Logan is a 13-year-old who attends the Squaw Valley Institute and considers his education to be something called “hackschooling.” His school bases their education on the study of being happy and healthy. Students learn through collaboratively working with and learning from members in the community by cultivating curiosity and creativity. Logan’s TED Talk was inspirational and very well done considering he’s only 13. When I was 13 I wouldn’t have been able to get up on a stage in front of adults, let alone give a speech about education reform. Logan discussed how most of his learning revolved around skiing which is something he’s passionate about. He worked with professionals who designed skis, redefined skiing by “hacking” skiing, and who designed clothing and hats for skiers. Logan was passionate about it so he was motivated to learn and was learning how to build a happy and healthy life for himself.
Everything that Logan describes in his video is amazing and I wish all my students could be so lucky to have the same learning experience that he does. I also hope my students get a very small dose of this by being in my classroom. I give my students choice when doing certain projects, which allows them to choose things that are best for them and in turn motivates them to learn. Now, allowing my students to choose what they want to base their narrative writing on is not the same experience that Logan has, by any means. However, within our restrictive education system, I think I’m doing as best I can to allow my students to choose what they would like to work on.
I’ve watched many videos, read many articles and books on education reform. I agree that education should move students towards creativity, critical thinking, problem solving, collaborating and learning about what they are interested in. The difficulty I see with all the talk about education reform is that that’s all it is. It’s talk. Teachers have to teach the content standards from the adopted curriculum which is hard enough to get through in a 6-hour day. Would I love for my students to have more time to be creative? Absolutely! But how? I don’t know many teachers who wouldn’t like some form of education reform, but with all the demands that are placed on us, our hands are tied. I think we are heading into a time when education may actually change to keep up with our advancing global society, but I worry that somehow we will still be held back by the restrains of testing or whatever new form of accountability that is adopted. Teachers are doing their jobs. Good teachers teach the material and the students have fun while doing it. Great teachers create an environment where students have a voice about what they want to learn and how they’d like to do it. Additionally, teachers have been told for so long that they have to teach a particular way that you can’t just do an about face and expect them to do perfectly the first time. If we want to take our students from knowing how to complete a multiple-choice test well to solving complex problems that require critical thinking skills, we’re going to need a minute to figure out how to help our students and ourselves transition.
I know videos on education reform are not about attacking teachers or implying that we are not doing a good job. For the most part, I want to believe that teachers love what they do and do it to help students grow. Therefore, if students are not able to think critically, there is something that is missing: the curriculum doesn’t allow for it, teachers are not given enough time to deviate from the standards, or the worst scenario - standardized tests don’t require it. Schooling has always been about transference of knowledge from teacher to student. Now that that isn’t a priority anymore teachers need to be given direction on how to transition because it’s not an easy transition to make. My hat goes off to the innovators of the Squaw Valley Institute because I don’t know how I would even begin to establish a school that encompasses all that they do with their students. I love the idea, though, so how do we move in that direction?
Resources
Tedx Talks. (2013, February 12). Hackschooling makes me happy. [Video file] Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h11u3vtcpaY&index=1&list=PLbRLdW37G3oMquOaC-HeUIt6CWk-FzaGp
Everything that Logan describes in his video is amazing and I wish all my students could be so lucky to have the same learning experience that he does. I also hope my students get a very small dose of this by being in my classroom. I give my students choice when doing certain projects, which allows them to choose things that are best for them and in turn motivates them to learn. Now, allowing my students to choose what they want to base their narrative writing on is not the same experience that Logan has, by any means. However, within our restrictive education system, I think I’m doing as best I can to allow my students to choose what they would like to work on.
I’ve watched many videos, read many articles and books on education reform. I agree that education should move students towards creativity, critical thinking, problem solving, collaborating and learning about what they are interested in. The difficulty I see with all the talk about education reform is that that’s all it is. It’s talk. Teachers have to teach the content standards from the adopted curriculum which is hard enough to get through in a 6-hour day. Would I love for my students to have more time to be creative? Absolutely! But how? I don’t know many teachers who wouldn’t like some form of education reform, but with all the demands that are placed on us, our hands are tied. I think we are heading into a time when education may actually change to keep up with our advancing global society, but I worry that somehow we will still be held back by the restrains of testing or whatever new form of accountability that is adopted. Teachers are doing their jobs. Good teachers teach the material and the students have fun while doing it. Great teachers create an environment where students have a voice about what they want to learn and how they’d like to do it. Additionally, teachers have been told for so long that they have to teach a particular way that you can’t just do an about face and expect them to do perfectly the first time. If we want to take our students from knowing how to complete a multiple-choice test well to solving complex problems that require critical thinking skills, we’re going to need a minute to figure out how to help our students and ourselves transition.
I know videos on education reform are not about attacking teachers or implying that we are not doing a good job. For the most part, I want to believe that teachers love what they do and do it to help students grow. Therefore, if students are not able to think critically, there is something that is missing: the curriculum doesn’t allow for it, teachers are not given enough time to deviate from the standards, or the worst scenario - standardized tests don’t require it. Schooling has always been about transference of knowledge from teacher to student. Now that that isn’t a priority anymore teachers need to be given direction on how to transition because it’s not an easy transition to make. My hat goes off to the innovators of the Squaw Valley Institute because I don’t know how I would even begin to establish a school that encompasses all that they do with their students. I love the idea, though, so how do we move in that direction?
Resources
Tedx Talks. (2013, February 12). Hackschooling makes me happy. [Video file] Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h11u3vtcpaY&index=1&list=PLbRLdW37G3oMquOaC-HeUIt6CWk-FzaGp