These two videos support changing the philosophical base of education making it modern, interactive, and creative. I think any good teacher already knows and wants to do this. The problem is that because of NCLB and MEAP controlling funding they are also controlling the emphasis schools are placing on core subjects and teaching to the test.
My tech class empahsizes cooperation, collaboration, and problem-solving. Most of my students are not very good in these areas. When I sub for the core teachers in my building, most of them are teaching the same way, read the textbook, answer questions, and take a test. Yes, they throw in a few projects through out the year, but there is very little creativity. Some of them even have new LCD projectors in their rooms. Instead of using them for creative web resources, they show canned outlines that came with the new textbooks the district purchased.
I would like to see textbooks abolished and teachers forced to be creative in finding appropriate resources and materials. It would be more work for teachers, but students would get a better, more relevant education.
Who among you has ever taught a memorable lesson that you would be proud of that came from a school textbook????
I love your question! Indeed who HAS done such a thing... not me, and from what I am reading in your blog, not you.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the great thoughts!
Thanks. Of course, I never have. Just went off on a rant a little bit in this post, but Web 2.0 makes you dream big and want to change the world.
ReplyDelete