Merry Christmas!

Here is wishing you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year 

(Not so) Random Thoughts

It has been a while since I have posted (again) as it seems like putting down something coherent and well thought out just takes a little to much time and effort these days.  However, I do have a few things that have been bouncing around my head that I will share even if they come across as a little scattered and incomplete thoughts.  Besides let's be honest that is the type of thinking I do best  anyway.

First, being an educator the last year or so I have been bombarded by the latest educational trend... Professional Learning Communities, no wait that was 2005.  I mean, 21st Century Learning.  This latest trend in education is all about using technology to solve problems, access information, collaborate and think critically about the world around us.  So how can this be a bad thing?  Well that is my issue, I am on board with all of these concepts, in fact, I was on board before the 21st Century when I started my Master's program in Educational Technology in 1994.  The issue I have is how all of a sudden the 21st Century Learning movement has become a tag line to every educational conversation with educators announcing on Twitter (in 140 characters or less) how we must understand the world is changing and we need to produce thinkers who focus on process and not content.  Recently, I read a blog posting from a colleague I very much respect, that explained how different the world is for students now from when we were in school and how we need to prepare them for jobs that don't even exist today.  Again, all good points, however, what I take issue with is the idea that all of this is something new to education and that the system is broken and failing (this always seems to be an undercurrent to the 21st Century conversations).  My grandmother is 101 years old in January and I would argue has lived through the world's greatest era of change.  I am pretty sure that in her life she felt felt the need to adapt to new jobs, industries and technology.  She also would have needed great problem solving skills and an adaptable understanding of the world around her to deal with things like flight, the automobile, radio, television, online banking, and the list goes on.  I know for a fact that when I was a student my teachers focused on critical thinking and problem solving.  Yes, there was some content memorization involved and some rote learning activities but there was also a balance of skill building and content related topics that would broaden my learning and let me apply new skills.  I never felt that I had a teacher (even the bad ones) that were trying to turn me into a mindless factory worker which is sometimes how our 20th Century education system seems to be portrayed.  If we really wanted to focus on 21st Century learning we would return to a skill-based curriculum that was not void of content but allowed opportunities for students to be learn, build and apply skills and knowledge.  Perhaps a renewed focus on the quality of interactions and thoughtful responses in a world that is reduced to text messages and 6 second vine videos is really the skillset that will help our students further themselves over the next 50 years. 

I could go on but then this post would start to be a little too focused for one titled Random Thoughts.  The next thing that is bugging me is the whole "let our kids play" movement.  Again, this is difficult for me because I am a firm believer that we over schedule, over protect, over coach, over teach, over supervise kids.  I absolutely believe in the value and importance of unstructured play and the need for kids to get out, explore nature, skin their knees, fall down and pick themselves back up.  However, what I have a huge issue with is the idealized way adults seem to view their childhoods.  I will tell you I had a great childhood and I did all of the things a typical kid growing up in Canada would do.  Summers were spent camping and enjoying various lakes and family get togethers, winters I played hockey and skied and life was very good.  I did well in school, had good friends, was a decent athlete,  a typical well rounded Canadian teenager.  Despite all of that I will say my kids have it better than I did and are better in every respect than I was as a child.  They have more opportunities in sports and academics than I ever had, they work harder and are more dedicated and focussed than I was.  Sure they don't roam around the neighbourhood going from friend's house to friend's house or playing street hockey at the elementary school until dark without parents even knowing where they are but let me tell you as good as unstructured, unsupervised play can be there was a lot of bad things going on in the neighbourhood basements and playgrounds as well.  I just don't believe in the "lots of stuff happened when we were young and we turned out OK" argument. When I was a child people also smoked when they were pregnant and didn't wear seatbelts but we don't glamorize those things as the good old days. Having kids set goals and work hard to make them become a reality is not the problem.  The problem is when the goals are not the kids' and are instead the dreams of the parents. This return to the good old days and kids needing to experience how their  parents grew up seems a lot more about the parents' experience and reliving their childhood through their kids just as much as filling their day with activities does.

Interest vs Action

Living in the world of education I am never at a loss for jargon.  Seriously, where else are you forced to sit in meetings in 2014 to listen to how we are going to begin working on a 21st century learning agenda by highlighting things that are banned and/or blocked (ya, those Google apps and iPads are probably just fads anyways) or were introduced in  the early 1990's.  Yes, the blog or wiki will surely  transform our system and the who can argue with the power of teachers tweeting out their homework assignments to the kids they just spent over an hour with.  Ahhh... I digress, what I have really been thinking about this weekend is the use of words like engagement and empowerment in education.

Recently I was reading a post where a teacher was discussing how we should not be working to engage our students but empower them.  Basically the argument was that engagement is a teacher centered experience while empowering students means that they will take ownership and carve their own path through a topic or course.  This is also a theme of much of the 21st Century thinking in that we need to allow, even demand, students set their own learning goals and be more involved in the assessment process choosing topics, demonstrations and the content they want to focus one to build real world skills.

My issue comes when we have rooms full of adults who think that kids should learn for the love of learning and that if they are just given choice and ownership they will be highly motivated and willing and able to engage in real world problems and complex projects.  The reality is school is filled with a broad spectrum of topics and content, some of which kids may be interested and much of which is really secondary to their more immediate concerns like acne, the cute girl who lives down the street,  the basketball tryout after school, their driver's test, how they are getting to work after school and this is only for the kids who are not facing any number of socio-economic and/or family crisis's. 

The fact is adults and kids most often want to sit back and consume information long before they want to "do" anything with it, even when they are highly interested in a topic.  For example take a common adult learning topic such as a photography course.  These course will be filled with highly motivated interested adults who are willing to pay for a course and usually make a fairly large investment in equipment as well.  The course will be well attended and people will hang on every bit on information they receive.  About two weeks into the course you will most likely be asked to put some of your knowledge into practice and you will be asked to go out on the weekend and take some pictures and present to the class.  This is where things will take a turn.  You will have a few people in the class who do a fantastic job and exceed all expectations, then you will have a few more who do  a pretty good job and make sure that everything that was asked is completed and competent and all the requirements met, a few others will explain they have the pictures but did not get around to getting them ready to present and the rest will mumble under their breath about how they are very busy people, they had family come visit, work is crazy, their cat got sick and can you believe it they went to go take pictures but something went wrong and their camera died.  Seriously people are very interested and invested in their hobbies but most, left to their own devices, actually produce very little.  It is not that they are learning or don't want to learn but actually "doing" things is very difficult.  Check out the number of incomplete projects that you have around your house some time.

So if highly motivated, competent adults can't follow through why do we think kids who are taking "required" courses will be able to.   Learning is hard and often requires students to engage with content they are not interested in and build on skills they struggle with and are difficult to master.  Of course it would be great if the students could see the bigger picture and understand that these courses are essential parts of their journey to becoming a well adjusted, literate citizen.  I am sure most adults understand the importance of exercise, healthy eating habits and meaningful social relationships but lifestyles simply don't reflect this because, just like learning something new, it would take effort and require some sort of action.  I would say if we had to grade most adults against a wellness standard we would see a lot of "approaching exceptions".   This is not to say people, adults and children, don't gain some knowledge it just means that the jump from "thinking about things" and being interested in a topic to creating your own knowledge and the application of skills is a big own, one that often takes years.  Yet we are asking students to take that leap every day and often several times a day.  "Oh but what to they get out in the real world" people like to say.  Well I don't think there is any other time in a persons life they are asked to focus on so many new and different concepts and then apply and demonstrate their understanding, while being monitored and judged at every step of the way. 

The reality is the apprenticeship system is the best education system in the world because it has the highest level of accountability and follow through.  Why do you think people join group fitness classes, sometimes we need others to kick us in the ass to keep us going.  Preferably that person is an expert in the area so they know what path we should be pushed or pulled down and what pitfalls to avoid.  Wow, sound kind of like the role of a teacher.  I am not a passive facilitator in a students educational journey.  I am a content expert, a sage on the stage, a surrogate parent, a guide on the side, a counselor, a nag, a motivational speaker, a curriculum designer, a cheerleader, I am a Teacher!  Students should be able to expect all of this when they come to school. 

Yes we need more choice for students, yes we need more flexibility in our curriculum, yes we need to reach out to a broader cross section of learners.  However, this means having more opportunities to work with kids and a lot of the 21st Century learning agenda and student "empowerment" movement is driven by reducing costs around the number of schools and teachers the province needs to pay for. It is curriculum redesign on the cheap.   If you think this is going to be the answer check in with a few people who have taken distance education courses and ask them how the experience was learning on their own with minimal direct instruction.  Or better yet, ask yourself when the last time you really produced a meaningful expression of your learning and understanding around a topic just because you know it is "good for you".


 

Sucked In!

Thanks to my friend Glen I have been sucked into the chain "getting to know you" world.  I have decided to skip the 11 random facts about myself so that I remain the mysterious enigma that I am.  I am also skipping the 11 questions for others as I already know more than I want to about the people around me and I am trying to embrace a more "ignorance is bliss" lifestyle.  I will, however, answer Glen's 11 questions since to not would be rude.

1. If you morphed into an all-round Olympic athlete, what would be your Winter Sport and your Summer Sport?  Tough one as I would pretty much compete in anything if it meant I could attend the Olympics, heck I would even be the equipment guy.  However, if I could I would choose slopestyle snowboarding for winter and archery for the summer because these are the first events of their respective Olympics and it would mean I could just hangout and take it the experience for two weeks (with a gold medal hanging around my neck of course).
2. What was the most interesting book or written work you read in 2013 (and was it paper or digital)? A tough one as I read some good books in 2013.  I think the most interesting book I read was the Sports Gene by David Epstein.  It is the rebuttal to books like the Talent Code and Talent is Overrated and discusses athletic achievement from the genetic standpoint.  After doing a lot of reading on the 10,000 hours path to success it was interesting to read some of the counter arguments.
3. What is a major change you would make to the BC Education system?  I would give teachers a new contract with a decent raise.  Yes, I know it is not in fashion to say it is about the money but teaching is my job and I am tired of losing ground as part as my earning power and standard off living go.  On top of that I actually think the public education system is not in need of a major overhaul.  We do a fantastic job of getting educating a very diverse group of learners.  Yes, the system does not meet the needs of everyone but often those individuals have needs beyond what an educational system was designed to address.  The best thing we can do for our youth is put them with caring, knowledgeable adults and when this happens the system works.  Sadly, this seems to be more and more difficult as labour uncertainly, earning power, and public perception is pushing teaching to a second rate job from a noble profession.
4. What is a work of art (any genre or form) that inspires or challenges you?  I am still a sucker for poetry, even though I don't read as much as I used to or should.
   
5. Considering the wealth of oil in northern Alberta that we seem anxious to liquidate in a single generation, are you in favour of the Enbridge Northern Gateway pipeline?  Well, very current events of you to ask.  I am not in favour of Enbridge in the sense that I of course want to see our environment protected and our waterways and wildlife remain for generations to enjoy.  However, the more practical part of me sees northern communities dying and I am tired of people having to move south to large urban centers for opportunities and services.  Something needs to happen for the the north to remain viable as a place to live and to bring people back and rebuild our towns.  If it is not going to Enbridge we need to have a plan for something else.
6. What is a food experience that you wish on your children (or nieces/nephews)?  food experience?  Not sure what this means, I hope they always have enough.....
7. If your house was burning, but insurance would cover the obvious expensive items and your family & pets were safe, what meaningful artifact would you rescue from your home?  I would choose my hard drive with my photos.  Real simple and not too deep but I have spent lot's of time documenting my life with my wife and kids and I would want to keep those memories not as much for myself but to share with my kids as they get older.
8. If you had to pick a different career than the one you're in, what would it be?  I am really not sure about this one.  Like anyone I often think the grass may be greener in another career but nothing I can think of would fit my lifestyle and personality as much as teaching so unless I was able to be a professional athlete I have no clue what I would be doing.
9. If you were to ever publish a book, what would you like it to be about? Probably a children's book of some sort where I could rhyme, use photos and include sappy motivational messages that I am a sucker for.
10. What was a great event or experience in your work life from 2013 (e.g. teacher experience for many of you)?  I had a lot of good moments in 2013 but most likely one of the best was getting a little more diversity in my job.  Teaching soccer, working at the Sport School and still keeping a hand in social studies has a really nice way to keep things fresh without changing gears entirely.
11. What was a great family moment from 2013?  Lots of great family moments but I would say the hot days at the lake this summer was the highlight.  Nothing beats having family and friends around with lots of sun and water to play in.

Well there you go my first task of 2014 done!