I read the article "Why Kids Need Schools To Change" by Tina Barseghian. She bases most of her article on research done by educator Madeline Levine, author of Teach Your Children Well.
:She sites the five areas of change that "Challenge Success" brings to schools and attempts to modernize the obsolete system in place today. Challenge Success is a school training program at Stanford that’s been incorporated into about 100 schools across the country The five criteria are:
PROJECT BASED LEARNING (stress collaboration)
ALTERNATIVE ASSESSMENT (show what they know in different ways)
SCHEDULING (later start time for school to allow needed sleep time -she suggests 10 am! - and coordination of test days)
CLIMATE OF CARE (especially in large public schools)
PARENT EDUCATION (keep kids within their developmental zones and manage time)
She begins her article with the point that really ties into what has been a focus of our Elite training - that the job market is changing and many jobs are becoming obsolete. (A point that hits home to a wife of a marginally employed glazier!) We need to make sure we are preparing our students for success in this rapidly changing world so that unemployment isn't their future.
I also really liked her point that classrooms should mirror what our kindergarten classes look like - active and constantly engaging. What a dream for students of all ages! Who didn't love kindergarten?? Definitely got me thinking about revamping a couple things in my room.
An interesting article with some great links. The author has some nice archives on the
Mind/Shift How We Learn wesite.
http://blogs.kqed.org/mindshift/author/tbarseghian/
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