Having read pages 146-277 in Linda Darling-Hammond’s The Flat World and Education, in which the educational systems in Finland, Singapore, and South Korea are highlighted, here are the key elements to include in my classroom to prepare my students for the future:
Opportunities for Collaboration The most successful educational systems include opportunities for students to collaborate. Learning how to collaborate helps students to develop essential 21st century skills: relationship-building, listening, communication, planning, and self-awareness. In addition, studies show that students engaged in effective cooperative learning perform better on independent tasks later on. In all three countries, students engage in independent, partner, and group work in all areas of the curriculum. In Singapore, for example, students work in groups during PE to design games, and then teach them to the other students. Inquiry-Based Learning Inquiry is a priority in all three educational systems. In Finland, direct instruction for 50 minutes is rare; instead, students solve real-world problems, build, write for real audiences, and participate in investigations. Learning is grounded in discovery, and the discovery is applicable to real-world situations. This makes the learning more relevant, and makes it stick. Linda Darling-Hammond cites numerous examples of how these lessons engage students in real thinking about real-world problems. It was interesting to note that, according to one of the teachers interviewed, one of the more challenging elements of implementing inquiry-based learning is changing the “culture of right answers” so that students learn to ask good questions and to understand that there may be no clear correct answer. Education in Values In all three of the countries, instructional hours are spent on values and character development. Character development is such an integral part of learning in South Korea, for example, that “Moral Education” is listed as a content area, along with math and reading. Interestingly, the number of hours spent on Moral Education is fixed until 7th and 8th grades, when it almost doubles, then drops back down again in 9th grade. Opportunities for Innovation Linda Darling-Hammond cites an example of innovation in Korea, in which biology students developed an environmentally-friendly insect repellent that ultimately was a finalist in a national contest. Innovation is connected closely to inquiry; it develops the ability to solve problems in daily life through creativity and critical thinking. Reflection on Learning and Growth Built into each of the three educational systems is a system of assessment designed to help students become aware of and accountable for their own learing and growth. In Finland, for example, many students set weekly goals with their teachers in specific subject areas, then determine a path they will take to achieve these goals. This helps students understand how they learn best so that they can assess their own work and independently become better learners. Teachers also view assessment as a means to help students reflect on their own learning. Assessments are generally performance or portfolio-based. In Finland, for example, the main purpose of assessments is to “guide and encourage students’ own reflection and self-assessment.” Professional Development While this isn’t part of a students’ classroom experience, it’s an essential element of effective teaching. According to Linda Darling-Hammond, the most successful educational systems provide rich, frequent, and mandatory professional growth opportunities for their teachers. In addition, teachers in these countries have more time to collaborate, plan, reflect on lessons, participate in lesson study, and more. The teacher preparation and professional development programs model the characteristics of their effective school systems; they provide opportunities for teachers to collaborate and self-assess and they encourage innovation and creativity.
3 Comments
10/25/2015 07:30:54 pm
I agree with all of your points Lori. I am especially partial to Inquiry Based learning and time for Reflection and Collaboration. I feel that really having time to focus on these areas for growth would completely change the culture of the classroom. Creating an environment where students have ownership of their educational experience will create the life-long learners every teacher hopes to create.
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Roger
11/6/2015 05:53:52 pm
You hit the nail on the head regarding the culture of "right answers"! We in science, faced with the changes sought through NGSS are being asked to let go of the "right answer" to embrace the discovery of the "best process".
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11/7/2015 07:35:45 am
I too am a huge fan of inquiry based learning. I think the struggle with creating an inquiry based classroom however, is that it doesn't always prepare students 'for the test'. A conversation we had at my school yesterday, was that as an inquiry based school, we sometimes are judged on test scores which don't necessarily match other schools.
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