Learning for me, and I’m sure many others, was never about memorizing facts, dates, and formulas. True learning was the ability to think about a topic or problem critically, use resources I had available, and create a solution or an argument. In most subjects I did not develop the skills to do these things by taking traditional “tests.”
This is the same sentiment that is shared by Nicholas Negroponte in the video, “Being Educated.” He wants an overhaul on the entire U.S. educational system. He wants to do away with the inordinate amount of tests being given to our students and shift to more project-based learning strategies.
This is in line with how I plan to teach. I want the students to struggle, and think their way through problems. I want them to use prior knowledge, ask questions, and rationalize. I want them to see that the development of this kind of thinking doesn’t stop once you leave the classroom, but will be how they continue to solve problems for the rest of their lives
Negroponte is not aimlessly pontificating about education; he backs it up with an example of Finland’s current educational model. Here is a nation that believes in no homework, short class days, and no tests. The central focus is on having students engaged in hands on learning that challenges them to investigate and find the best solution. Technology can be the perfect platform to use to have students discover these skills. Negroponte points out that children who write computer code, often times would be better spellers than children who didn’t, due to problem solving skills they developed while trying to fix broken code.
This style of learning promotes students to be “out of the box,” thinkers, which the world needs more of. The answers to the complex problems that we are going to be faced with are not going to be found in the back of a textbook.
Negroponte, N. (2015, April, 4). Being Educated. The Brainwaves Video Anthology.
Retrieved from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2fIuZa_- H60&index=26&list=PLbRLdW37G3oMquOaC-HeUIt6CWk-FzaGp