My first reaction to the Fisch video, "Did you Know?" was one of bewilderment. I thought to myself,"this is all about survival of the fittest, ya know?" (no pun intended there with the tag question). But, the scary part with this video is the "fittest" are not us humans anymore. We're competing with computers (well, I'm using one right now so the two of us are actually collaborating) or at least we're competing with technology. Actually, as the shift is happening right under our feet, we're just trying to stay in step with technology.
How do we do that? How do we prepare students for jobs, as Fisch stated, that don't even exist yet?! I think we need to actually take a step back for a second here and realize that, we've been doing it all along. When I graduated from high school, I didn't know how to use Google. I was prepared with skills used B.G. I think some of those skills are still valid today. I was taught problem solving skills... instead of googling something, I had to ehem, look it up in the card catalog and dare I say it, take out a BOOK! <-- check out a cheeky video on books) I was taught good communication skills and instead of googling directions to a new place, I called the location, spoke with a human and wrote the information down (with a pen and piece of paper, not with a cell phone!).
My point is, while it's evident from the numerous facts in this video that we need to seriously consider the shifting and transferring of where and how we lead our students into the 21st century, we do not need to throw useful skills out with yesterday's paper. Duh! Recycle them! Okay, that was cheesy but in all seriousness, we can do just that and still feel confident our students will survive. Perhaps they'll be the fittest?
I'm not scared about this shift and I don't think any educator should be. I'd be willing to bet our government is scared... why else would they have passed NCLB? Why else is NJ undergoing a HS redesign? America is not at the top of the list... and I don't think it's because educators aren't prepared for this shift. In fact, how is NCLB going to help us with this shift? I don't think it will...
8 comments:
If the video helps snap us out of complacency then it is probably a good conversation starter, which I believe is Fisch's purpose.
I like your idea of recycle. Not trash what we are doing, but recycle it into a more usable format.
It's true! If the feds think NCLB will be the cure-all for the shift, then they must think that closing down schools is a good thing? Withholding money from schools that aren't up to par will help us move in the right direction? They must be scared, like you said, and they must think NCLB and the HS re-design project are band-aids that cover up the struggles that exist.
I'm glad you don't think teachers should be scared because I don't think our students are scared either. They crave technology and they have such desire to explore that this era is perfect for them!
Thanks for reminding me how things were done Before Google. I almost forgot that you had to write down phone numbers with a pen and paper. :) How times have changed so quickly!
Erica, I agree that withholding money from schools with poor test grades is a bad idea. However, the fact that NCLB has forced people to think about education more than they would have before, I think is a positive thing.
I know that NCLB has gotten ME to think more about education simply because the timing of it is happening at the beginning of my career. What was the "buzz" around school when Sputnik and A Nation at Risk were on the rise? You may be completely right that NCLB has gotten more people to think about education, but I'd like to ask around to some of my older colleagues what they think as well.
I just think tho, that NCLB has gotten us to think about education in the WRONG way. What's the saying, "no publicity is bad publicity?" Well, NCLB is bad publicity for American education and it's just not worth it. We should be thinking about education, yes, but in a different light... not the blinding spotlight NCLB has put on test scores.
I totally agree with you on your thinking of NCLB. Schools need more help not less help to improve the schools. The FEDS have to remember that it takes a village to raise a child.
Did the video bring you back to those old movies and TV shows about what it would be like it the 21st century such as back to the future and other moves that focused on what it would be like in the world in the year 2000? It did for me.
I agree with you, in order to be functioning member of society there is still a need for interpersonal skills. We know the world is changing, but human interaction is what our world thrives on. So they can bring on a super computer,because there will always be a glitch, remember Y2K.
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