As the year draws to a hectic close, and clichés like that one become more prevalent, I have been reflecting not so much on my best books or films or even restaurants of the year, but rather, on what I have learnt* over the past 12 months? Here at Modern Learners, we’ve spent another year, […]
What Have You Learnt This Year? Read More »
Stay with me on this. Its a topic that I think warrants a little more than we normally share here, and I promise, no politics and no mention of the “T” word… I’m not sure if you’re fully aware, but right now there are signs of a fundamental shift in the way our students will
The End of the Beginning of New Credentials Read More »
So what happens now that Donald Trump is the soon-to-be president? You can do a quick Google search to find out what the pundits think the direction will be. If you do, you’ll note that almost every initiative will continue to be driven by the same stuff: improving test scores, higher graduation rates, more college acceptances, etc.
I was lucky. I completed my teaching degree in the 1970’s during a time of new ideas, new directions and new thinking. It wasn’t just a time for hippies and Woodstockers, but importantly it was also a time of provocative and open discourse around education, which inspired vigorous public conversations around the role of school and
The Moons are Aligning Read More »
I’m struggling. I know I don’t usually use this space to air my personal angst, at least not explicitly. When Bruce and I started this site and this column, we saw it as a place to push people’s thinking about education and learning, and to create a different narrative for the work that we do
How much of what we do every day is part of a routine, habit, or in some cases almost a ritual? I know that for most of us the getting out of bed, shower, teeth thing certainly is, but when it comes to our work the context of the question shifts, and maybe it’s a
Bells and Cells and other Big Fat Myths Read More »
Like many of you I’m sure, I enjoy reading Seth Godin. Maybe not as much as I like reading Sarason, Papert, and Frank Smith, but Godin’s thinking is often a sharp left turn from where I often find myself. I was reading some copy he posted on his AltMBA course site this past week: Welcome to the age
Looking at Technology Through a Learning Lens Read More »
There are many times in our lives when we take risks. For some taking risks is an integral part of their daily lives. Racing car drivers, BASE jumpers are extreme examples; others might say the very act of driving a car or crossing a road presents a risk they face every day. Our perception of
At last count, there are 69 days left until the interminable presidential election in the US comes to a close. I’m not sure I even want to know what will begin after the voting ends. I doubt it will be pretty either way. In the last month, I’ve travelled to Australia and Canada for presentations
Undemocratic Schools, Undemocratic Citizens Read More »
For all that is being written about leadership today, it is probably not surprising that we often take for granted the responsibility that is attached to the role, or trivialise in much the same way the word ‘hero’ has become almost meaningless. Everyone may think they can be a ‘hero’, but everyone sure isn’t a
Leadership and Followship Read More »
Seems like not a day goes by that I read some education related article or post that leads to this question: “Why the heck do we do that?” Today’s candidate is an article by Jay Matthews in the Washington Post which laments the dire reality of writing instruction in the Common Core era, teased by
The Powers That Be Read More »
As a journalism major and a long-time English teacher, I have a deep interest in words and the way that they are used. If you’ve been following along here for a while, you know that I struggle mightily with many of the words and phrases that we bandy about in education because I find many
Word of the Day: Heutagogy Read More »
How should we scale great schooling? If individualisation is the mother of innovation, then surely variability must be the enemy of equity, and addressing that enemy poses an interesting ideological dilemma. If, as in France for example, we believe in providing an ‘equal education’ for all students, then just how far are we prepared to
Finding the Right Balance: Autonomy and Variability Read More »
For all that we have written about the shifts we are starting to see in our schools, there are an increasing number of questions that need to be answered. Where do we start and what is the path or roadmap going to look like? There is plenty of discussion currently around ‘deep learning’, so is that
One Small Step…in Time Read More »
It’s been interesting to observe over the last eight months or so a growing chorus of parents, authors, educators and even some policy makers begin to articulate their concern over the relevance of the current practices that we use in schools to “educate” our kids. While the arguments and discussions vary on the edges, it
