org"What children need is not new and better curricula but access to more and more of the real world; plenty of time and space to think over their experiences, and to use fantasy and play to make meaning out of them; and advice, road maps, guidebooks, to make it easier for them to get where they want to go (not where we think they ought to go), and to find out what they want to find out."
As the world is rapidly changing and schools lag behind, many parents are taking their children's education into their own hands. This morning in the New York Times Parenting blog, Chandra Hoffman describes her choice to home school her eight year old son this year. Her personal decision mostly comes down to her want to actually connect with her beaming, bright and cheeky son, rather than constantly falling into the role of nagging parent. Other parents feel strongly that the school, as an institution, has a damaging effect on children. And frankly, most schools are not preparing students for the world they live in. I believe that much of this has to do with the exacerbated American trend of our last two presidencies, standardized testing.
The emphasis on testing, overcrowded classrooms and poor results makes it difficult for teachers to bring life to their curricula - they are too busy trying to 'pass the test' themselves. The most tragic proof that we are not getting it right in schools is this;
"When student's are asked today to finish the question, school is ________, the word they most often use is boring. (Suarez-Orozco, Learning in the Global Era: International Perspectives on the New Millenium)"
This is because we are still using methods of educating that represent the factories of the industrial age - They even resemble factories and most employ rote methods of teaching and learning. But memorization of fact becomes obsolete very quickly in our era. If we want students to thrive, to pass the test, they need to be engaged with the world as they know it - the world as it is today.
The great progressive educator, John Dewey said, 'Education is life.' He is the modern father of experiential education; He believed that student's need to be empowered in their individual learning experience as well as active participants, preparing them to become effective members of a democratic society. Dewey argued that a one way, authoritarian style of teaching will not give students the preparation they need. It will require direct 'educational experiences that enable them to become valued, equal and responsible members of society.'
I argue that this requires more contact with the world, the invitation to use their hands, to do it themselves, and to develop artistry in communication with fellow human beings. Does this require 'Unschooling'? No, I don't think so. But, there is increasing evidence that mentor-style relationships are an important resource for the amelioration of learning in today's world.
The emphasis on testing, overcrowded classrooms and poor results makes it difficult for teachers to bring life to their curricula - they are too busy trying to 'pass the test' themselves. The most tragic proof that we are not getting it right in schools is this;
"When student's are asked today to finish the question, school is ________, the word they most often use is boring. (Suarez-Orozco, Learning in the Global Era: International Perspectives on the New Millenium)"
This is because we are still using methods of educating that represent the factories of the industrial age - They even resemble factories and most employ rote methods of teaching and learning. But memorization of fact becomes obsolete very quickly in our era. If we want students to thrive, to pass the test, they need to be engaged with the world as they know it - the world as it is today.
The great progressive educator, John Dewey said, 'Education is life.' He is the modern father of experiential education; He believed that student's need to be empowered in their individual learning experience as well as active participants, preparing them to become effective members of a democratic society. Dewey argued that a one way, authoritarian style of teaching will not give students the preparation they need. It will require direct 'educational experiences that enable them to become valued, equal and responsible members of society.'
I argue that this requires more contact with the world, the invitation to use their hands, to do it themselves, and to develop artistry in communication with fellow human beings. Does this require 'Unschooling'? No, I don't think so. But, there is increasing evidence that mentor-style relationships are an important resource for the amelioration of learning in today's world.
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