Embracing the 21st Century

Throughout the courses in this Master’s of Educational Leadership has been the theme of inquiry based learning. As I mentioned in a previous post on Investigating Inquiry (February 18, 2017), the fairly recent focus on inquiry based learning and a constructivist approach to teaching is both welcome and intimidating. Our current course is on assessment, curriculum, and instruction - none of which should exist without the other - and I have found myself reading with enthusiasm the “textbook”. Now, I realize that saying those words highlights my nerdy side, but I have to say that for a book on such a potentially dry topic, Interweaving Curriculum and Classroom Assessment by Drake, Reid, and Kolohon (2014) is actually an extremely motivational read. I find myself filled with the tingly, proud feeling that I am a teacher! (albeit one a wee bit overwhelmed by the inspirational teachers outlined in the book…) For any teacher seeking ways to embrace the 21st century in the classroom, this book is a beautiful read. Even though it was written just before the new BC curriculum was unveiled, the concepts and suggestions outlined in the book fit perfectly with the core competencies and curricular competencies we’re wrapping our brains around.

It’s almost as if the new curriculum was based on research!  

Continuing with this topic of inquiry based learning, this class we watched a TED talk from Sugata Mitra (https://www.ted.com/speakers/sugata_mitra) which is well worth the watch! Mitra has been exploring the (frankly) unbelievable innovation that children will show when they are motivated to learn. Mitra traveled the most remote parts of India, placing a “Hole in the Wall” computer for children to access...and then leaving. When he returned months later, he was inevitably amazed to discover that without a teacher the children had taught themselves English (which they needed to navigate the internet) and were exploring concepts one would have thought to be far out of their reach. There are of course questions that arise to our teacher minds as we watch the video (our class outlined many of them!) but the undeniable truth remains: when children are engaged, there are no boundaries. This seems to me to be the foundation of inquiry based learning. How can we engage students, while helping them to develop the tools to be lifelong learners and agents of change in the world? It’s a huge, multifaceted question - which is why it is a focus for us as budding educational leaders!