“What is School For?” asks Seth Godin

I recently listened to a TEDx Youth Talk at Brooklyn Free School by Seth Godin called Stop Stealing Dreams. It was on the future of education & what we can do about it. I found it interesting for numerous reasons.

But, quickly, let me share some insight Seth shared about “What is School For?”

• School used to be about respect and obedience. We trained people willing to work in the factory to behave, comply, fit in. School is like a factory. “Will this be on the test?” is asked often. Stay seated, behave, stop talking, complete your task. Repeat. You cannot vary from the curriculum, just do what you’re told and be like your peers. So students go through the learning process collecting dots vs connecting dots. They gain lots of unrelated facts and are expected to apply it in their job when they are older. Seth reminds us that “fitting in is a short term strategy that gets you nowhere. Standing out is a long term strategy that takes guts and produces results.” Those are the kinds of minds I want to work with- creative, bold, risky decision makers.
• Now is the first time we don’t need a human being to teach us because the internet connects us all. We no longer need to comply, we need to be creative. But can we be? Have be been prepared to be?

He shared 8 things that will change completely if we decide how to answer the question:

1. Homework during the day; Lectures at night

You can have world class lecturers teach more people. You are able to get one person to do it great one time. As a learner, you can sit with a teacher, ask questions, do the work and explore “face-face.” During the day you are applying what you are learning while attending learning courses at night via the internet.

2. Open book / Open note all the time

There is zero value memorizing anything. Learning is about gaining information and applying it in your life to become more successful in that particular area. That means assessments can’t be one right answer or one quick answer. It has to be a way for a learner to showcase what they learned and how it applies to their lives. Application over rote memorization. Seth mentions, “grades are an illusion, passion and insight are reality. Your work is important than your congruence to an answer key.” He’s right- what do you have to give that hasn’t been given by anyone else so far? That’s motivating rather than just regurgitating facts.

3. Access to any course, any time you want to take it

Instead of having to be accepted into a elite college and paying an inordinate amount of money to get there, subscribe to the lesson you want to learn by a top notch educator and BOOM- you’re in class learning. No lag time, no money is wasted. Its convenient, but purposeful. All you need is a monitor, keyboard and an operating system. Most people have this.

4. Precise focused on education instead of mass batched stuff

There would be no more multiple choice exams. Computers are smarter than that – they measure experience rather than test scores. This truly is the end of compliance as an outcome – cooperation instead of isolation.

5. Teachers’ role transforms into coach

Teachers deliver instruction a short period of time, rather they spend the majority of their time helping their learners take the information and apply it. They coach the learner through the experience until they are successful. A student might be in the same course for days, weeks or years depending on how well they are acquiring the skill. “Go build something interesting, ask if you need help,” says Seth.

6. Lifelong learning

You can learn something new everyday at the click of a key- so why not?

7. Work happening earlier in your life

Out of a normal school day, there is a lot of downtime transitioning from subjects or extracurriculars. When you are learning one course, this “dead time” no longer exists. That means you learn the main points, start applying, and begin your career earlier. You are more productive and more successful because you have really honed in on what skill you want to learn and every moment spent learning was chalk full of information necessary to acquire the skill. Remember point # 1- work during the day and school at night. You need to be DOING the majority of the day rather than sitting and learning. You can’t gain skills without doing them to create the habit. That’s where the majority of your time should be spent.

8. Death of famous colleges

That means the famous brand names have no relevance to success or happiness, which is actually true in numerous studies conducted. Just because you went to Harvard (or insert famous prestigious school) does not mean you are more successful for happy. It does mean you might have more connections or opportunities, but that does not always get followed by success or happiness. Its what you do with your life opportunities (the choices you make) that make your success. First define what happiness is to you and go out to seek that. Seth reminds of two important myths here: 1. Great performance in school leads to happiness and success. 2.  Great parents have kids who produce great performance in school. Once you can see past these myths, you can embrace a new way of learning and define what “school” really means.

So what I found so interesting about this TED talk was his question, “What is school for?”  For me, school is for learning. But then I broke down my day as a teacher and realized not a lot of time was spent learning. I was on stage a lot and my students were watching. That’s not learning. They need to be doing. So then I changed my approach and I got students doing the work. Their results were great. But I still was bothered by how much time was wasted in school. We had to be in session a certain number of days. Why? So what did we do? We went on field trips that were only approved by the district ahead of time that did not entirely fit in to the curriculum or add to student learning. We held spirit week and performances. These things were fun. We bonded and relationships grew. But, were they learning? No. So why not cut all that “fluff” out and just give students the necessary information and the tools to be successful, then let students grapple with it. Teachers can step back and facilitate. Students pass on in grades or courses at their leisure when they have achieved the skill. You might have varying age groups of students working on the same skill in your virtual classroom. That’s true differentiation. I am starting to warm up to the idea of REAL LEARNING. Although I think hiding behind a computer screen might not be socially productive or healthy, I do think maximizing every moment and coaching people through the acquisition of skills is true learning. Plus you now open your classroom walls to the global world- maybe socially its an opportunity to “study abroad” and make connections you couldn’t have made in a brick and mortar school in your neighborhood. When we are focused on learning, we provide unique opportunities to do just that. That is what school should be for.

In your opinion, what is school for? 

About the author, Gretchen

I am a teacher trainer and coach. Working elbow to elbow with teachers and teacher leaders to ensure instructional proficiency and student achievement soar lights me up. We have a real need in our nation for strong educators to remain in the field. My blog, book, podcast, courses and instructional materials are geared towards empowering teachers (and those that lead them) to receive the support needed to grow and thrive today, tomorrow and always.

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